THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 PRESENTED BY 
 
 PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND 
 MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID 
 
MILCH COWS 
 
 AND 
 
 DAIRY FARMING; 
 
 COMPRISING 
 
 THE BREEDS, BREEDING, AND MANAGEMENT, IN HEALTH AND DISEASE, 
 
 OF DAIRY AND OTHER STOCKY THE SELECTION OF MILCH COWS, 
 
 WITH A FULL EXPLANATION OF GUENON'S METHOD ; 
 
 THE CULTURE OF FORAGE PLANTS, 
 
 AXD-THK PRODUCTION OF 
 
 MILK, BUTTER, AND CHEESE: 
 
 EMBODYING THE MOST RECENT IMPROVEMENTS, AND ADAPTED TO 
 FARMING IN THE UNITED STATES AND BRITISH PROVINCES. 
 
 WITH A TREATI8B UPON THE 
 
 DAIRY HUSBANDRY OF HOLLAND; 
 
 TO WHICH 18 ADDED 
 
 HORSFALL'S SYSTEM OF DAIRY MANAGEMENT. 
 
 BY CHARLES L. FLINT, 
 
 SECRETARY OF THB MASSACHCSKTT3 STATE BOARD OK AGRICULTURK } AUTHOR Of " A TRKA- 
 Tl.SK ON CJKA33B3 AND FORAOK PLANTS," KTC. 
 
 LIBERALLY ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 BOSTON: 
 PHILLIPS, SAMPSON AND COMPANY, 
 
 13 WINTER STREET. 
 1859. 
 
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1858, by 
 
 CHARLES L. FLINT, 
 In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. 
 
 Stereotyped by 
 HOBART * ROBBIN8, 
 
 New England Type and Stereotype Foundery, 
 
 PRINTED BY K. M. EDWARDS. 
 
Co 
 
 THE MASS. STATE BOARD OP AGRICULTURE, 
 
 THE 
 
 MASS. SOCIETY FOR THE PROMOTION OF AGRICULTURE, 
 
 AWD THE VARIOUS 
 
 AGRICULTURAL, SOCIETIES OF THE UNITED STATES, 
 
 \VHOSK EFFORTS II A V K CONTRIBUTED SO LARGELY TO IMPROVE THR 
 DAIRY STOCK OP OUR C O U N T B Y 
 
 DESIGNED TO ADVAXCK THAT HIGHLY IMPORTANT IKTBRE8T, 
 
 IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED, 
 BT 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 THIS work is designed to embody the most recent 
 information on the subject of dairy farming. My aim 
 has been to make a practically useful book. With this 
 view, I have treated of the several breeds of stock, 
 the diseases to which they are subject, the established 
 principles of breeding, the feeding and management of 
 milch cows, the raising of calves intended for the dairy, 
 and the culture of grasses and plants to be used as fodder. 
 
 For the chapter on the diseases of stock, I am largely 
 indebted to Dr. C. M. Wood, Professor^of the Theory 
 and Practice of Veterinary Medicine, and to Dr. Geo. 
 H. Dadd, Professor of Anatomy and Physiology, both 
 of the Boston Veterinary Institute. If this chapter 
 contributes anything to promote a more humane and 
 judicious treatment of cattle when suffering from dis- 
 ease, I shall feel amply repaid for the labor bestowed 
 upon the whole work. 
 
 The chapter on the Dutch dairy, which I have trans- 
 lated from the German, will be found to be of great 
 practical value, as suggesting much that is applicable 
 to our American dairies. This chapter has never before, 
 to my knowledge, appeared in English. 
 
 The full and complete explanation of Guenon's method 
 of judging and selecting milch cows, a method origin- 
 ally regarded as theoretical, but now generally admitted 
 to be very useful in practice, I have translated from 
 the last edition of the treatise of M. Magne, a very 
 sensible French writer, who has done good service to 
 the agricultural public by the clearness and simplicity 
 with which he has freed that system from its compli- 
 cated details. 
 
Till PREFACE. 
 
 The work will be found to contain an account of the 
 most enlightened practice in this country, in the state- 
 ments of those actually engaged in dairy farming j the 
 details of the dairy husbandry of Holland, where this 
 branch of industry is made a specialty to greater extent, 
 and is consequently carried to a higher degree of per- 
 fection, than in any other part of the world j and the 
 most recent and productive modes of management in 
 English dairy farming, embracing a large amount of 
 practical and scientific information, not hitherto pre- 
 sented to the American public in an available form. 
 
 Nothing need be said of the usefulness of a treatise 
 on the dairy. The number of milch cows in the coun- 
 try, forming so large a part of our material wealth, and 
 serving as a basis for the future increase and improve- 
 ment of every class of neat stock, on which the pros- 
 perity of our agriculture mainly depends ; the intrinsic 
 value of milk as an article of internal commerce, and as 
 a most healthy and nutritious food ; the vast quantity 
 of it made into butter and cheese, and used in every 
 family ; the endless details of the management, feeding, 
 and treatment, of dairy stock, and the care and atten- 
 tion requisite to obtain from this branch of farming the 
 highest profit, all concur to make the want of such a 
 treatise, adapted to our climate and circumstances, felt 
 not only by practical farmers, but by a large class of 
 consumers, who can appreciate every improvement 
 which may be made in preparing the products of the 
 dairy for their use. 
 
 The writer has had some years of practical experi- 
 ence in the care of a cheese and butter dairy, to which 
 has been added a wide range of observation in some of 
 the best dairy districts of the country ; and it is hoped 
 that the work now submitted to the public will meet 
 that degree of favor usually accorded to an earnest 
 effort to do something to advance the cause of agricul- 
 ture. 
 
DAIRY FARMING 
 
 CHAPTER I . 
 
 INTRODUCTORY. THE VARIOUS RACES OF PURE- 
 BRED CATTLE IN THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 THE milking qualities of our domestic cows are, to 
 some extent, artificial, the result of care and breeding. 
 In the natural or wild state, the cow yields only 
 enough to nourish her offspring for a few weeks, and 
 then goes dry for several months, or during the greater 
 part of the year. There is, therefore, a constant tend- 
 ency to revert to that condition, which is prevented 
 only by judicious treatment, designed to develop and 
 increase the milking qualities so valuable to the human 
 race. If this judicious treatment is continued through 
 several generations of the same family or race of ani- 
 mals, the qualities which it is calculated to develop 
 become more or less fixed, and capable of transmission. 
 Instead of being exceptional, or peculiar to an indi- 
 vidual, they become the permanent characteristics of 
 a breed. Hence the origin of a great variety of 
 breeds or races, the characteristics of each being due 
 to local circumstances, such as climate, soil, and the 
 special objects of the breeder, which may be the pro- 
 duction of milk, butter and cheese, or the raising of 
 beef or working cattle. 
 
 A knowledge of the history of different breeds, and 
 
10 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 especially of the dairy breeds, is of manifest import- 
 ance. Though very excellent milkers will sometimes 
 be found in all of them, and of a great variety of forms, 
 the most desirable dairy qualities will generally be 
 found to have become fixed and permanent character- 
 istics of some to a greater extent than of others ; but 
 it does not follow that a race whose milking qualities 
 have not been developed is of less value for other pur- 
 poses, and for qualities which have been brought out 
 with greater care. A brief sketch of the principal 
 breeds of American cattle, as well as of the grades or 
 the common stock of the country, will aid the farmer, 
 perhaps, in making an intelligent selection with refer- 
 ence to the special object of pursuit, whether it be the 
 dairy, the production of beef, or the raising of cattle for 
 work. 
 
 In a subsequent chapter on the selection of milch 
 cows, the standard of perfection will be discussed in 
 detail, and the characteristics of each of the races will 
 naturally be measured by that. In this connection, and 
 as preliminary to the following sketches, it may be 
 stated that, whatever breed may be selected, a full sup- 
 ply of food and proper shelter are absolutely essential 
 to the maintenance of any milking stock, the food of 
 which goes to supply not only the ordinary waste of 
 the system common to all animals, but also the milk 
 secretions, which are greater in some than in others. 
 A large animal on a poor pasture has to travel much 
 further to fill itself than a small one. A small or 
 medium-sized cow would return more milk in propor- 
 tion to the food consumed, under such circumstances, 
 than a large one. 
 
