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DOMINION OF CANADA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ■naoh of the Live Steok Commiuioner THE CATTLE TRADE OF WESTERN CANADA SPECIAL REPORT BT J. O. RUTHERFORD, Teterinary Director Oeneral and Live Stock Commiuioner L.U-.h«d by di«ction of the Hon. SYDNE Y A. FI SHER. Minitter of Agrioulture, Ottawa. Ont. AVOUaX, 1909. i*:i ' »• .■ J v.. J DOMINION OF CANADA DEPARTMENT OF AORICULiJRE Branch of the Live Stock Commiuioner 4^HE CAITLE TRADE OF WESTERN CANADA ' , ; /; f ^'-^ SPECIAL REPORT II Y ^J. G. RUTHERFORD, itinary Director General and Live Stock Commissioner Published by direction of tlie Hon. SYDNEY A. FISHER, Minister of Agriculture, Ottawa, Ont. 6581—1 AUGUST, 1909. t UNTVE? viTY OF ALBERTS : ■SAKY COHTENTS. P*Sf. IiitrfKluotion 5 History stj» of the brwdcM of pure brtnl 8t4)ck than to thofo of tlie ordiuury farmer uiid fi><'dfr. This was doiil.tlcsti* Imili proixr niindent of (jovcrnment aid 'or two rea. ma : firstly, because hr is a breeder and therefore, as a rule, n man of more entcrprioo. and wider knowle«l«re of business methods than the majority of his fe'dow tillers of the soil, and, secondly, because, liointr united with others equally intelligent, in one or more thoroughly organized and active breed associations, he is in a position to reach a definite decision as to whf.t his riffht? and nquirrments are, and to apply to tho«o in authority the pressure or j»erauasion necesaary to obtain them. On the other hand, the breeder :>t ftn^ler of ordinary live stock pays but little attention to the commercial ; spect of his business, an. r ..'hich our commercial livq stock trade is being carried on, so a» to eni.*)'<; "^ou to takr iuch steps as might appear to be necewary or advisable in the intore;.^ )f the producers. The present report is confined almost entirely to the cuttle trade of th*> western provinces, as, of all branches of the business, this appears to mo to bo subject to the most niimerous and serious disabilities and d'sadvantages. You will recollect that in 1902, at your special request, I preparetl a brief state- ment rcganling thi.s trade, dealing siiecially with transportation, which was pub- lished in your annual report for that .vear. Since that time conditions have been somewhat bettered, but there is jet much room for improvement, particularly in the matters of tran.-^portation and marketing. During the seasons of 1907 and 1008 special officers were employed to investigate all phases of the western cattle industry, beginning with the animal on the ranche and ending with his marketing either on this continent or in Europe. The reports of these officers, which deal very ful' with the details of the trade and especially with its transportation features, contain much valuable information, and will, I trust, be of great value in enabling the department to undertake intelli- gently, either by special legislation or otherwise, the improvement of existing condi- tions. As is well known the Canadian west is now experiencing the same change in cattle raising methods as has already taken place in much of the country south of the line, formerly devoted to ranching purposes. The incoming of settlers, many of them from the dry belt, has transformed large areas of land, formerly considered only fit lor ranching, into fertile farms growing great orope of grain and fodder. While there is yet much territory untouched by the settler and on which the cattle still range as formerly, its area is being yearly curtailed, and, as a natural consequence, the free, easy and somewhat wasteful methods of the rancher are gradually giving place to those of the farmer and feeder. That this change will, instead of lessening the output, eventually result in a large increase in the cattle production of the transformed districts, needs no demonstration. Under ranching conditions, twenty acres is the usual allowance for each head of cattle, while the losses from exposure, from lack of food and from wild animals constitute a heavy drain on the herd. The farming settler raises an abundance of feed of all kinds which he cannot use to better advantage than in fattening cattle. With the aid of his fences and with cheap buildings, or even with none, he can keep his cattle under constant observation and control, with the result that loas is reduced to a minimum. At the same time the cattle, licing at least partly domesticated, and generally to some extent grain fed, handle and ship infiniteW better than do the grass finished range steers which often, on the long journey i their native prairie to Liverpool or London, shrink the profit from their bones, and go to thp butcher in such a condition as to fairly justify the Scottish feeder in his persistent opinion that Canadian cattle can only be fattened in his sheds and courts. Again, the winter feeding of steers will abolish the heavy handicap which the rancher, pure and simple, has always had to carry in being compelled to mai',ll as in the newer west, and the farmer will have to depend for his feed on the output of his own acres. HIST0B7 OF THE CANADIAN RANGE. The ranching industry in Canada is rapidly passing. In Saskatchewan and Alberta the handwriting is already on the wall, and in these provinces it is only a matter of time until even the districts still regarded as unfit icr general agriculture will, through modern methods of dry farming or by means of irrigation, be brought under cultivation. In the Peace River country ranching may persist for a time, but there, as elsewhere on the continent, the settler will soon be its undoing and the cow- boy will disappear. This being the case, a brief history of the industry during tb« thirty years since its inception, may be found interesting. In 1879, after the disappearance of tine buffalo, which had up till that time, fur- nished the Indians of the plains with their principal sustenance, the Canadian Govern- ment