VOL. XXIII.
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., SATURDAY, FEB. 4, 1888
NO. 5
INDIANA   BREEDERS.
The Live Stock Associations of the
Stats ia Annual Convention.
Increased Attendance-
est.
-Increased Inter-
Full Report of the Meetings of Hoosier
Live Stock Fanciers.
The week of January 23 to 28 brought to this city
breeders of thoroughbredstock from all parts of In-
dianra and many from other States, it being the
time set apart for the annual meetlrgs of the State
Industrial Associations. Each association in turn
was glvpn 24 hours full possession of tbe assembly
rooms of the State Board of Agriculture in the new
State House, and they celebrated their first occupancy of these rooms by rousing meetings and the
display of unbounded enthusiasm. Indiana holds
first position as the home of live stock organizations.
The a sociations of no other State compare with ours
In point of attendance, and It is doubtful if any
others have accomplished as much for the general
p emotion of thoroughbred stock interests. No visitor at these meetings can doubt that the scrub must
go-that the scrub Is going, and will soon begone.
We give below as full an accout of the proceedings
ot each association as our space will permit, in their
proper chronolo cal order. The meetings next year
will be held the last w« ek of January, as usual, each
association taking the same days of the week as this
year, and in the same order.
JEESEY- OATTLE BKEllDEBS.
Sixth Annual Meeting.
A marked Increase in Interest and attendance
characterized the sixth convocation of the Indiana
Jersey breeders, who convened at the rooms of the
S ate Board of Agriculture, January 23. D. H. Jenkins, of this city was voted the chair, ln the absence
of President J. D. Conner, of Wabash.
The annual membership fee was reduced from |5
to |2. A resolution looking toward an increase in
the number of books in the State library on dairy
aud stock subjects was adopted.
A committee composed of D. H. Jenkins, W. J.
Hasselman and T. A. Lloyd was appointed to consult with the State Board of Agriculture In an effort
to secure greater recognition for dairy products.
A. E. TAYLOR,
of Columbus, read a spicy paper on the subject of
"Klne." Hesafdthatof thedafry breeds, the Holstein is the largest, and, while some of them are
great butter cows, in milk-producing qualities their
merits lay In quantity rather than quality. The
Ayreshlre, a smaller breed than the Holstein, was
regarded as a good dairy animal, giving an abundance of milk and of a fair quality. The Quern ey
breed, the speaker thought, was very nearly the
equal of the Jersey, and is thought to have descended from the same ancestry. Concerning the origin
of the Jersey, the speaker stated that little Is known
beyond the fact that it was In the Channel island^
The purity of the breed has always been preserved
bylaws governing the Islands which forbid the introduction or any other species of cattle. Tbe first
Importation to this country, of which there remains
any record, occurred in 1850.
Mr. Taylor was followed by Dr. Levi Rltter, of Indianapolis, whose paper appeared in full In last
week's Farmer.
T. A.LLOYD,
of Ibdianapoli.sread a paper on the "Dairy," dividing the subject Into th« cow, the farm and the product. In regard to'the farm he said the location
should be neara line of transportation. The pas
tares should be well watered and shaded. The
buildings should be commodious, clean and well
▼entilated Cleanliness Is the prime object, and all
odors should be excluded from the milking i table.
The cow should not be too large, as the surplus ration to support a huge carcass is deducted from^rof-
jjs- Tfteflowof milk Is usually in inverseratio to
'he size or the animal, and a description of the typical flalry cow ends in the description ofthe little
e*sey. In the treatment of a cow the demeanor
Should be quiet, as it allays nervousness, promotes
content, favors a generous flow and improves the
quality. An even temper is a good element In the
«alry cows* rations.
BUTTER.
The above subject  was ubly  discussed by  Mrs.