 In selecting any breed, therefore, regard should be 
 had to the circumstances of the farmer, and the object 
 to be pursued. The cow most profitable for the milk- 
 
THE AYRSHIRES. 
 
 11 
 
 dairy may be very unprofitable in the butter and cheese 
 dairy, as well as for the production of beef; while for 
 either of the latter objects the cow which gave the 
 largest quantity of milk might prove very unprofitable. 
 It is desirable to secure a union and harmony of all good 
 qualities, so far as possible ; and the farmer wants a cow 
 that will milk well for some years, and then, when dry, 
 fatten readily, and sell to the butcher for the highest 
 price. These qualities, though often supposed to be 
 incompatible, will be found to be united in some breeds 
 to a greater extent than in others ; while some pecu- 
 liarities of form have been found, by observation, to be 
 better adapted to the production of milk and beef than 
 others. This will appear in the following pages. 
 
 Fig. 1. Ayrshire Cow, imported and owned by Dr. Geo. B. Loring, Salem, Mass. 
 
 THE AYRSHJRES are justly celebrated throughout 
 Great Britain and this country for their excellent dairy 
 qualities. Though the most recent in their origin, they 
 are pretty distinct from the other Scotch and English 
 races In color, the pure Ayrshires are generally red 
 
12 POINTS. OBIGIN. 
 
 and white, spotted or mottled, not roan like many of the 
 short-horns, but often presenting a bright contrast of 
 colors. They are sometimes, though rarely, nearly or 
 quite all red, and sometimes black and white ; but the 
 favorite color is red and white brightly contrasted, and 
 by some, strawberry-color is preferred. The head is 
 small, fine, and clean ; the face long, and narrow at the 
 muzzle, with a sprightly yet generally mild expression ; 
 eye small, smart, and lively ; the horns short, fine, and 
 slightly twisted upwards, set wide apart at the roots ; 
 the neck thin ; body enlarging from fore to hind quar- 
 ters ; the back straight and narrow, but broad across 
 the loin ; joints rather loose and open ; ribs rather flat ; 
 hind quarters rather thin ; bone fine ; tail long, fine and 
 bushy at the end ; hair generally thin and soft ; udder 
 light color and capacious, extending well forward under 
 the belly ; teats of the cow of medium size, generally 
 set regularly and wide apart ; milk-veins prominent and 
 well developed. The carcass of the pure-bred Ayrshire 
 is light, particularly the fore quarters, which is consid- 
 ered by good judges as an index of great milking qual- 
 ities ; but the pelvis is capacious and wide over the hips. 
 On the whole, the Ayrshire is good-looking, but 
 wants some of the symmetry and aptitude to fatten 
 which characterize the short-horn, which is supposed 
 to have contributed to build up this valuable breed 
 on the basis of the original stock of the county of 
 Ayr; a county extending along the eastern shore 
 of the Frith of Clyde, in the south-western part of 
 Scotland, and divided into three districts, known as 
 Carrick, Cunningham, and Kyle : the first famous as 
 the lordship of Robert Bruce, the last for the produc- 
 tion of this, one of the most remarkable dairy breeds 
 of cows in the world. The original stock of this 
 county, which undoubtedly formed the basis of the 
 
HISTORY. EARLY STOCK OF AYR. 13 
 
 present Ayrshire breed, are described by Aiton, in his 
 Treatise on the Dairy Breed of Cows, as of a diminu- 
 tive size, ill fed, ill shaped, and yielding but a scanty 
 return in milk. They were mostly of a black color, 
 with large stripes of white along the chine and ridge of 
 their backs, about the flanks, and on their faces. Their 
 horns were high and crooked, having deep ringlets at 
 the root, the plainest proof that the cattle were but 
 scantily fed ; the chine of their backs stood up high and 
 narrow; their sides were lank, short, and thin; their 
 hides thick, and adhering to their bones ; their pile was 
 coarse and open ; and few of them yielded more than 
 six or eight quarts of milk a day when in their best 
 plight, or weighed when fat more than from twelve to 
 sixteen or twenty stones avoirdupois, at eight pounds 
 the stone, sinking offal. 
 
 " It was impossible," he continues, " that these cattle, 
 fed as they then were, could be of great weight, well 
 shaped, or yield much milk. Their only food in winter 
 and spring was oat-straw, and what they could pick up 
 in the fields, to which they were turned out almost 
 every day, with a mash of weak corn and chaff daily for 
 a few days after calving ; and their pasture in summer 
 was of the very worst quality, and eaten so bare that 
 the cattle were half starved, and had the aspect of 
 starvelings. A wonderful change has since been made 
 in the condition, aspect, and qualities, of the Ayrshire 
 dairy stock. They are not now the meagre, unshapely 
 animals they were about forty years ago ; but have 
 completely changed into something as different from 
 what they were then as any two breeds in the island 
 can be from each other. They are almost double the 
 size, and yield about four times the quantity of milk 
 that the Ayrshire cows then yielded. They were not 
 of any specific breed, nor uniformity of shapes or color ; 
 2 
 
14 AITON'S RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 neither was there any fixed standard by which they 
 could be judged." 
 
 Aiton wrote in 1815, and even then the Ayrshire cat- 
 tle had been completely changed from what they were 
 in 1770, and had, to a considerable extent, at least, set- 
 tled down into a breed with fixed characteristics, distin- 
 guished especially for an abundant flow and a rich qual- 
 ity of milk. A large part of the improvement then 
 manifested was due to better feeding and care, but 
 much, no doubt, to judicious crossing. Strange as it 
 may seem, considering the modern origin of this breed, 
 " all that is certainly known is that a century ago there 
 was no such breed as Cunningham or Ayrshire in Scot- 
 land. Did the Ayrshire cattle arise entirely from a 
 careful selection of the best native breed ? If they did, 
 it is a circumstance unparalleled in the history of agri- 
 culture. The native breed may be ameliorated by care- 
 ful selection ; its value may be incalculably increased ; 
 some good qualities, some of its best qualities, may be 
 for the first time developed ; but yet there will be some 
 resemblance to the original stock, and the more we 
 examine the animal the more clearly we can trace out 
 the characteristic points of the ancestor, although every 
 one of them is improved." 
 
 Aiton remembered well the time when some short- 
 horn or Dutch cattle, as they were then called, were 
 procured by some gentlemen in Scotland, and particu- 
 larly by one John Dunlop, of Cunningham, who brought 
 some Dutch cows doubtless short-horns to his 
 byres soon after the year 1760. As they were tnen 
 provided with the best of pasture, and the dairy was 
 the chief object of the neighborhood, these cattle soon 
 excited attention, and the small farmers began to raise 
 up crosses from them. This was in Cunningham, one 
 of the districts of Ayrshire, and Mr. Dunlop's were, 
 
THE TEESWATER. DUTCH. 15 
 
 without doubt, among the first of the stranger bieed 
 that reached that region. About 1750, a little previous 
 to the above date, the Earl of Marchruont bought of the 
 Bishop of Durham several cows and a bull of the Tees- 
 water breed, all of a brown color spotted with white, 
 and kept them some time at his seat in Berwickshire. 
 His lordship had extensive estates in Kyle, another dis- 
 trict of Ayrshire, and thither his factor, Bruce Camp- 
 bell, took some of the Teeswater breed and kept them 
 for some time, and their progeny spread over various 
 parts of Ayrshire. A bull, after serving many cows of 
 the estates already mentioned, was sold to a Mr. Hamil- 
 ton, in another quarter of Ayrshire, and raised a numer- 
 ous offspring. 
 
 About the year 1767, also, John Orr sent from Glas- 
 gow to his estate in Ayrshire some fine milch cows, of 
 a much larger size than any then in that region. One 
 of them cost six pounds, which was more than twice 
 the price of the best cow in that quarter. These cows 
 were well fed, and of course yielded a large return of 
 milk ; and the farmers, for miles around, were eager to 
 get their calves to raise. 
 
 About the same time, also, a few other noblemen and 
 gentlemen, stimulated by example, bought cattle of the 
 same appearance, in color brown spotted with white, all 
 of them larger than the native cattle of the county, 
 and when well fed yielding much larger quantities of 
 milk, and their calves were all raised. Bulls of their 
 breed and color were preferred to all others. 
 