brought in from Montana a thousand head of breeding cattle for the purpose of creating a future source of«meat supply for these aboriginal wards of the nation. This herd, the introduction of which was largely in the nature of an experi- ment, was placed in the foothill country west and southwest of Fort Macleod, and though badly handled and depleted by eattlc thieves and wild animals, soon proved, beyond a doubt, that the profitable raising of cattle in the Canadian west was a feasible proposition. The establishment of a number of extensive ranchfes quickly followed. Arrange- ments were made for the loasinj? at low rates of larjye areas of government land. Capitalists bocame interested, and money from Kurope, from eastern Canada, and from the United States flowed into the country. From lack of experience ot climatic and other local conditions some of this money was lost, but, with the advent of tho railway in 1883, conditions improved and a large and profittiblo industry was speedily built up. In the beginning, fences were unknown, the cattle being controlled by hcrder-s, but about 1885 the proprietai,- instinct Wgan to assi.'rt itself and many of the larprr holdings were put under fence, although, needless to say, the smaller owners con- tinued to prefer the oix-i. range system. The big concenis usodi almost exclusively pure bred bulls of the beof breeds, and, as the grazing was good and not over-stocked, usually held tlioir steers until nt least four years old, the result being that a most excellent type of lic«'f animal, full grown, and well finished, began to find its way from Alberta to the eastern market. Being mature and well furnished with fat in the fall, driven slowly, feeding and hardening on the way through a rich grazing I'ountry to the railway, distant oft'.-n many days* journey from the home ranch, these cattle stood the trials of the export journey fairly well, and landed in Britain, somewhat shrunken it is true, but still yielding a reason- able profit on the comparatively small cost of production. In the early days of the industry, only the best were exported. The lighter and rougher stock went for local consumption and to fill railway construction and Indian contracts. DETERIORATION. As time went on, the country became more heavily stocked, many men without adequate capital or experience began to keep cattle, cross-bred bulls became com- moner on the range, carelessness in breeding methods, lowered the natural increase, the purchase of stockers first from Manitoba and later from the eastern provinces introduced many very inferior animals, and a general deterioration both in quality and value became only too evident. The climax of this deterioration was reached about the year 1902 when, tempted by the low prices of Mexican cattle, some of the larger ranchers began to make impor- tations from Chihuahua and Coahuila. These degenerate descendants of the ancient Spaniish breed, although hardy and exceeding in length of horn, as in length of wind and in speo J, anything ever before seen among our western cattle, did not recommend themselves to the intelligence of the Canadian rancher, and, after a few years of trial, the trade practically died out in 1005. SALES OF PI RK HRKI) MALES. About the same time the effects at the policy of this department in establishing annual provincial auction sales of pure bred bulls began to make themselves apparent. These sales, although to some extent hampered by the jealousies of local breeders, as well as by the indifference of many of the less intelligent and less progressive ranchers, have done an excellent work in raising the standard of our western cattle, as regards size and conformation. There is still much room for improvement in this direction, and it is to be hoped that as diversified husbandry takes the place of ranching, the necessity for using a better class of bulls than those hitherto employed will be more generally recognized and appreciated. EFFECTS OP SETTLEMENT. The advent of the Mormons and others familiar with dry farming and the experience of a friw of the more progressive ranchers themselves, especially in the :4 Pincher Creek district, having demonst.-ated the suitability of much of the country for general farming, a strong tid« of immigration set in about the year 1900, and since that time, many of the old ranches have been divided, cultivated and built upon, and now form populous rural areas, rapidly beginning to resemble m appearance similar districts in the older settled provinces. At the present date, white many of the larger ranches have closed out, the cattle industrv is by no means at an end. It is true that many cattlemen, Keing the inevit- able end of ranching, have been rapidly ' beefing ' ou+ their herds by selling cows, spaying heifers and disposing of bulls, but this is only a link in the chain connect- ing the old with the new and better condition of the industry. The determination to bt>ef out has temporarily increased the output of cattle of range quality, but, while this is going on, the incoming settlers are stocking up, not to return to the old system of selling their cattle off the grass in the fall, but to follow the more profitable method of finishing beef throughout the y«ar for the good markets, as is done in other pro- gressive countries, where beef raising is recognized as a legitimate and useful adjunct t,j mixed fanning. The condition of the range industry was described in striking terms by a repre- sentative western cavtleman, at the National Live Stock Convention, in February, 1008, who said:— 'No one at all familiar with the ranching industry will hesitate to state that it is in a condition of rapid decline, dying as decently and as quickly as it is financially able to do.' It is not yet dead, however; there were still in force in the four western provinces, on April 1, 1008, 930 grazing leases, involving 3,259,271 acres divided as follows :— Manitoba. 