^»teM.Busick,of  Wabash, in  a very interesting
Paper.   We make the following extracts;
.^etIme honored custom of stuffing with  corn
3<*er, any _in<_\ of hay( oat or wheat Btraw,supple-
ented p-rhap3  with  asmalt portion  night and
norning of bran, shorts or middling, or a few nub-
lm),i COr"' Uas the OIden «*«""e'ul method of turn-
anV^rtcuUura'Product* of the farm Into  milk'
n« butter in winter, and grazing on any kind of
shm-il** runnln* w»d *n tbe woods, with an occa-
scrub *ntUul ot»»«» summer. Yet all honor to the
i-et.^M Otfortr veara aS°* With scant fare and
you ^.,,?\Care She P1^'^ wel1 her part. But think
'   omu lh* *«at Princess 2.1, with her unequale l
record of 46 pounds per week, or those other grand
phenomenal Jersey cowa with records of 30, 36 and
39 pounds ln seven days, ever have developed capabilities for such wonderful yields, but for skillful
and Judicious feeding, coupled with the best of care
and treatment In a sanitary point of view*? Skillful manipulation of all the forces, appllauces and
mechanism that modern science has developed together with a careful regard for the small economies
of the farm, renders such performances possible,
and also renders the production of butter not only a
paying Investment, but a constantly increasing
osurce of profit. Butter comes in for Its share and
place In the hurly-burly scramble to annihilate time
and space. By the aid of separators milk drawn
from the cow can be transformed Into butter, salted,
worked and printed in marketable shape within the
space of six hours from the time the milk has been
strained from the dairyman's pall. This Is certainly
abridging the old process "with a vengeance," and
herein Is where education largely contributes to the
successor the dairy. The success or failure of butter is due mainly to the manipulation of the cream.
Given the best of agricultural products, the highest
educational ability, but coupled with a slovenly or
careless method of handling the milk and cream,
and failure will be written in broad lines all over
the product. Scrupulous cleanliness, with accuracy
of method even In th-s smallest details of ripening
and churning the cream, as well as salting, working
and packing tbe butter, cannot he too strongly insisted upon. I say nothing of washing, for unless
a thing is dirty it needs no washing, and butter that
requires washing to render it palatable and fit for
the human btomach had better be relegated to the
soap factory at once. lam aware that ln this particular lam running counter to the pet theories of a
great many modern butter makers, and yet I am
firmly convinced, and believe I could by actual
demonstration, If the proper facilities were to be
had, prove that the washing of butter not only injures the taste by destroying the "nutty" flavor and
aroma,but impairs its keeeping qualities to that extent that rancidity quickly follows,_rcndering it
both unwholesome and unpalatable. From the
statistics of agriculture of 1880jwe find that the
butter production of the United States for that year
made by farmers alone and exclusive of that manufactured by creameries reached the figures of 727,-
250,287 pounds,—New York State leading with 111,-
922,423 pounds, and Indiana ranking seventh in the
list with a record of 37,377,797 pjunds. Today Iowa
leads the van.
I look in vain for a mention of butter In the thirty-
sixth annual report of the State Board of Agriculture ofthe great State of Indiana. For while the
three great necessaries (?) of life, com, wheat and
tohacco, are given their full share of attention, a
single pitiful line, "total number of milch cows in
the State 447,332," embodies all the information the
intelligent compilers saw fit to give relative tothe
dairy Interests.
With but the meagerest facilities for information,
we learn that Iowa ranks first as the great butter
State of the Union, closely followed by Minnesota,
Illinois and Wisconsin; Kansas, Missouri, Dakota,
Indiana and Michigan stand second. Taking Chicago's statistics of the butter trade, we find that less
tnan fifteen years ago not more than 28,000,000pounds
of butter were handled' In that city per year. In
1885 the receipts were 92,474,781 pounds; in 18s6 the receipts reached the enormous figure of I07,"85,2u9
(nearly on«-seveutb the entire product ol the United
8tates in 1880), and tbe shipments 103,13-?,635 pounds,
while for 1S37 the sales will approximate 15J,000,ton
realizing therefrom $ld,000,QiO A single branch of
industry that In one of our great commercial marts
of the West yields 110,000,000 is not a pursuit to be
despised or lightly esteemed, and In this [great and
growing source of national wealth the little Jersey,
aa "queen of the dairy," ranks all other classes of
butter producers.