 From the description given of these cattle, there is 
 no doubt that they were the old Teeswater, or Dutch ; 
 the foundation, also, according to the best authorities, of 
 the modern improved short-horns. With them and the 
 crosses obtained from them the whole county gradu- 
 ally became stocked, and supplied the neighboring 
 
16 EFFECT OF INJUDICIOUS CROSSING. 
 
 counties, by degrees, till at present the whole region, 
 comprising the counties of Ayr, Renfrew, Lanark, Dum- 
 barton, and Stirling, and more than a fourth part of the 
 whole population of Scotland, a large proportion of 
 which is engaged in manufactures and commercial or 
 mechanical pursuits, furnishing a ready market for milk 
 and butter, is almost exclusively stocked with Ayrshires. 
 
 The cross with larger cattle and the natives of Ayr- 
 shire produced, for many years, an ugly-looking beast, 
 and the farmers were long in finding out that they had 
 violated one of the plain principles of breeding in 
 coupling a large and small breed so indiscriminately 
 together, especially in the use of bulls proportionately 
 larger than the cows to which they were put. They 
 did not then understand that no crosses could be made 
 in that way to increase the size of a race, without a 
 corresponding increase in the feed ; and many very 
 ill-shaped animals were the consequence of ignorance 
 of a natural law. They made large bones, but they 
 were never strong and vigorous in proportion to their 
 size. Trying to keep large animals on poor pasture 
 produced the same effect. The results of first crosses 
 were therefore very unsatisfactory ; but gradually bet- 
 ter feeding and a reduction in size came to their aid, 
 while in the course of years more enlightened views of 
 farming led to higher cultivation, and consequently to 
 higher and better care and attention to stock. The 
 effect of crosses with the larger Teeswater or short- 
 horn was not so disastrous in Ayrshire as in some of 
 the mountain breeds, whose feed was far less, while 
 their exposure on high and short pastures was greater. 
 
 The climate of Ayrshire is moist and mild, and the 
 soil rich, clayey, and well adapted to pasturage, but 
 difficult to till. The cattle are naturally hardy and 
 active, and capable of enduring severe winters, and 
 
IMPROVEMENTS. FORM OF THE BULL. 17 
 
 of easily regaining condition with the return of spring 
 and good feed. The pasture-land of the county is 
 devoted to dairy stock, chiefly for making butter 
 and cheese, a small part only being used for fattening 
 cows when too old to keep for the dairy. The breed 
 has undergone very marked improvements since Aiton 
 wrote, in 1815. The local demand for fresh dairy prod- 
 ucts has very naturally taxed the skill and judgment of 
 the farmers and dairy-men to the utmost, through a 
 long course of years ; and thus the remarkable milking 
 qualities of the Ayrshires have been developed to such a 
 degree that they may be said to produce a larger quan- 
 tity of rich milk and butter in proportion to the food 
 consumed, or the cost of production, than any other of 
 the pure-bred races. The owners of dairies in the 
 county of Ayr and the neighborhood were generally 
 small tenants, who took charge of their stock them- 
 selves, saving and breeding from the offspring of good 
 milkers, and drying off and feeding such as were found 
 to be unprofitable for milk, for the butcher ; and thus the 
 production of milk and butter has for many years been 
 the leading object with the owners of this breed, and 
 symmetry of form and perfection of points for any other 
 object have been very much disregarded, or, if regarded 
 at all, only from this one point of view the produc- 
 tion of the greatest quantity of rich milk. 
 
 The manner in which this result has been brought 
 about may further be seen in a remark of Aiton, who 
 says that the Ayrshire farmers prefer their dairy bulls 
 according to the feminine aspect of their heads and 
 necks, and wish them not round behind, but broad at 
 the hook-bones and hips, and full in the flanks. This 
 was more than forty years ago, and under such circum- 
 stances, and with such care in the selection of bulls and 
 cows with reference to one specific object, it is not 
 2* 2 
 
18 YIELD. QUANTITY. QUALITY. 
 
 surprising that we find a breed now wholly unsurpassed 
 when the quantity and quality of their produce is con- 
 sidered with reference to their proportional size and 
 
 Fig. 2. Ayrshire Bull "ALBERT," 
 Imported and owned by the Mass. Soc. for Promoting Agriculture. 
 
 the food they consume. The Ayrshire cow has been 
 known to produce over ten imperial gallons of good 
 milk a day. 
 
 A cow-feeder in Glasgow, selling fresh milk, is said 
 to have realized two hundred and fifty dollars in seven 
 months from one good cow ; and it is stated, on high 
 authority, that a dollar a day for six months of the year 
 is no uncommon income from good cows under similar 
 circumstances, and that seventy-five cents a day is be- 
 low the average. But this implies high and judicious 
 feeding, of course : the average yield, on ordinary feed, 
 would be considerably less. 
 
 Youatt estimates the daily yield of an Ayrshire cow, 
 for the first two or three months after calving, at five 
 gallons a day, on an average ; for the next three months, 
 at three gallons ; and for the next four months, at one 
 gallon and a half. This would be 850 gallons as the 
 
YIELD INFLUENCED BY CLIMATE. 19 
 
 annual average of a cow ; but, allowing for some unpro- 
 ductive cows, he estimates the average of a dairy at GOO 
 gallons per annum for each cow. Three gallons and a 
 half of the Ayrshire cow's milk will yield one and a 
 half pounds of butter. He therefore reckons 257 
 pounds of butter, or 514 pounds of cheese, at the rate 
 of 24 pounds to 28 gallons of milk, as the yield of every 
 cow, at a fair and perhaps rather low average, in an 
 Ayrshire dairy, during the year. Aiton sets the yield 
 much higher, saying that " thousands of the best Ayr- 
 shire dairy-cows, when in prime condition and well fed, 
 produce 1000 gallons of milk per annum ; that in gene- 
 ral three and three quarters to four gallons of their milk 
 will yield a pound and a half of butter ; and that 27^ 
 gallons of their milk will make 21 pounds of full-milk 
 cheese." Mr. Rankin puts it lower at about 650 to 
 700 gallons to each cow ; on his own farm of inferior 
 soil, his dairy produced an average of 550 gallons only. 
 One of the four cows originally imported into this 
 country by John P. Gushing, Esq., of Massachusetts, 
 gave in one year 3864 quarts, beer measure, or about 
 966 gallons, at ten pounds to the gallon, being an aver- 
 age of over ten and a half beer quarts a day for the 
 whole year. It is asserted, on good authority, that the 
 first Ayrshire cow imported by the Massachusetts Soci- 
 ety for the Promotion of Agriculture, in 1837, yielded 
 sixteen pounds of butter a week, for several weeks in 
 succession, on grass feed only. These yields aro not 
 so large as those stated by Aiton ; but it should, per- 
 haps, be recollected that our climate is less favorable 
 to the production of milk than that of England and Scot- 
 land, and that no cow imported after arriving at matur- 
 ity could be expected to yield as much, under the same 
 circumstances, as one bred on the spot where the trial 
 is made, and perfectly acclimated. 
 
20 COMPARATIVE TRIALS. HARLEY. 
 
 In a series of experiments on the Earl of Chester- 
 field's dairy farm, at Bradley Hall, interesting as giving 
 positive data on which to form a judgment as to the 
 yield, it was found that, in the height of the season, the 
 Holderness cows gave 7 gallons 1 quart per diem ; the 
 long-horns and Alderneys, 4 gallons 3 quarts ; the Dev- 
 ons, 4 gallons 1 quart ; and that, when made into butter, 
 the above quantities gave, respectively, 38 ounces, 28 
 ounces, and 25 ounces. 
 
 The Ayrshire, a cow far smaller than the Holderness, 
 at 5 gallons of milk and 34 ounces of butter per day, 
 gives a fair average as to yield of milk, and an enor- 
 mous production of butter, giving within 4 ounces as 
 much from her 5 gallons as the Holderness from her 7 
 gallons 1 quart ; her rate being nearly 7 ounces to the 
 gallon, while that of the Holderness is considerably 
 under 6 ounces. 
 