12.G42 acres; Saskatchewan, 632,403 acres; Alberta, 2,132,718 acres; British Columbia, 281.418 acres. The average area under lease 18*3,481 acres. It would therefore appear that there are still a good many cattle kept under the old conditions, even when the sheep and horse leases are taken into consideration. WINTER LOSSES. From its very inception the ranching industry was subject to winter losses, more or less severe according to the nature of the wather, as well as that of the rancber himself. Even in the worst winters those herds whose owners had made reasonable provision for bad weather conditions escaped, as a rule, with comparatively little loss, although they also occasionally suffered heavily through sudden storms, which, coming early in the season, drifted the cattle so far away from the stores of fodder prepared for them that it was impossible to get them back before the advent of spring, or until a timely chinook enabled the cowmen to collect from far and near the remnants of the herd. , , . n j • The winter of 1886-7 was almost fatal to the industry, being unequalled in severity by any season, either before or after, until the memorable year of 1906-7 when approximately fifty per cent of the cattle on the range were lost. In the vear first mentioned, however, there was much more grass and many fewer cattle." while on the ranges then occupied there was considerable natural shelter, so that, although badly hit and sorely discouraged, the ranchers did not abandon the field, but investing new capital and energy, soon regained the ground they had lost. . . , 1 J • t As stated above, the rancher who makes adequate provision for a bad winter, may through unforseen circumstances, lose heavily in spite of his fo-esight; on the other hand the careless and improvident owner, who trusts to luck and stores no hay for winter use, is certain to be seriously hit, should the season prove exceptionally rigorous. . , ,, j > . Apart from the mere question of money, the practice followed by too many owners of facing the possibilities of the winter without laying in at least enough fodder to sustain life, is cruel and reprehensible to a degree, and should, I think, be made tine subject of drastic legislation. _ j • x » * It would be possible to go much more deeply into the question and, in tact, tn practically show by a consideration of its various demerits, that while in its own time nnd pliicc it sorvcd n ii.-cfiil purpose, tho ranohinB industry hns properly had its day, nnd that its onrly di-nrnnco from southpm Alberta nnd Saskntchowan need, ex- cept perhaps from the staiidixiiiit of sentiment, cause no dwp or lasting regret. THE TRADE AS NOW CONDUCTED. Tho export trado in wc-ttTii rnuj.'-o eattle, as hithcrtd carried on. has hron sin- fully wasteful, unbusinesslike nnd unprofitable to the producer. Cattle wild, excit- able and soft off pruss, are driven to tlic railway, h(l;h to WinniiK'i; witliont being unloaded for feed or water. It is .s40 miles from Calgary to Winniiieg, and as many sliipnuMits origimitc beyond the first-name 1 point, it may be readily seen what this iiM an-, even wii^n liie^ run is a good one. Some shippers un!' .: 1 at ^Ioo.sejaw, 410 miles west of Winnipeg, but others claim that it is alike more humane and more profitable to run through, as the cattle, biing still wild, excited and unaccustomed to handling, not oidy refuse both feed and water, but suffer much more in the unloading and reloading tl':ii ihey do when left in the cars. On arrival at Winnipeg they are always unloaded, fed and wateKnl, being, by this time hungrj', thirsty, and fairly quiet from exhaustion. After being rested they are inspected, cidlcd and reloaded, the next step being, as a rule, at \\ .lite Kiver, (>7S miles further east. There they are again fed and watered aiul after another stage of 7r.5 miles, arrive at Montreal. Here for most of them the land journey ends, although when navigation is ehised at that point, it extends to Portland, Boston or St. John, New Brunswick, as the case may be; very rarely to Halifax. At Montreal, however, all a.rc unloaded, fed, watered, rested, and carefully insin cted by the veteri- nary oflieeis of this departn.cjit, whether they are to be shipiH'^l by water from there or from some other port. If the latter, they are on arrival, rested and again inspected before going r .such conditions, our grass-fed range steers arrive in British lairages gatint and shrunken, looking more like stoekers than beeves, that our Scottish frii-nds think we have no feed, or that I should declare a business so conducted as sinfully wasteful^ And still it is profitable; profitable to the middleman who, coolly reckoning on tlie shrinkage, fixes accordingly his price to the producer; profitable to the com- mi-^sion man who pockets in commission what the middleman takes in profits; profit- able to the railway companies; profitable to the steamship lines and profitable to tho 5581—2 10 British butcluT wlio pa.vs oiilv for what he ni't8 ami not even that niiich if, by com- bination or !-harp practice of other kinds, ho can nianaKf to Icccp prices down. To the producer liowcver, and therefore to the country, it is the very inverse, and tho odd feature of it all is that if cotiditiona were so amended as to make it profitable for them, the others ni«ntioned above would gain, rather than lose, by the change. AS IT siiori.u UK. No wild, grass-finished cattle should be shipped for export. In a countrj- like western Canada which, one year with another, is full of all kinds of material for win- ter- feeiliu;;, there is no exeu:ion, no over- crowding or rough handling being permitted. The men in charge are almost invari- ably regular salaried employees of the shipping firms, and the same is true of the foremen on the ships and of those working under them. As a result of these superior methods. United States cattle, even when originally from the western ran;:;! -.. arrive in Britain in much