Geo. Jackson, of Beecfi Grove, read a long and interesting history of Jersey cattle. T. D. Curtis, of
Chicago, dropped into the meeting and read an Interesting paper on "progressive Breeding."
OFFICE ns
were elected as follows:
President—D. H. Jenkins, Indianapolis.
Vice-president—J. W. Sliger, Richmond.
Secretary and Treasurer—T. A. Lloyd, Indianapolis.
Directors—A. E. Taylor, Columbus; Kate M\ Bu-
sick, Wabash, and Dr. James Cochran, Spiceland.
The Jersey breeders concluded their session by a
banquet at the parlors of the .New Denison hotel, in
the evening, and voted their sixth annual meeting
the most successful in the history of tbe association.
INDIANA WOOL GB0WEES.
Thirteenth Annual Meeting of the Association.
The Indiana Wool Growers' Association met in
annual convention January?** Business was opened
by appointing several  committees and  then came
president's address,
by S. \V. Dungan, of Franklin.
Mr. Dungan reviewed the sheep industry forthe
past year, stating that it bad suffered less by the
drouth and heat that any other connected with farming, because sheep are able to subsist on very short
pasturage and cun find allving where other animals
cannot. The uncertainty aa to possible legislation
and the low market bave put wool growers tn a peculiar condition.   If they could  be sure of the con.
tinuance of even the present low tariff they could
count on a small profit. It Is not sound doctrine to
admit raw material free when that raw material Is a
home product, (live both producer and manufacturer a reasonable profit; at least let us have something fixed and definite. M.r. Dungan recommended the adoption of resolutions culling fur a sufficient protective duty. Wool produced by grain
fed sheep protected from storms is of a superior
fiber. In this respect Indiana can com.ete with
Australia on nearly even terms, and we should turn
our attent on to the raising of first quality wool, as
therein lies our strength.
This was followed by an essay on
RELATIVE PROFIT OF SHEEP WHEN FED FOR
MARKET, AS COMPARED WITH
OTHER STOCK,
by Isaac J. Williams, of Muncle.   He said:
I will give my experience with fattening sheep.
I have for some twelve years fed either sheep or
cattle, and I find the most profit Jn feeding sheep.
Last winter we thought we would try both cattle
and sbeep. November 2 th, we bought 12 head of
cattle for three nnd a half cents per pound, and their
weight was 1,100, average. And the 6th dayof December we bought 157 sheep forthe same money
that we paid for the cattle, und we fed them about
the same amount of feed till tbe 1st of March. We
shipped the sheep to Buffalo, and sold them, and
had £S22 profit for feed, and we Ted the cattlo until
the middle of April when they went off, and we had
$2/1 for our feed on catile. .So that we had $51 more
profit on tbe sheep than we had on the cattle, and
saved the feed for six weeks, which was 125 bushels
of corn und \S tons of hay J und the corn und hay were
worth -fcO more, which we can add to the profit on
sheep. We had very good gain on our cattle. They
gained 50 lbs. a month per bend all winter. The
gain was not so much on the sheep, but tbey laid on
more fat, and brought abetter price In market. It
Is not the number of pounds that you put on that
makes the profit. It Is the flesh that they are in
that makes them sell well in market. A poor sheep
sells meaner in market than nny oti>er stock. He
Vvill have to be sold only for his pelt. But If he were
kept at home for 6 or 8 weeks and fel well, he would
bring a good price.
I have had some experience in feeding, hogs, and
have found it very uncertain tusiness, on uccount
of cholera. It takes more hard labor to feed hogs
than it does to tend to sheep.
