ANIMAL INDUSTRIES Illinois animals.—The farmers of Illinois are interested in the raising of animals as definitely as in the raising of crops. The animal industries are a part of the agricultural operations of the state. The large crop production per man of Illinois farms is possible only because of the large amount of animal power used per farm. A very large proportion of the crops of the state is used as feed for the work animals and the food-producing animals, thus leading to the consumption of crops on the farms where they are grown. The farmer thus markets much of his farm produce in the form of animals or animal products.
The following facts of 1910 are significant of the importance of the animal industries of the state: value of all crops raised, $372,000,000; value of all domestic animals, $331,000,000; number of horses, 1,600,000; value of horses, $192,000,000; average value of horses, $113; number of mules, 158,000; value of mules, $19,000,000; average value of mules, $123; number of asses and burros, 3,200; number of cattle, 2,500,000; value of cattle, $76,000,000; average value of cattle, $30; number of hogs, 4,700,000; value of hogs, $37,000,000; average value of hogs, $7.S0; number of sheep, 1,000,000; value of sheep, $5,000,000; average value of sheep, $5; number of goats, 14,335; area of Illinois, 56,000 square miles; domestic animals per square mile, horses 30, mules 3, cattle 45, hogs 85, sheep 19; domestic animals per family of five persons, horses 1.5, cattle 2, hogs 4. sheep 1; number of dairy cows, included above, 1,000,000; amount of milk reported, 320,000,000 gallons; value of milk sold, $18,000,000; butter made on farms, 46,000,000 pounds; value of butter made on farms, $10,000,000; number of poultry, 32,000,000; value of poultry $15,000,000; eggs produced, 100,000,000 dozens; number of eggs per person, 212; value of eggs, $18,000,000; number of colonies of bees, 155,000; production of honey, 1,428,000 pounds; value of honey, $190,000.
The following comparison of values for the United States from the census of 1910 and from the government estimate for 1917 shows the trend of crop values. The differences, it must
be remembered, are not due to greatly increased production but to the influence of war-time prices.
These figures show that the value of crops of 1917 exceeded the value of crops as reported in the census of 1910 by 14S per cent ; the value of animals and animal products had increased 90 per cent ; and the total value of all farm products 127 per cent.
Horses and mules.—The 1,600,000 horses of Illinois are dis tributed throughout the state with an evenness not approached by any other farm product, plant . or animal. The slight decrease in the number of horses in the southern part of the state as shown on the map is accounted for by the number of mules found there. This even distribution of the number of horses and mules over the entire state is due to the fact that good farm land is found in every county, and that the general farm ing operations require about the same number of draft animals per unit of area, even though there be important differences in the character of the soil, the value of the land, and the kind of crops cultivated. The cities and villages contained 234,000 horses, or 13 per cent of the total number.
The principal breeds of draft horses in Illinois are the Percheron, Clydesdale, Shire, and Belgian.
Since mules are adapted to a warmer climate than horses, they are found chiefly in the southern part of the state. Their sureness of foot and their ability to thrive on coarser feed than horses make them especially valuable for farm work among the Ozark Hills. The average value of mules is higher than that of horses. In recent years mules are being used more widely than formerly.
The wide distribution and great usefulness of horses and mules in the United States are indicated by the census returns of 1910, in which horses were reported from every county in the country, and only twenty-three counties reported no mules. The ratio of mules to horses in Illinois is that of 1 to 10; the ratio for the United States is about 1 to 5.