better condition than Canadian range cattle, and of course command correspcmdingly higher prices. Domesticated Canadians, properly finished, land, as a rule, in excellent condition, and compete closely in price with the best States cattle of the same class. There is no reason why our Canadian range cattle, if treated on similar lines, should not com- pete as closely with steers from tho Western States. Finishing Bange Cattle. As a matter of fact, considerable improvement is already taking place in the finishing of western cattle, as year by year more winter fewling is undertaken. iManv thovisands of good steers are, in the autumn, put on a bay or grain ration for tho winter. When the fcedMg is liberal and judicious and good water available, the grass flesh is not only held, but gains on hay alone, of from SO to 1-2,5 pounds, and from hay and grain up to 400 pounds, are not uncommon. The cattle thus wintered are ready frtr the spring market, on which they usually sell well, prices always being betler at that season, the demand good, and, as but few cattle are being handled, shipping lacilities much better. Winter feeding is now systematically carried on by some of the largest operators in the west. Arrangements are yearly made by one firm with individual farmers throughout the country to feed during the winter at a fixed price per head per month. The cattle are handed over to these men on the ajiproach of hard weather and taken from them when wanted. While many are slaugbter>xl for honw and coast consumption, a large numbor may now be seen during May and June at tho Winnipeg yards on their way to tho British market, where, nei'dless to say, they get a much more favourable recep- tion than do those which come direct from the range. A carefully prepared estimate of the number of cattle on feed in central Alberta during the winter of 1008-9, gives 6.000 head being fed in small lots by individual fgr^py(._ ,,„^ 5 000 bea.i by large concerns. Tt is believed that 75 per cent of these were receiving a grain ration, and 25 ix-r cent hay alone. In the southern part of the province, additional large numbers, of which reliable statistics are not available, were also fattened. 11 Thf unnvth of the priu'tifc of fiiiisliinf; cattle on Xuniher of eattle shipjx'd east from Winnipeg', Jidy to Deeeniter, VM\j. . .. Sl.tiO!) Number of eattle n'eeived for local use, .lanunry to June, l!Ml(l !»,13!J Number of eattle received for local rse, July to Deeember, ISJOti 31,4t>2 l;!l,(i41 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, Jnnnary to June, 1007.. .. 1.1S7 Number of cattle shipped cast from Winnii:e)r, July to Decouiber, 1',I07. . . . .''>i>.rM12 Number of cattle received for local use, January to June, 1!'07 lt'i.:ii)7 Number of cattle rewivcd for local use, Jnly to December, l'J07 r>-.',L'o-t 100.200 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, January to June, lOO'^. . . . l!i,."):il Number of cattle shipped cast from Witniipep, July to December, 190"?. . . . Sti,r>9;) Number of cattle received for local use, January to June, lOOS 22,.'!42 Number of cattle received for local use, July to December, 190^ 41, ush off the groi-nd to prevent the steers getting in it. Straw was tilways kept !.efore them in an inclosure of stakes that would hold about a load, arranged so that the straw could not be wasted by tramp- ing over it. On Dee.'iuber 3 they were started en a ration consisting of 2 rount of steers fed indoor, 5,095 lbs. at :ii cents 177 97 Total cost to proHupp l)Opf :577 I'li 255 92 Out of door steers sold, 14,135 lbs. at 4} cents, less 4 per cent 433 71 Indoor steorn snld, 6,950 lbs. at U, less 4 per cent "S.j 56 Profit on lot ■'''■' 45 27 64 Net profit per steer '"05 5 52 Average buyinjj priee per steer '<4 5(5 ".> :>9 Average selling price per steer 54 21 56 (1 Avernpe increase in value 19 tiS LI 12 Avorajifi cost of feed per steer 12 59 15 59 Amount of meal eaten by lot of sti, .-.-■. . !<,t«!i2 lbs. 5,390 lbs. Amount of straw 8 tons. 5,6*0 " Amount of hay " 2,840 Amount of millet 1 ' Amount of ensilage and roots 25,650 Amount of com fodder 1 ton INV!>T.\li:XT AND LAllot I!. The net profit as shown here, $5.52 on those fed inside and $7.. " on thi.se fed out- side, makes no allowance for interest on investment or labour involved in tendin;r the cattle. For the outside lot the only investment was the i)rii'e of the steers aud_ the value of lumber for troupbing, o total of $280. The labour iiiei.lent to attending this lot, including the drawing of straw, feeding grain and cutting ice would at tli<- out- side not amount to more than the time of one man for one liour i)er day. The extra expense in attending 60 head would have been not more than tlie time roipiired to iliraw the additional straw — a small item. In feeding inside the investment is necessaril" very nmeh greater, no niatt<^r how economically the building be tlone. Provided a buildinir suitable for stabling ,30 steers could bo orf'ctud for $1,000, an additional gross profit of $2 per head woidd be r-.piired to moev interest on the investment. The labour rcpiired to attend to the c 'e fed inside >.a=, fully four timw as much as that requirod when the feeding v,ns d _ out- side. The jwint has been raised in diseussions on this -idiicet that a hirKi' part of the food consinned by the cattle fed outside must be utilized to kf-ep up the animal heat, and since those fed in a conifortable stable do n-ot have the same waste of he.nt to pro- vide for in the food consumcfl, they should on that aeeount lay on fat noro economic- ally. It must be borne in mind, however, that cattle that are not stabled grow a coat of hair more resembling in its density that of a U-aver than that of a steer, and that this provision ai-ds greatly in eoiiserving the animal h.at. Duriier the coldest weather that we had this winter, when for a^eek the temperature averaged 29 lelow zero, the steers did not seem to sufFor the least, and were not standing around the straw pile with humped backs as one might imagine. The cattle were always ready for their feed and none of tbcni went off during the winter. Tlie abundance of fresh air has no doubt a salutary effect in keeping the digestive system in tone. 14 The work cnrriei! on this winter is iiiti-iKl.