It the tariffis removed on wool, Australia, with
her 7\if 00.C00 of sheep.which it costs nothing to keep,
will kill the sheep growing business of this country,
and it should be made the effort of every sheep owner to use his influence against any legislation which
would injure a business which affords a living to
one-twelfth of the people of the country.
Remarks:
Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Dungan and others spoke
highly of ground corn and cob as a feed for
fitting sheep for the market. The general experience
was that when the cob is ground fine it has considerable food value.
DR. R. T. BROWN,
of the Indiana Faumee, being present, was called
on to say whether there was any way to control sex
in breeding, He replied that there was not, so far as
any one now knows, and there Is no Indication that
we shall ever know any more about It than we do
now. All theories have proven to be worthless and
all experiments have failed to throw any light on
the subject. Continuing, Dr. Brown spoke of one
phase of the tarff question; namely, the unjust distinction commonly made between manufactured
goods and raw material. We are told to admit the
raw material free of duty and thus to aid the manufacturer. This Is all right where the raw material Is
not such as can be produced at home; but if it is a
product of American labor and American soil, then
its free admission for the benefit of ihe home manufacturer is at the expense of the home lab<tr<-r who
produces that material and who has as much right to
encouragement of his industry as he who merely
takes the next step In fitting the article for the consumer. The raw material fur woolen goods is wool,
and it takes as much labor to grow a pound of wool
as it docs to make a pound of woolen goods. The
same Is true as to the production of rough lumber
and the construction of a piece of furniture. In fact
the line cannot be distinctly drawn between laboron
raw material and labor on a manufactured article.
For example, the miner produces ore, which Is raw
material for the smelter ;the smelter makes pig iron,
which is raw material for tbe rail mills; the mills
make.steel rails which are raw material lor railroads,
and as such ought to come free, if any raw material
Is to come free. The true theory is lo consider the
laboron both raw material and finished goods tho
same in Interests and entitled to equal protection.
The question whether farmers can afford to raise
sheep for mutton and wool alone, was discussed by
HON. FIELDING BBELER,
of Indianapolis.   His remarks are summarized as
follows:
I have never made any especial experiments In
this direction, having sold a great many ot my sheep
each year as breeders, and therefore at more than
mutton prices, but since the lute depression of the
sheep industry and consequent lessened demand for
breeding sheep I have sold considerably to butchers
and at fairly remunerative prices. Generally I sell
my wethers, weighing Jrom 175 to 2jQ pounds, as
Christmas mutton, at about 6 cent.-. \>kt pound and
it pays a fair protit. Financial success in growing
wool and mutton depends much on the man. If he
dislikes sheep, will go out of his way to kick one,
lets them fatteu on blackberry briars aud expects
them to prosper In the same pasture with colts and
sows with pigs he will find it unprofitable.   But if he
likes sheep, keeps them away from other stock.feeds
them well and shelters them. It will be fafriyjirofit-
able, in connection with other farm business. Otf
land worth fW to flOO per acre one sbeep to four acres
can be kept at a nominal cost from May to December. They are not much subject to epidemics and
the money for their fleeces comes at a time when
there is little to sell I-om the farm. I would not advise sheep raising as a specialty, but tlrnk there are
few farms where they would not prove a benefit.
Remarks:
A. V. Pendleton, Franklin: Wool and mutton
cannot be grown wilh profit^on land with over i?30
per acre. The place of the sheep is the mountain
aud desert, and this Is verified by the existing state
of things. On the cheap ranch lands of the West
they are grown with profit, but in Indiana we find
they have been placed at the foot of the ladder,
there being but 3 to $4,000,000 worth of sheep in this
State while there are i* 15,000,000 worth of horses,
cattle and hogs falling lower and iu their proper
pluces.
J. E. McGaughey, Acton: I find that the Ie:iv-
Ings of sheep almost pay their feed, so tiiat their
wool and mutton are realty clear profit.