 The evidence of a large and practical dairyman is cer- 
 tainly of the highest value ; and in this connection it 
 may be stated that Mr. Harley, the author of the Harle- 
 ian Dairy System, who established the celebrated Wil- 
 lowbank Dairy, in Glasgow, and who kept, at times, 
 from two hundred and sixty to three hundred cows, 
 always using the utmost care in selection, says that he 
 had cows, by way of experiment, from different parts 
 of the united kingdom. He purchased ten at one Edin- 
 burgh market, of the large short-horned breed, at 
 twenty pounds each, but these did not give more milk, 
 nor better in quality, than Ayrshire cows that were 
 bought at the same period for thirteen pounds a head; 
 and, on comparison, it was found that the latter were 
 much cheaper kept, and that they improved much more 
 in beef and fat in proportion to their size, than the 
 high-priced cows. A decided preference was therefore 
 given to the improved Ayrshire breed, from seven to 
 
BUYING. HARLEY'S RULES. 21 
 
 ten years old, and from eight to twenty pounds a head. 
 Prime young cows were too high-priced for stall feed- 
 ing ; old cows were generally the most profitable in the 
 long run, especially if they were not previously in good 
 keeping. The cows were generally bought when near 
 calving, which prevented the barbarous practice called 
 hafting, or allowing the milk to remain upon the cow 
 for a considerable time before she is brought to the 
 market. This base and cruel custom is always perni- 
 cious to the cow, and in consequence of it she seldom 
 recovers her milk for the season. The middling and 
 large sizes of cows were preferred, such as weighed 
 from thirty-five to fifty stone, or from five hundred to 
 eight hundred pounds. 
 
 According to Mr. Harley, the most approved shape 
 arid marks of a good dairy cow are as follows : Head 
 small, long, and narrow towards the muzzle ; horns 
 small, clear, bent, and placed at considerable distance 
 from each other ; eyes not large, but brisk and lively ; 
 neck slender and long, tapering towards the head, with 
 a little loose skin below ; shoulders and fore quarters 
 light and thin; hind quarters large and broad; back 
 straight, and joints slack and open ; carcass deep in the 
 rib ; tail small and long, reaching to the heels ; legs 
 small and short, with firm joints ; udder square, but a 
 little oblong, stretching forward, thin-skinned and capa- 
 cious, but not low hung ; teats or paps small, pointing 
 outwards, and at a considerable distance from each 
 other ; milk-veins capacious and prominent ; skin loose, 
 thin, and soft like a glove ; hair short, soft, and woolly ; 
 general figure, when in flesh, handsome and well pro- 
 portioned. 
 
 If this description of the Ayrshire cow be correct, it 
 will be seen that her head and neck are remarkably 
 clean and fine, the latter swelling gradually towards the 
 
22 DOCILITY. TREATMENT. 
 
 shoulders, both parts being unincumbered with superflu- 
 ous flesh. The same general form extends backwards, 
 the fore quarters being light, the shoulders thin, and the 
 carcass swelling out towards the hind quarters, so that 
 standing in front of her it has the form of a blunted 
 wedge. Such a structure indicates very fully devel- 
 oped digestive organs, which exert a powerful influence 
 on the exercise of all the functions of the body, and 
 especially on the secretion of the milky glands, accom- 
 panied with milk-veins and udder partaking of the same 
 character as the stomach and viscera, being large and 
 capacious, while the external skin and interior walls of 
 the milk-glands are thin and elastic, and all parts 
 arranged in a manner especially calculated for the pro- 
 duction of milk. 
 
 A cow with these marks will generally be of a quiet 
 and docile temper, which greatly enhances her value. 
 A cow that is of a quiet and contented disposition feeds 
 at ease, is milked with ease, and yields more than one 
 of an opposite temperament; while after she is past her 
 usefulness as a milker she will easily take on fat, and 
 make fine beef and a good quantity of tallow, because 
 she feeds freely, and when dry the food which went to 
 make milk is converted into fat and flesh. But there is no 
 breed of cows with which gentleness of treatment is so 
 indispensable as with the Ayrshire, on account of her 
 naturally nervous temperament. If she receive other 
 than kind and gentle treatment, she will often resent it 
 with angry looks and gestures, and withhold her milk ; 
 and if such treatment is long continued, will dry up ; 
 but she willingly and easily yields it to the hand that 
 fondles her, and all her looks and movements towards 
 her friends are quiet and mild. 
 
 As already remarked, the Ayrshires in their native 
 country are generally bred for the dairy, and no other 
 
CROSSES. FATTENING QUALITIES. 23 
 
 object ; arid the cows have obtained a just and world- 
 wide reputation for this quality. The oxen are, however, 
 very fair as working cattle, though they cannot be said 
 to excel other breeds in this respect. The Ayrshire 
 steer may be fed and turned at three years old, but for 
 feeding purposes the Ayrshires are greatly improved 
 by a cross with the short-horns, provided regard is had 
 to the size of the animals. It is the opinion of good 
 breeders that a high-bred short-horn bull and a large- 
 sized Ayrshire cow will produce a calf which will come 
 to maturity earlier, and attain greater weight, and sell 
 for more money, than a pure-bred Ayrshire. This cross, 
 with feeding from the start, may be sold fat at two or 
 three years old, the improvement being especially seen 
 in the earlier maturity and the size. Even Youatt, 
 who maintains that the fattening properties of the Ayr- 
 shires have been somewhat exaggerated, admits that 
 they will fatten kindly and profitably, and that their 
 meat will be good; while he also asserts that they 
 unite, perhaps, to a greater degree than any other 
 breed, the supposed incompatible qualities of yielding 
 a great deal of milk and beef. 
 
 In the cross with the short-horn, the form becomes 
 ordinarily more symmetrical, while there is, perhaps, 
 little risk of lessening the milking qualities of the off- 
 spring, if sufficient regard is paid to the selection of the 
 individual animals to breed from. It is thought by 
 some that in the breeding of animals it is the male 
 which gives the external form, or the bony and muscu- 
 lar system of the young, while the female imparts the 
 respiratory organs, the circulation of the blood, the 
 mucous membranes, the organs of secretion, <fec. 
 
 If this principle is true, it follows that the milking 
 qualities come chiefly from the mother, and that the 
 bull can not materially alter the conditions which 
 
24 SELECTIONS FOE BREEDING. 
 
 determine the transmission of these qualities, especially 
 when they are as strongly marked as they are in the 
 Ayrshire or the Jersey races. Others, however, main- 
 tain that it is more important to the perfection of their 
 dairy to make a good choice of bulls than of heifers, 
 because the property of giving much milk is more 
 surely transmitted by the male than the female. Others 
 etill maintain that both parents are represented in the 
 offspring, but that it is impossible to say beforehand 
 what parts of the derivative system are to be ascribed 
 to the one parent and what to the other, and that there 
 is a blending and interfusion of the qualities of both 
 which prevent the body of their progeny being mapped 
 out into distinct regions, or divided into separate sets 
 of organs, of which we can say, " This is from the 
 father, that from the mother." 
 
 Till this question is settled, it is safe, in breeding for 
 the dairy, to adhere to the rule of selecting only ani- 
 mals whose progenitors on both sides have been distin- 
 guished for their milking qualities. But where the his- 
 tory of either is unknown, a resort to a well-known 
 breed, remarkable for its dairy qualities, is of no small 
 importance ; since, though the immediate ancestors of 
 a male may not be known, if he belongs to a dairy 
 breed, it is fair to presume that his progenitors were 
 milkers. A study and comparison of the size and 
 form of the milk mirror, and other points, indicated by 
 Guenon, on a subsequent page, are worthy of careful 
 consideration in selecting animals to breed from for the 
 dairy, not only among pure-bred animals, but especially 
 in crossing. In the scale of points adopted in England 
 and this country as the standard of perfection for an 
 Ayrshire cow, the udder, on which Guenon placed so 
 much reliance, is valued at twelve times as much a? 
 
SUPERIORITY OF AYRSHIRES. 25 
 
 that of the Devon, "because," as the judges affirm, 
 " the Ayrshires have been bred almost exclusively with 
 reference to their milking properties." 
 
 We must conclude, then, that " for purely dairy pur- 
 poses the Ayrshire cow deserves the first place. In 
 consequence of her small, symmetrical, and compact 
 body, combined with a well-formed chest and a capa- 
 cious stomach, there is little waste, comparatively 
 speaking, through the respiratory system ; while, at the 
 same time, there is very complete assimilation of the 
 food, and thus she converts a large proportion of her 
 food into milk. So remarkable is this fact, that all dairy 
 farmers who have any experience on the point agree in 
 stating that an Ayrshire cow generally gives a larger 
 return of milk for the food consumed than a cow of any 
 other breed. The absolute quantity may not be so 
 great, but it is obtained at a less cost ; and this is the 
 point upon which the question of profit depends." 
 