-"! us iiitro(luot<)r>- to moro rxtonxive trials. KxixrimrntH of tho sort hIiov." .iiitlin<".l nuist ho coiitiimrd for a nmiibir of ypors. when .lifforoiit kinds of soiisons nro . Mcoiiiitor.'^l. h«foro tho r.-sults ouii Ik> mn- sidorwl of nnv RroBt vnlno. The i-iist wint. r's ro-ults »,a,v ho tnkon iis ropn-sontiiiK what mnv ho oxpo^'tod in nn unusimlly inihl wii.tor fno from sovlls. How those roailts will oomimro with whnt may ho .ihtauiod in a oiorc scvoro winter poniains still to he so<'n. Outdoor Feeding by a Private Owner. The results nehieved at the Brandon Experimental Fnnn in the one season tried have heen veriticd over and over aj?ain, year after year on Manitoba farms. 1 he follow- ing d.'s.riptioii of a number of years' foevere seasons:— Some fifteen years ap. -Mr. John 15. fook. of Newdalo, in eonnect.ou with the late Dr. Harrison, built a hirjre ham and started somewhat fxtensivoly into the busi- ness of winter feediuR of beef cattle. Aftt-r about three years' exiKru-nee during.' which timi> the, balanw was always on the wron»r si.le of the ledger, .other bun li of cattle was bought and fed hay in tho shelter of the .scrub which extends alouR he north side of tiie farm, the intention bcinjr to bring the cattle to the barn as the weath<>r cot colder. The cattle had access to open wi*er in the raviu.s and appcan-tter gains than the leaner one in the bunch, and we r.,rely find a steer so fat from the grass that he will not stand a finishing spell with grain. Thcs-3 st^-ers have usually been bought from some regular cattle buyer, a premium being paid for the privilege of selecting suitable feeiRH', until it rciichtsi a ittpth nf twc» or thn-e ffct i)f straw iiml iii')iiiirt>, I fnil t'.> »0L' tiiv.' ditHi'ulty of Kittiiiif it gBthfred up. And I contiiid tliiit I know of no lntttT way to convert liir|?«' cd, and wc aim to have th.'in comfortable. ' About the lir.st ot' December, or earlier, if the weather is seviTi'. tlr" cattle are fjiveij about four iH)uiid9 of groin each day. The uruin ia all fed in the evenings in trougll^• about tlir.'c feet wide, eight inches di'i p ami raised about two and a halt lict from the frround. The grain ration consists of a mixture of outs and barley choppi'd (bnrle.f principally) and liran, about oi,e-tbiril bran by wei>;lit. Finely groiuid elmp •lives Iwwt results and is most iipprceinted by the ciittle. It is our plan to feed aiiout ^ixtfvn hundred poimils of grain iM>r steor during the fei'diug period, ,,o>l the ration is increased in .Taiuiary to id'out eight pounds jht >teer per day and al t April to tin poMUils, This is continued until abo"; .Tune 20, when the steiTs are sulci. If tlio grass beeomes (rood in .Tun" less grain is needed at the tinish. ' In feeding enltle on such a dry ration, watering is of eonsiderable irnpurtunce. Thos<> who are so situati'd that cattle can have access to open water at all times nro especially favoureil for this work; the cattle iieeil to drink frecpiently and in small quantities. Where water is net so easily available it mn>t be kept in tlie trough as much ns the severity of the weatlier will permit, as a large drink of I'old water fidlow- iiig long abstinonee wouhl chill any animal and cause ti^mpurary clwek to digestive ])rocesvses. In regard to >alt, wo usually phieo a barrel in some .onvcnient phieo and knock the head in. • In carrying cattle until June, it is a great help if one has bay e!iouK-h to feed for about a month after tb.e snow goes, and by eontining the cattle, so that they will not ramble too far, they can be made to at least hold their own during this trying I)eriod. The object in carrying cattle unlil .Tune Inr been to wait for a profitable market. If the market on, say tlie first of Ajtril, was anything like ecpial to the market of June, I am sure that good results would follow the feeding of th" snnu- total 'piun- tity of grain in the shorter period. 'Now as to o;:r business netliods.— Tne steers are bought when cattle are at about the lowest, a premium over the market being paid for the i)rivilege of selecting steers of approved type. In wcjrking out our balance sheet we have been in the habit of charging the grain fed to the cattle at tlw rate of nO cents per 100 poumls. This wo consider a fair price in aji ordinary year. We charge interest, wages, and all neees- sarv expenses and have been able with a margin of li cents per potmd between buying and soiling price to have a balance on the light side of about an average of seven dollars per head.' Experiences of Others. The question of outdoor winter fattening was discussed at consideral>le length at the National Live Stock convention. The view held by many western grain growers, that winter fattening cannot be profitably done in the prairie provinces, was freely expressed, but it was just as readily refuted by those who spoke from experience. A delegate stated that he knew of a carload of cattle fed in the otK'ii air iluring the winter of 1900-7 on prairie hay and water, the gain averaging KM) ikjuikIs per head. Another speaker explained that 90 head averaging 1,250 pounds in the autumn, were niado to weigh 1,400 pounds by spring fed in a ravine in Manitoba. The feed con- sisted of straw and chaff that would oiherwise have been burned, with grain chop. Charging for the grain and the labour, the steers made a ch^ar profit of sixteen dollars ($10) per head. After summing up the various arguments presenttil, the chairman of the convention pt>inted out that it was simply the old story — some men could make it pay, while ■others, too careless or too lazy to do the thing projierly, would fail in the