Mr. C'uwglH, Wabash: Sheep are the most profitable stock I can put on my farm, 60 sheep being
worth almost worth the price of a hand in keeping
down weeds, etc., ami the manure being worth much
more than that of any other stock. If I buy 100
ewes in the fall at i*3iW, in the spring their wool
yields rne $150, und tliey bring about 100 lambs which
in the fall aie worth ij.fc.0, which gives $150 for keeping the ewes, or more than 100 per cent. For 25
years I have pursued this course (raising my ewes)
and uniformly with large profits.
At the morning session, on the question, In what
condition of  flesh  should  breeding ewes be   kept*
ROLEN  YERKES,
ofSnoddy's Mills, presented an  essay.   Wegivea
partial report:
It may be laid down as an axiom that breeding
alone can produce nothing beyond wbat is inherent
in the animals coupled and their ancestors. Itis
food and management that makes beautiful specimens of any strain of blood. My first experience
with sheep was with a flock of 30 ewes weighing
about 100 pounds each, and shearing five pounds of
wool of poor quality. They had been fed but little
grain and were so wild it took half a day to round
them up in a 20 acre field. I took them home in October, fed them grain'on pasture and by winter they
were fat. Then I fed hay and increased their corn
and oats to the full amount they would eat. My
neighbors told me I was feeding too heavy; that In
spring they would walk through their fleeces. I did
lose one fleece, but the others instead of shearing
five pounds, yielded eight, and the sheep
had increased 40 or 50 pounds In weight, besides
raising a better lot uf Iambs than they had ever before raised. I sold the buck lambs at three months
at an average weight ot Grounds. The extra quality of the lambs may be partly accounted for by the
extra quality of their sire. Since I have been raising Oxford downs my experience Is that my fat ewes
shear the most wool of the best quality and raise the
strongest and best lambs. I think a breeding flock
should be fat enough for mutton at all times. I
think I am speaking the experience of nine-tenths
of the sheep men who make It a business of feeding
for the fairs, when I say that the best buck In the
show ring is tiie best buck in the breeding flock, and
that tiie show ewes raise the show lambs. I have
never seen a sheep exhibited in breeding classes at
fairs which I should hesitate to purchase on account
of its fat, Tbe belief in over-fatness Is without stable
foundation and the sooner farmers' minds can be
disabused on this point .the better for their flocks and
their pockets.
Remarks*.
J. B. Herkless, Knlghtstown: I find that good
feeding produces good, strong lambs, aud my show
ewes produce my best lambs.
I. J. Williams: My ewes are never too fat to do
well ln lumbing.
Col. Beeler: I havc had trouble* with excessively
fat ewes, as their lambs are apt to be weak.
J--. W. Dungan: There is a happy medium in this.
Have your ewes neither too fat nor too lean.
PROGRAM FOR NEXT MEETING.
Messrs. Mitchell, McGaughey  and /Thompson reported the following  program for the next annual
meeting.
1. Report of oilicers.
2. President's address.
3. What is most profitable type of sheep forthe
farmers of Indiana.   S. C. Thompson, Southport.
4. How shall we manage to get early lambs?
Will \V. White, Franklin, Ind.
5. Sheep husbandry and its relations ti our wants.
I. S. Cotton, Traders* Point.
6. Wbat should be the qualifications for an expert judge on sheep?   R. Mitchell, Princeton.
7. Value of pedigree to the breederof purebred
sheep.   Mor imer Leering, Lafayette.
8. Difficulties to be overcome by beginners, II.
Yerkes, Snoddy's Mills.
9. How to .treat wounds and diseases of sheep.
State veterinarian.
CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS.
Messrs. McGaughey, Cobb and Phelps, gave a committee report recommending some changes In the
constitution and  by-laws of the association.   These
will be acted on at the next meeting.
TIIE TARIFF.
The committee on resolutions, Messrs. Cotton,
Levering, Mitchell, Pendleton and Thompson reported as follows:
Whereas, The flock interest of the United States
CenttnUGd on page -4.