 I have dwelt thus at length upon this race for the 
 reason that it is preeminently a dairy breed, surpassing all 
 other pure breeds in the production of rich milk and but- 
 ter on soils of medium fertility, and admirably adapted, 
 in my opinion, to raise the character of our stock to a 
 higher standard of excellence. The best milkers I have 
 ever known, in the course of my own observations, 
 were grade Ayrshires, larger in size than the pure 
 bloods, but still sufficiently high grades to give certain 
 signs of their origin. I have owned several such, which 
 were all good cows. This grade would seem to possess 
 the advantage of combining, to some extent, the two 
 qualities of milking and adaptation to beef; and this 
 is no small recommendation of the stock to farmers 
 situated as American farmers are, who wish for milk for 
 some years and then to turn over to the butcher. 
 
26 
 
 THE JERSEYS. GENERAL ESTIMATE. 
 
 THE JERSEY cattle have now become widely known 
 in this country. Many of them have been imported 
 from an island of the same name in the British Channel, 
 near the coast of France, and they may now be con- 
 sidered, I think, as fully acclimated. They were first 
 introduced over thirty years ago, from the channel 
 islands Alderney, Guernsey, and Jersey. 
 
 Fig. 3. Jersey Cow.* 
 
 The opinions of practical men differ widely as to the 
 comparative merits of this race, and its adaptation to 
 our climate and to the wants of our farmers. The most 
 common decision, prevailing among many even of the 
 best judges of stock, appears to be, that, however desir- 
 able the cows may be on the lawn or in a gentleman's 
 park, they are wholly unsuited to the general wants of 
 the practical farmer. This may or may not be the case. 
 If the farmer keeps a dairy farm and sells only milk, 
 the quantity and not the quality of which is his chief 
 care, he can satisfy himself better with some other 
 breed. If otherwise situated, if he devotes his time 
 
 * See page 30. 
 
HAXTON'S OPINION. FORM. 27 
 
 to the making of butter for the supply of customers 
 who are willing to pay for a good article, he may 
 very properly consider whether a few Jerseys, or an 
 infusion of Jersey blood, may not be desirable. Hax- 
 ton calls the Jersey cow the cheese and butter dairy- 
 man's friend when her milk is diluted with that of 
 ten or a dozen ordinary cows, and his enemy if he 
 should attempt to make either cheese or butter solely 
 from her produce, as, from the excessive richness of the 
 milk, neither will keep long; and, finally, an ornament 
 to the rich man's lawn, yet in aspect altogether devoid 
 of those rounded outlines which constitute the crite- 
 rion of animal beauty. 
 
 The Jersey race is supposed to have been derived 
 originally from Normandy, in the northern part of 
 France. The cows have been long celebrated for the 
 production of very rich milk and cream, but till within 
 a quarter of a century they were comparatively coarse, 
 ugly, and ill-shaped. Improvements have been very 
 marked, but the form of the animal is still far from 
 satisfying the eye. The head of the pure Jersey is 
 fine and tapering, the cheek small, the throat clean, 
 the muzzle fine and encircled with a light stripe, the 
 nostril high and open ; the horns smooth, crumpled, not 
 very thick at the base, tapering, and tipped with black ; 
 ears small and thin, deep orange color inside ; eyes full 
 and placid ; neck straight and fine ; chest broad and 
 deep ; barrel hooped, broad and deep, well ribbed up ; 
 back straight from the withers to the hip, and from the 
 top of the hip to the setting on of the tail ; tail fine, at 
 right angles with the back, and hanging down to the 
 hocks ; skin thin, light color and mellow, covered with 
 fine soft hair ; fore legs short, straight and fine below 
 the knee, arm swelling and full above ; hind quarters 
 long and well filled ; hind legs short and straight below 
 
28 CHARACTERISTICS. BEAUTY. 
 
 the hocks, with bones rather fine, squarely placed, and 
 not too close together ; hoofs small ; udder full in size, 
 in line with the belly, extending well up behind ; teats 
 of medium size, squarely placed and wide apart, and 
 milk-veins very prominent. The color is generally 
 cream, dun, or yellow, with more or less white, and the 
 fine head and neck give the cows and heifers a fawn- 
 like appearance, and make them objects of attraction in 
 the park ; but the hind quarters are often too narrow 
 to look well, particularly to those who judge animals 
 from the amount of fat they carry. We should bear in 
 mind, however, that a good race of animals is not 
 always the most beautiful, as that term is commonly 
 understood. Beauty in- stock has no fixed standard. 
 In the estimation of some, it results mainly from fine 
 forms, small bones, and close, compact frames ; while 
 others consider that structure the most perfect, and 
 therefore the most beautiful, which is best adapted to 
 the use to which it is destined. According to the lat- 
 ter, beauty is relative. It is not the same in an animal 
 designed for beef and in one designed for the dairy or 
 for work. The beauty of a milch cow is the result of 
 her good qualities. Large milkers are very rarely 
 cows that please the eye of any but a skilful judge. 
 They are generally poor, because their food goes mainly 
 to the production of milk, and because they are selected 
 with less regard to form than to good milking qual- 
 ities. We meet with good milkers of all forms, from 
 the round, close-built Devon to the coarsest-boned 
 scrub ; but, with all their varieties of form and struc- 
 ture, good cows will usually possess certain points of 
 similarity and well-known marks by which they are 
 known to the eyes of the judge. 
 
 It is asserted by Colonel Le Couteur, of the island of 
 Jersey, that, contrary to the general opinion here, the 
 
JERSEYS. FATTENING. BULLS. 29 
 
 Jersey cow, when old and no longer wanted as a milker, 
 will, when dry and fed, fatten rapidly, and produce a 
 good quantity and excellent quality of butcher's meat. 
 An old cow, he says, was put up to fatten in October, 
 1850, weighing 1125 pounds, and when killed, the 6th 
 of January, 1851, she weighed 1330 pounds ; having 
 gained 205 pounds in ninety-eight days, on twenty 
 pounds of hay, a little wheat-straw, and thirty pounds 
 of roots, consisting of carrots, Swedes, and mangold 
 wurzel, a day. The prevailing opinion as to the beauty 
 of the Jersey is based on the general appearance of the 
 cow in milk, no experiments in feeding exclusively for 
 beef having been made, to my knowledge, and no 
 opportunity to form a correct judgment from actual 
 observation having been furnished ; and it must be con- 
 fessed that the general appearance would amply justify 
 the hasty conclusion. 
 
 Fig. 4. Jersey Bull. 
 
 The bulls are usually very different in character and 
 disposition from the cows, and are much inclined to 
 3* 
 
30 PLACE FOB THE JERSEYS. 
 
 become restive and cross at the age of two or three 
 years, unless their treatment is uniformly gentle and 
 firm. The accompanying figure very accurately repre- 
 sents one of the best animals of the race in the vicinity 
 of Boston, which has been pronounced by good judges 
 a model of a bull for a dairy breed. 
 
 The beautiful Jersey cow " Flirt," figured on page 
 26, received the first prize at the Fair of the Massa- 
 chusetts State Board of Agriculture in 1857, which 
 brought together the largest and finest collection of 
 Jersey cattle ever made in this country. She is well- 
 shaped, and a very superior dairy cow. Her dam, 
 Flora, was very remarkable for the richness of her milk 
 and the quantity of her butter, having made no less 
 than five hundred and eleven pounds in one year, with- 
 out extra feeding. 
 
 From what has been said it is evident that the Jer- 
 sey is to be regarded as a dairy breed, and that almost 
 exclusively. It is evident, too, that it would not be 
 sought for large dairies kept for the supply of milk to 
 cities ; for, though the quality would gratify the cus- 
 tomer, the quantity would not satisfy the owner. The 
 place of the Jersey cow is rather in private establish- 
 ments, where the supply of cream and butter is a suffi- 
 cient object, or, in limited numbers, to add richness to 
 the milk of large butter dairies. Even one or two good 
 Jersey cows with a herd of fifteen or twenty, will make 
 a great difference in the quality of the milk and butter 
 of the whole establishment ; and they would probably 
 be profitable for this, if for no other object. 
 