fattening of cattle as they would in any other undertaking. There are thousands of wheat growers who spend their winters in idleness after marketing the season's harvest. Continuous good crops, desirable as they are, have It v«rT sTMt dit«, and while the yield, following rontinuo,i» crr.pping. .» gmnff down, the land is becoming foul with wood., whereas, a system of miw^l i.irming. im- u.lmjr the feeling of the straw and otli.r rough feed to cattle, together with n suitn .lo sys- tem of rotation, involving spreading the manure on the hind, buildn up thr soil, keeps it clear of weeds, and hastens the ripening of the grain, thus reducing the danger from early frost. . . . • i j • Tlure are in certain sections of the west, farmers who finwh their cuttle durmg the sMuuno- and ship them to the British market. An example of thm mny U- sen on a farm ar Moo«„min. where Mr. R. J. Phin, is devoting his ntt"* <>" y are the steers thus turned off in good condition, but the land '^j'^""'^,,""'^, '^%*'^ bear a profitable crop of wheat, the straw being strong and the heads wcW filled. The racking of th^ .soil seems to have the effect of preventing a rank growth of straw and a so haptens tn. maturing of the crop. In 1908 sixty-five (65) acres were under rape but 8..me years double this quantity has been sown; this course of husbandry has been foUowcfi TOW for five years with satisfactory results. (b) Winter feeding outside.— During the winter montha, from one to two hun- drcl.teers are fed on cut straw and chopped grain. The equipment is not expensive consisting of cheap wooden troughs, up about two feet from the ground on the leeward side of the buildings. Adjacent to th« buildings is a yard with cheap sheds, but he steers fed there do not seem to make any greater gains than those altogether in the open. As remarked by Mr. Phin, "A big well-fed steer seems to take ittle heed ot the cold " The cattle fed are practically all Shorthorn grades, whicn are preferred, OS. in addition to being good feeders, they have size and v\^ight The following statement by Mr. W. F. Puffer, M.L.A., of Licombe, Alta., who i^ in everv sense of the word, a practical man, will be found both mtercatmg and in- struf — INTENSIVE FATTENING. (By 1'/. F. Puffer, M.L.A., Lacombe.) 'In the district around Lacombe and Red Deer, and in fact in that prrt of tlv province generally spoken of a-s Central Alberta, the winter feeding of cattle is becom- ing more general. , ,. . , , , . i p There is still plenty of grass throughout this district but the farmor is aire.;;.- occupying considerable areas. The country is somewhat .-oiling with abundant water, and dotted with frequent groves of poplar and some spruce, affording excellent oppor- tunity for winter feeding in the open without the expense of stabling. IT 7he metluxl of ftH-ding whiuh t now U-inK genrrally followed ntiJ wliiili, iiftcr nn experience of twenty yean of lattlc f lin*. tb« nio»t of the time in Alberta, I have mj-aelf found to give ttie most ifttiafn. >erally quoird on the Liverpool market one eent jx'r pound lower than lTnit«>d State'' piittle. In the United State* feeding di«triet». enttle nn> put on n full fee«l of corn almost fnxn the start, whioh is iefoi« them eonstnntly for six or eight nioiitlu*. One hundred hiixheU of eorii i» n<'koner is ehnngcd; ho lieof)me!4 ' 'ile and contented, fihi|« better and thun brings a better price at tiie eiicl of his life's joumej . We have just as good enttle hero n» in the Cnitcd State«. Choppeil barley, wheat and oats are fully equal to com as a fattening ration, but wo must give the cattle all they will eat of it, and when we Iriirn to do this, I contend thnt our cattle will not sell at a lower pricfl for cattlo for oxpor., and they had to contend with the long rail journey, extra freight and shrinkage and other expenses which would make cattle cost to the dealer in Montreal from 6 cents to 6i cents per pound. THE METHOD. Where there is no natural shelter, a corral with a tight board fence about 7 feet high, with a rough, straw covered shed for stormy weather is necessary, and even v,here there is good natural shelter, cattlo will do better with a roughly improvised shod in whioh to lie down during stormy weather. The rest of the equipment con- sists of racks for holding hay or rough feoil, which should ulways be kept tilled, and the cattlo allowed access to them at all times. The grain feeding bunks should be placed in the centre of the corral or in the open, where the cattle can get all rousid them. They should be about 2J feet high, 3 feet wide, with 8-inch sidtjs to keep in the chop, and if made about 16 feet long will bo found convrnient. With enttle not dehorned, nnd until they are on full fecfl, about one '•f those bunks to every eight head is no >ary; after they are on full feed n bunk would nccommoovo. will tomctimeb nverairo two |)oundt per head per day when on full feed dejH'niliuK on the (tiw* of the steer and tho «|uality of mii(rh feed anr hcnd lm»c ln«««n ««one, hidi» nor horn li«d horn roduooil. Any "tm-kmnn can r<>iulily iiniiirirc tin- time it rwiuirc* for such nnitnnU to nirain tho i.wt (rrounfl. It in fair to i«tiniBto thnt fidiv a y«>«r i« loot in tlw lUiiinnl'ii K^owth and a yonr di-loycd in tho time tho rjinchtiinn* mu«t wait for tho price of hi* crop of utocrn. I« thor<» 11 Iwifi-r way practicnhlc ? Thnt i^ tho qiiiotimi whii'li niniTni-t tho cnttlo- man. Hoii«inK U not nii easy prohlrni mid holp in oxpcnMlvo, hut fioincthiiiv nnixt l>o tiont' to pri'vi'nt or rrdiioc tlw cnornioiH liw« from fnlalitiox. nhrinkiyro mid xtiititinir, that iro«'» on from year to year. A yoar'* ''•niinf of tinn- and fi'cd would do n (front donl townrild u provinion for caring proporly for tho cnlvoH, oHiMoiully »ineo it cnn ho dono without oxponsivo housi'itr, or ovon tho ffiillTiu of Bruin. Many up to diito ranch oniu'ro nro reoodnirintr tho itiiportnnoo of proper oholtor and feodinu and n:nko f«pi'<'ial jiroviiiinn for tho calvo* diirinfr tho first winter. Hoiiith vhiHlit aro oonstnictoil in which they nro run 'uodo and fed on hay iinil oat shoaven or other Ruitnhin food. Others hrinK their eidves through HiicccKufiilly without tho nhed«. Mr. W. E. Too«, of Teo«, Alberta, the owner of n herd of (food cown. wintern hii» calf crop untiHfnctorily witiiout ImildinK^. I'Kscribinfr his exp<'rictice and nystem, Mr. Tees write* an follows: — ' I will try to irive you my plan ami oxiwrience in wintering calves. I have never woiKhed In-fore or after winterinj? hut I am sure I can hrinjr them throuRh the wor«t winter in very satisfactory fomi. Durinj? the hard winter of lOOfi I had to chan»ro niv u«ual «>Inn, as the smow was too deep tor Krazin^r, so I held them in a yard or corral. That winter I had some 40 head, and fed them on wild hay and jrreen cut oat feed, nndl I certainly had a fine bunch of calves in tho sprinji with no loss. I will try and explain my usual plan, desoribinff what I am doing this winter: — First, I have a good amount of pasture land under fence; in the fall I cut and bunch all the available hay on wild land and leave it in tho bunch for calves to run to. Then there is usually some fall wheat or rye stubble land, as I do not fall ploujfh, and I have plenty of straw stack for them to run to. About the last of October, 1 I. the calves from -ows to wean. I place them in a larfte pasture of twent.y or more Bcr. ., under hijrh polo fence, securely built, so that it is impossible fo' them to jfot to (' ■ cows, but still have a pood range. There T pivo them the best of : y, with either a straw stack or some ftreen feed. In 48 hours after separntior I let them all to the cows again, but this is really to l)enefit the cows, as by letting them drain the cows at this time ther? is no danger to the cows' udders. This plan I h.ivo always followed. I do not try to drive the cows to another inclosure, as some do, but they are separated from the calves only by this pole fence, therefore they are near each other nil tho time. It is surprising how little they worrv -"d fail. Th.' weaning is accomplished without perceptible shrink or falling off in flesh. In about two weeks' time I cnn turn thorn into the stubble field where they hive access to wild hay and where they will remain till grass comes in the sprinf- However, should the feed mentioned not hold out, I am careful to take them jdenty of wild hay. I do not feed any grain and havo no buildings for thoni, only tho bush and straw stocks.' BAILWAT TBANSFOBTATIOH. The best of beef may be raised and finished in our western provinces, but unless it can be marketed In good condition, and at reasonable cost, its production is not likely to be continued. The home demand will of course grow, as populatii,.. increases and towns and cities multipl>, but farming is certain to remain the chief industry and biif production will undoubtedly always exceed local requirements. Outside markets will thercfi re be necessary and the means of reaching them must be duly considered. ! 20 ''he iransiirtstion facilities furnished to western c.'ittle shippers have, for loii^, been declareil altogether inadequate. It is charged that the supply of stock cars is irregular, uncertain and inefficient, their construction faulty, their equipment defec- tive, that engines are overloaded and the speed of trains thereby greatly lessened and that as a consequence of these conditions cattle in transit undergo much needless suffering and their owners serious financial loss. While there is doubtless good ground for these complaints much of the trouble unquestionably arises from the fact that until within the last year or two, export shipments have been confined to a period, little, if any, exceeding three months during which one railway company has had, in addition to 'meeting the demands of ordinary live stock traffic, to do its best to move from 50,000 to 80,000 head of cattle over an average distance of 2,000 miles. llif^ cattle shipping season in each year also overlaps the great eastward grain movement during which every effort must be made to get the crop to the terminal elevators bofor.- thc close of navigation. In spite of those extenuating circumstances, however, there is both need and room for improvement, and although the a.loption of winter feedini.' wliieli will change and c.xtand the shipping period and the near advent of railway com_ petition will doubtless greatly better existing conditions, the reasonable demands ot the present day trnde must be given rcasoimble consideration. At the National Live Stock convention held here last year, the western cattlemen present declared that without prompt and radical reforms in transportation methods their export tnide could not, under the altere.1 conditions of beef production, be any longer profitably carried on. As a result of the statements made by these gentlemen, the convention passed unanimously a resolution that the matter should be referred to the Railway Commission for action and it is very gratifying to know that, on th- request of the western stock grow.Ts, that Board is, with characteristic promptitude, now actively engaged in remedying as far as pcjssible the faulty conditions which havr caused so much dissatisfaction and given rise to so many complaints. SniPPIXO HINTS. In shipping cattle practical experience is of immense value and if ihe shipper himself is lacking in this qualification, he should endeavour to secure the services of a reliable and trustworthy man, especially if he intends doing business on an extensive scale rtv following this course he will save himself much time, worry and inone>. This is particularlv tnie in the case of shipments to distant and above all to foreign markets. Unless one knows the ropes, he is certain to find himself often at a loss ami 80 driven into the hands of commission men and others who, whatever they may .1- for their regular customers, seldom show much compassion or consideration for t W chance wayfarer, who is trying to do business on his own acemmt. Loading must ho earefullv watched— overcrowding in a single car of a train loml may me.iu a heavy loss Cars -!hf ;ld be clean and well Wdded or sanded to prevent slipping; they .shouM be in good, sound condition, an.