 
 Other breeds are somewhat noted in Great Britain 
 for their excellent dairy qualities, and among them 
 might be named the Yorkshire and the Kerry ; but they 
 have never been introduced into this country to any 
 
SHORT-HORNS. ORIGIN. 
 
 31 
 
 extent ; or, if they ever were, no traces of them as a 
 distinct breed can now be found here. 
 
 THE SHORT-HORNS. No breed of horned cattle has 
 commanded more universal admiration during the last 
 half-century than the improved Short-horns, whose ori- 
 gin can be traced back for nearly a hundred years. 
 According to the best authorities, the stock which 
 formed the basis of improvement existed equally in 
 Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Northumberland, and counties 
 adjoining ; and the preeminence was accorded to Dur- 
 ham, which gave its name to the race, from the more 
 correct principles of breeding which seem to have pro 
 vailed there. 
 
 There is a dispute among the most eminent breed- 
 ers as to how far it owes its origin to early importations 
 from Holland, whence many superior animals were 
 brought for the purpose of improving the old long- 
 horned breed. A large race of cattle had existed for 
 many years on the western shores of the continent of 
 Europe. At a very early date, as early as 1633, they 
 
32 DUTCH. HOLDERNESS. HUBBACK. 
 
 were imported from Denmark into New England in con- 
 siderable numbers, and thus laid the foundation of a 
 valuable stock in this country. They extended along 
 the coast, it is said, through Holland to France. The 
 dairy formed a prominent branch of farming at a very 
 early date in Holland, and experience led to the great- 
 est care in the choice and breeding of dairy stock. 
 From these cattle many selections were made to cross 
 over to the counties of York and Durham. The pre- 
 vailing color of the large Dutch cattle was black and 
 white, beautifully contrasted. 
 
 The cattle produced by these crosses a century ago 
 were known under the name of " Dutch." The cows 
 selected for crossing with the early imported Dutch 
 bulls were generally long-horned, large-boned, coarse 
 animals, a fair type of which was found in the old " Hold- 
 erness" breed of Yorkshire, slow feeders, strong in 
 the shoulder, defective in the fore quarter, and not very 
 profitable for the butcher, their meat being " coarse to 
 the palate and uninviting to the eye." Their milking 
 qualities were good, surpassing, probably, those of the 
 improved short-horns. Whatever may be the truth with 
 regard to these crosses, and however far they proved 
 effective in creating or laying the foundation of the 
 modern improved short-horns, the results of the efforts 
 made in Yorkshire and some of the adjoining counties 
 were never so satisfactory to the best judges as those 
 of the breeders along the Tees, who selected animals 
 with greater reference to fineness of bone and symme- 
 try of form, and the animals they bred soon took the 
 lead, and excited great emulation in improvement 
 
 The famous bull "Hubback," bred by Mr. Turner, of 
 Hurworth, and subsequently owned by Mr. Colling, 
 laid the foundation of the celebrity of the short-horns, 
 and it is the pride of short-horn breeders to trace back 
 
COMET. BREEDERS OF SHORT-HORNS. 33 
 
 to him. He was calved in 1777, and his descendants, 
 Foljambe, Bolingbroke, Favorite, and Comet, perma- 
 nently fixed the characteristics of the breed. Comet 
 was so highly esteemed among breeders, that he sold 
 at one thousand guineas, or over five thousand dollars. 
 Hubback is thought by some to have been a pure short- 
 horn, and by others a grade or mixture. 
 
 Many breeders had labored long previous to the 
 brothers Charles and Robert Colling, especially on the 
 old Teeswater short-horns; yet a large share of the 
 credit of improving and establishing the reputation of 
 the improved short-horns is generally accorded to the 
 Collings. Certain it is that the spirit and discrimination 
 with which they selected and bred soon became known, 
 and a general interest was awakened in the breed at 
 the time of the sale of Charles Colling's herd, October 
 11, 1810. It was then that Mr. Bates, of Kirkleaving- 
 ton, purchased the celebrated heifer Duchess I., whose 
 family sold, in 1850, after his decease, at an average of 
 one hundred and sixteen pounds five shillings per head, 
 including young calves. Many representatives of the 
 Duchess family, which laid the foundation of Mr. Bates' 
 success as a breeder, have been brought to this country. 
 They may, perhaps, be regarded as an exception to the 
 modern improved short-horns, their milking qualities 
 being generally very superior. 
 
 The sale referred to, and those of R. Colling's herd, 
 in 1818, and that of Lord Spencer, in 1846, as well as that 
 of the Kirkleavington herd, in 1850, and especially that 
 of the herd of Lord Ducie, two years later, are marked 
 eras in the history of improved short-horns; and 
 through these sales, and the universal enthusiasm awak- 
 ened by them, the short-horns have become more widely 
 spread over Great Britain, and more generally fashion- 
 able, than any other breed. They have also been largely 
 
 3 
 
34 
 
 CREAMPOTS. C CELEBS. DENTON. 
 
 introduced into France by the government, for the 
 improvement of the various French breeds by crossing, 
 and into nearly every quarter of the civilized world. 
 
 Fig. 6. Short-horn Bull " DOUBLE DUKE," (1451 \ Am. II. Book,) 
 Owned by Harvest Club, Springfield. 
 
 Importations have been frequent and extensive intc 
 the United States within the last few years, and this 
 famous breed is now pretty generally diffused over the 
 country. 
 
 The use of the early-imported short-horn bulls and 
 native cows led to the formation of many families of 
 grades, some of them bred back to the sire, and others 
 crossed high up, which have attained a very consider- 
 able local reputation in many sections. As instances 
 of this, may be mentioned the Creampot stock, obtained 
 by Col. Jaques from a short-horn bull, Coelebs, and 
 a superior native cow. A family of fine milkers still 
 exists in Massachusetts, known by the name of the 
 " Sukey breed," supposed to have been derived from 
 " Denton," a very superior animal imported by Mr. Wil- 
 liams, of Northboro', some forty years ago. Many of 
 the best milkers of that section can be traced back to 
 
EVILS OF OVERFEEDING. 35 
 
 him. The Pattern stock, originally imported ir to Mary- 
 land and Virginia, in 1783, and thence to Kentucky, 
 may be classed in the same category. A part of these 
 were at first known as the " milk breed," and others as 
 the "beef breed:" the first short-horns, at that time 
 good milkers, and the latter long-horns, of large size 
 and coarse in the bone. In Kentucky they were all 
 known as the Patton stock. 
 
 The high-bred short-horn is easily prepared for a 
 show, and, as fat will cover faults, the temptation is 
 often too great to be resisted ; and hence it is common 
 to see the finest animals rendered unfit for breeding 
 purposes by over-feeding. The race is susceptible of 
 breeding for the production of milk, as several families 
 show, and great milkers have often been known among 
 pure-bred animals ; but it is more common to find it 
 .bred mainly for the butcher, and kept accordingly. It 
 is, however, a well-known fact that the dairies of Lon- 
 don are stocked chiefly with short-horns and York- 
 shires, or high grades between them, which, after being 
 milked as long as profitable, feed equal, or nearly so, 
 to pure-bred short-horns. 
 
 It has been said, by very high authority, that " the 
 short-horns improve every breed they cross with." 
 
 The desirable characteristics of the short-horn bull 
 may be summed up, according to the judgment of the 
 best breeders, as follows: He should have a short but 
 fine head, very broad across the eyes, tapering to the 
 nose, with a nostril full and prominent ; the nose itself 
 should be of a rich flesh-color ; eyes bright and mild ; 
 ears somewhat large and thin ; horns slightly curved 
 and rather flat, well set on a long, broad, muscular 
 neck ; chest wide, deep, and projecting ; shoulders fine, 
 oblique, well formed into the chine ; fore legs short, 
 with upper arm large and powerful j barrel round, deep, 
 
36 EARLY MATURITY. QUALITY. 
 
 well ribbed home ; hips wide and level ; back straight 
 from the withers to the setting on of the tail, but short 
 from hip to chine ; skin soft and velvety to the touch ; 
 moderately thick hair, plentiful, soft, and mossy. The 
 cow has the same points in the main, but her head is 
 finer, longer, and more tapering, neck thinner and 
 lighter, and shoulders more narrow across the chine. 
 