> train moves. . n „„ i At feeding points the shipper must insist on ample time and space being allowr I for rest, and must see that tlie feed and water supplied are of good quality and thiit each animal has an opportunity to get its reasonable share of both. TTndne delavs in furnishing cars or in the movement of trains as well as all cas,- of injury to stock through rough handling, violent shunting, or otherwise should n' prompth- reportcl to the proper railway officials, who are generally more interests, thnn their subordinates in seeing that satisfactory treatment is afforded to shipper. By looking sharply after their own interests in matters of this kind shippers wi. avoid much annoyance as well as financial loss. , m • • It is almost superfluous to say that cattle ship much better when dehorned, lln should, however, be done some time beforehand, preferably when close feeding begin SI or better still when they are calves. The dehorning of range cattle which are to be winter fed ia especially advisable us it tends to make them quieter and much more peaceable than when the horns are left untouched. THE BSESSED MEAT TEADE. Fully aware of tho disadvantages attending the present methods of marketing, the more advanced thinkers among our western stock growers have, for a long time, been earnest advocates of the establishment of a dead meat trade. There is no doubt that if the enterprise wore properly financed, started on a sound basis and conducted in an honost and business-like manner in the general interest of the producer, there would be far less actual wastage than at present. It is altogether likely that, had it been possible to secure the required capital, the trade would have been inaugurated years ago. For such an undertaking on a scale sufficiently extensive to furnish eifec- tive relief, however, a great deal of money is necessary and as our western rancliers are, like the eastern farmers, not much in favour of tlie co-operative principle, while several large interests have been rather opposed to any change in existing conditions, nothing definite has yet been done. A number of packing establishments in wliicli both beef and pork are prepared for local and Pacific coast trade are now in operation in Alberta and Manitoba, but no serious attempt has ever been made to develop and build up an export industry in meats or meat food products. It is true that in recent years some members of the great American Meat Trust have established outposts in t3ie Canadian west with results, so far at least, beneficial to the stockman, and it is possible that this action on their part may be only preparatory to larger operations, provided the field is found to be sufficiently promising. It is questionable, however, bearing in mind the methods usually followed by these gentlemen once their grip is assured, whether the establishment of a Canadian dead meat tra far distant future some praoticaMe scheme will be evolved which while affording a beter and more reliable and regular market for our western live stock will still leave the producer free from the trammels of any trust, whether foreign or domestic. ADVANTAGES OF DEAD MEAT TRADE. The advantages to be gained from the establishment of an export trade in dressed meat are, in the opinion of those who have most fully and carefully considered the subject, quite beyond question. . the first place, as has already been shown there is a very serious loss from the unavoidable shrinkage which occurs in the carriage of live cattle by land and sea over the enormous distance which separates the original seller from the ultimate buyer. While this shrinkage will, no doubt, become proportionately smaller with the general adoption of improved methods of handling, finishing and transporting the stock, it can never be entirely eliminated and even when reduced to a minimum, it will, I think, be found to constitute the determining factor in establishing the superiority of the dead meat trade from the profit point of view, at least as far as concerns all cattle except those of the very best quality and finish. As will be shown later there is good ground for tho belief that animals of the class last mentioned will continue to be profitably disposed of on the hoof. Secondly, the competition which would be afforded by a sanely established, honestly conducted, and properly controlled dead meat trade would have a marked steadying effect on the prices paid to producers. With such a trade in constant operation, we would not see so often the fluctuations in values which now occur, and which are often undoubtedly due to friendly arrangements between buyers, many of whom unfor- tunately appear unable to resist the temptation to feather their own nests unfairly by / 22 uiiihily cutting |)rices when stock is plpntif\il and easy to obtain. Dealers in Canada as well as in the United States and other countries never seem to learn that tactics of this sort cannot be counteracted by the payment of high prices when stock is scarce and when, as a rule, but little remains in the hands of the producer. Scarcity of this kind is almost always attributable to the discouragement and disgust of the farmer or feeder, who, feeling that he has not received fair remuneration for his feed and labour, disposes of all his stock and ceases to be a producer. If buyers of live stock, which, to a gr-;iter cVpreo than any other farm_ product, suffers from petty price manipulaiions, coul.l only be made to grasp the fact tliat the time for small profit margins is when prices all round are low, they would soon begin to reap the benefits of self denial in the form of a stpa