 The astonishing precocity of the short-horns, their 
 remarkable aptitude to fatten, the perfection of their 
 forms, and the fineness of their bony structure, give 
 them an advantage over most other races when the 
 object of breeding is for the shambles. No animal of 
 any other breed can so rapidly transform the stock of 
 any section around him as the improved short-horn bull. 
 
 But it does not follow that the high-bred short-horns 
 are unexceptionable even for beef. The very exag- 
 geration, so to speak, of the qualities which make them 
 so valuable for the improvement of other and less per- 
 fect races, may become a fault when wanted for the 
 table. The very rapidity with which they increase in 
 size is thought by some to prevent their meat from 
 ripening up sufficiently before being hurried off to the 
 butcher. The disproportion of the fatty to the mus- 
 cular flesh, found in this to a greater extent than in 
 races coming slower to maturity, makes the meat of the 
 thorough-bred short-horn, in the estimation of some, 
 both less agreeable to the taste and less profitable to 
 the consumer, since the nitrogenous compounds, true 
 sources of nutriment, are found in less quantity than in 
 the meat of animals not so highly bred. 
 
 But the improved short-horn is justly unrivalled for 
 symmetry of form and beauty. I have never seen a 
 picture or an engraving of an animal which gave an 
 adequate idea of the beauty of many specimens of this 
 race, especially of the best bred in Kentucky and Ohio, 
 
SYMMETRY. THE DUTCH RACE. 37 
 
 where many excellent breeders, favored by a climate 
 and pastures eminently adapted to bring the short-horn 
 to perfection, have not only imported extensively from 
 the best herds in England, but have themselves attained 
 a degree of knowledge and skill equalled only by that 
 of the most celebrated breeders in the native country 
 of this improved race. 
 
 In sections where the climate is moist and the food 
 abundant and rich, some families of the short-horns may 
 be valuable for the dairy ; but they are most frequently 
 bred exclusively for beef in this country, and in sec- 
 tions where they have attained the highest perfection 
 of form and beauty so little is thought of their milking 
 qualities that they are often not milked at all, the calf 
 being allowed to run with the dam. 
 
 Fig. 7. Imported Dutch Cow. 
 
 THE DUTCH is a short-horned race of cattle, which, in 
 the opinion of many, as I have already remarked, con- 
 tributed largely, about a century ago, to build tip the 
 Durham or Teeswater stock. It has been bred with 
 4 
 
38 THE DUTCH RACE. 
 
 special reference to dairy qualities, and is eminently 
 adapted to supply the wants of the dairy farmer. 
 
 The cow, Fig. 7, was bred in North Holland, and im- 
 ported by Winthrop W. Chenery, Esq., of Watertown, 
 
 Fig. 8. Imported Dutch BulL 
 
 in 1857. The bull, Fig. 8, was also imported by Mr. 
 Chenery at the same time, from near the Beemster, in the 
 northerly part of Purmerend. Both animals are truth- 
 fully delineated, and give a correct idea of the points 
 of the North Dutch cattle. For a more detailed descrip- 
 tion of this celebrated dairy race, see pages 51 and 301. 
 HEREFORDS. The Hereford cattle derive their name 
 from a county in the western part of England. Their 
 general characteristics are a white face, sometimes mot- 
 tled ; white throat, the white generally extending back 
 on the neck, and sometimes, though rarely, still further 
 along on the back. The color of the rest of the body 
 is red, generally dark, but sometimes light. Eighty 
 years ago the best Hereford cattle were mottled or 
 roan all over; and some of the best herds, down to a 
 
THE HEREFORDS. THEIR POINTS. 
 
 39 
 
 comparatively recent period, were either all mottled, 
 or had the mottled or speckled face. The expression 
 
 Fig. 9. Hereford Cow. 
 
 of the face is mild and lively; the forehead open, broad, 
 and large ; the eyes bright and full of vivacity ; the 
 horns glossy, slender, and spreading ; the head small, 
 though larger and not quite so clean as that of the 
 Devons; the lower jaw fine; neck long and slender; 
 chest deep; breast-bone large, prominent, and very 
 muscular ; the shoulder-blade light ; shoulder full and 
 soft ; brisket and loins large ; hips well developed, and 
 on a level with the chine ; hind quarters long and well 
 filled in ; buttocks on a level with the back, neither 
 falling off nor raised above the hind quarters ; tail slen- 
 der, well set on ; hair fine and soft ; body round and 
 full ; carcass deep and well formed, or cylindrical ; bone 
 small; thigh short and well made; legs short and straight, 
 and slender below the knee ; as handlers very excel- 
 lent, especially mellow to the touch on the back, the 
 shoulder, and along the sides, the skin being soft, flex- 
 ible, of medium thickness, rolling on the neck and the 
 
40 CHARACTERISTICS. TOMKINS. 
 
 hips ; hair bright ; face almost bare, which is character- 
 istic of pure-bred Herefords. They belong to the 
 middle-horned division of the cattle of Great Britain, 
 to which they are indigenous. They have been im- 
 proved within the last century by careful selections, 
 the first step to this end having been taken by Benja- 
 min Tomkins, of Herefordshire, who began about 1766, 
 with two cows possessing a remarkable tendency to 
 take on fat. One of these was gray, and the other 
 dark red, with a mottled or spotted face. 
 
 Taking these as a foundation, Mr. Tomkins went on 
 to build up a large herd, from which he sold to 
 other breeders, from time to time, till at his decease, in 
 1819, the whole herd was disposed of at auction fifty- 
 two animals, including twenty-two steers and two heif- 
 ers, varying in age from calves to two-year-olds, bring- 
 ing an aggregate of four thousand six hundred and 
 seventy-three pounds, fourteen shillings, or four hun- 
 dred and forty-five dollars, thirty-seven and a half cents, 
 a head. A bull was sold to Lord Talbot for five hun- 
 dred and eighty-eight pounds, while several cows 
 brought from a thousand to twelve hundred dollars a 
 head. 
 
 Hereford oxen are excellent animals, less active but 
 stronger than the Devons, and very free and docile. 
 The demand for Herefords for beef prevents their being 
 much used for work in their native county, and the 
 farmers there generally use horses instead of oxen. A 
 recent writer in the Farmer's Magazine makes the fol- 
 lowing remarks on this head: "It is allowed on all 
 hands, I believe, that the properties in which Herefords 
 stand preeminent among the middle-sized breeds are in 
 the production of oxen and their superiority of flesh. 
 On these points there is little chance of their being 
 excelled. It should, however, be borne in mind that 
 
HEREFORD OXEN. 41 
 
 the best oxen are not produced from the largest cows ; 
 nor is a superior quality of flesh, such as is considered 
 
 Fig. 10. Hereford Bull. 
 
 very soft to the touch, with thin skin. It is the union 
 of these two qualities which often characterizes the 
 short-horns ; but the Hereford breeders should endeavor 
 to maintain a higher standard of excellence, that for 
 which the best of the breed have always been esteemed, 
 a moderately thick, mellow hide, with a well-appor- 
 tioned combination of softness with elasticity. A suffi- 
 ciency of hair is.also desirable, and if accompanied with 
 a disposition to curl moderately it is more in esteem : 
 but that which has a harsh and wiry feel is objection- 
 able." 
 
 In point of symmetry and beauty of form, the well- 
 bred Herefords may be classed with the improved short- 
 horns, though they arrive somewhat slower at maturity, 
 and never attain such weight. Like the improved short- 
 horns, they are chiefly bred for beef, and their beef is 
 of the best quality in the English markets, command- 
 ing the highest price of any, except, perhaps, the West 
 Highlanders. 
 
 4* 
 
42 COMPARED WITH SHORT-HORNS. 
 
 In an experiment carefully tried in 1828, for the pur- 
 pose of arriving at the comparative economy of the 
 short-horns and Herefords, the latter gained less by 
 nearly one fourth than the former, which had consumed 
 more food. The six animals, three of each breed, were 
 sold after being fed, in Smithfield market, the Herefords 
 bringing less by only about five dollars than the short- 
 horns, while the cost of food consumed by the latter 
 was greater, and the original purchase greater than that 
 of the former. 
 
 The short-horn produces more beef at the same age 
 than the Hereford, but consumes more food in propor- 
 tion. " In all the fairs of England/ 7 says Hillyard, " ex- 
 cept those of Herefordshire and the adjoining counties, 
 short-horn heifers are more sought after and sell at 
 higher prices than the Hereford ; but it is not so with 
 fat cattle, for, with the exception of Lincolnshire and 
 some of the northern counties, they much prefer the 
 Herefords. Then at Smithfield, where the quality of 
 the beef passes its final judgment, the pound of Here- 
 ford beef pays better than the pound of short-horn beef. 
 Short-horn beeves produce at the same age a greater 
 weight, it is true, but they also consume more food. I 
 can easily conceive why, in the magnificent pastures of 
 Lincolnshire, and some of the northern counties of 
 England, they may prefer the short-horns ; and that is, 
 that they may keep a less number on a given quantity 
 of land, and only the short-horn could, under these con- 
 ditions, produce a greater weight of beef per acre. It 
 is very difficult to decide which of the two races in 
 England (the two best in the world) is the most profit- 
 able for stock-raisers and for the community." There 
 are, even in Lincolnshire, many good feeders who pre- 
 fer the Herefords to the short-horns. One of these, 
 when visited the past season, had thirty head of cattle 
 
A FARMER'S OPINION. 43 
 
 feeding for the butcher, and only one short-horn. When 
 asked the reason of this, he replied, " I am a farmer 
 myself, and have to pay high rent, and I must feed 
 the cattle that pay me best. Perhaps you think it 
 would be more in fashion to cover my fields with short- 
 horns ; but I must look to the net profit, and I get much 
 better with the Herefords. The short-horns are too full 
 of fat and make too little tallow, and they consequently 
 sell too low in the Smithfield market. Our Herefords 
 are better, and they sell better." 
 
 The Herefords are far less generally spread over 
 England than the improved short-horns. They have 
 seldom been bred for milk, as some families of the 
 short-horns have ; and it is not very unusual to find 
 pure-bred cows incapable of supplying milk sufficient 
 to nourish their calves. This system was pursued es- 
 pecially by Mr. Price, a skilful Hereford breeder, who 
 sacrified everything to form, disregarding milking prop- 
 erties, breeding often from near relations, and thus fix- 
 ing the fault incident to his system more or less perma- 
 nently in the descendants of his stock. 
 
 The Herefords have been brought to this country, to 
 some extent, and several fine herds exist in different 
 sections ; the earliest importations being those of Henry 
 Clay, of Kentucky, in 1817. The figures of the two 
 animals of this breed presented in this connection rep- 
 resent a bull and cow bred at the State Farm, in Massa- 
 chusetts, and are good specimens of the breed. 
 
 The want of care and attention to the udder, soon 
 after calving, especially if the cow be on luxuriant 
 grass, often injures her milking properties exceedingly. 
 The practice in the county of Hereford has generally 
 been to let the calves suckle from four to six months, 
 and bull-calves often run eight months with the cow. 
 But their dairy qualities are perhaps as good as those 
 
44 THE NORTH DEVONS. 
 
 of any cattle whose fattening properties have been so 
 carefully developed; and, though it is probable that 
 they could be bred for milk by proper care and atten- 
 tion ; yet, as this change would be at the sacrifice of 
 other qualities equally valuable, it would evidently be 
 W;er to resort to other stock for the dairy. 
 
 Fig. 11 Devon Cow, 
 Owned by William Buckminster Esq., Framingham Mass. 
 
 THE NORTH DEVONS. The last of the pure-bred races 
 which it will be necessary to describe as prominent 
 among our American cattle is the Devon, a middle- 
 horned breed, now very generally distributed in some 
 sections of the country. 
 
 This beautiful race of cattle dates further back than 
 any well-established breed among us. It goes gener- 
 ally under the simple name of Devon ; but the cattle of 
 the southern part of the county, from which the race 
 derives its name, differ somewhat from those of the 
 northern, having a larger and coarser frame, and far 
 less tendency to fatten, though their dairy qualities are 
 superior. 
 
CHARACTERISTICS. WORKING CATTLE. 45 
 
 The North Devons are remarkable for hardihood, sym- 
 metry, and beauty, and are generally bred for work and for 
 beef rather than for the dairy. The head is fine and well 
 set on; the horns of medium length, generally curved; 
 color usually bright blood-red, but sometimes inclining 
 to yellow ; skin thin and orange-yellow ; hair of medium 
 length, soft and silky, making the animals remarkable as 
 handlers ; muzzle of the nose white ; eyes full and mild ; 
 ears yellowish, or orange-color inside, of moderate size ; 
 neck rather long, with little dewlap ; shoulders oblique ; 
 legs small and straight, and feet in proportion ; chest of 
 good width ; ribs round and expanded ; loins of first-rate 
 quality, long, wide, and fleshy ; hips round, of medium 
 width ; rump level ; tail full near the setting on, taper- 
 ing to the tip ; thighs of the bull and ox muscular and 
 full, and high in the flank, though in the cow sometimes 
 thought to be too light ; the size medium, generally 
 called small. The proportion of meat on the valuable 
 parts is greater, and the offal less, than on most other 
 breeds, while it is well settled that they consume less 
 food in its production. The Devons are popular with 
 the Srnithfield butchers, and their beef is well marbled 
 or grained. 
 
 As working oxen, the Devons perhaps excel all other 
 races in quickness, docility, and beauty, and the ease 
 with which they are matched. With a reasonable load, 
 they are said to be equal to horses as walkers on the 
 road, and when they are no longer wanted for work 
 they fatten easily and turn well. 
 
 As milkers, they do not excel, perhaps they may be 
 said not to equal, the other breeds, and they have a 
 reputation of being decidedly below the average. In 
 their native country the general average of a dairy is 
 one pound of butter per day during the summer. 
 
 They are bred for beef and for work, and not for the 
 
46 
 
 THE PATTERSON HERD. 
 
 dairy ; and their 'yield of milk is small, though of a rich 
 quality. I have, however, had occasion to examine 
 several animals from the celebrated Patterson herd, 
 which would have been remarkable as milkers even 
 among good milking stock. They had not, to be sure, 
 the beautiful symmetry of form and fineness of bone 
 which characterize most of the modern and highly im- 
 proved pure-bred North Devons, and had evidently 
 been bred for many years with special reference to the 
 development of the milking qualities, great care hav- 
 ing been taken to use bulls and cows as breeders from 
 the best milking stock, rather than of the finest forms. 
 The use of bulls distinguished only for symmetry of 
 form, and of a race deficient in milk-secreting quali- 
 ties, will be sure to deteriorate, instead of improving, 
 the stock for the dairy. 
 
 Fig. 12. Devon Bull. 
 
 On the whole, whatever may be our judgment of this 
 breed, the faults of the North Devon cow can hardly 
 be overlooked from our present point of view. The 
 rotundity of form and compactness of frame, though 
 contribute to her remarkable beauty, constitute an 
 
YOUATT'S OPINION. A FAIR TEST. 47 
 
 objection to her as a dairy cow, since it is generally 
 thought that the peculiarity of form which disposes an 
 animal to take on fat is somewhat incompatible with 
 good milking qualities, and hence Youatt says : " For 
 the dairy the North Devons must be acknowledged to be 
 inferior to several other breeds. The milk is good, and 
 yields more than the average proportion of cream and 
 butter ; but it is deficient in quantity." He also main- 
 tains that its property as a milker could not be im- 
 proved without probable or certain detriment to its 
 grazing qualities. 
 
 But the fairest test of its fitness for the dairy is to be 
 found in the estimation in which distinguished Devon 
 breeders themselves have held it in this respect. A 
 scale of points of excellence in this breed was estab- 
 lished, some time ago, by the best judges in England ; 
 and it has since been adopted, with but slight changes, in 
 this country. These judges, naturally prejudiced in 
 favor of the breed, if prejudiced at all, made this scale 
 to embrace one hundred points, no animal to be re- 
 garded as perfect unless it excelled in all of them. 
 Each part of the body was assigned its real value 
 in the scale : a faultless head, for instance, was esti- 
 mated at four ; a deep, round chest, at fifteen, &c. 
 If the animal was defective in any part, the number of 
 points which represented the value of that part in the 
 scale was to be deducted pro rata from the hundred, in 
 determining its merits. But in this scale the cow is so 
 lightly esteemed for the dairy, that the udder, the size 
 and shape of which is of the utmost consequence in 
 determining the capacity of the milch cow, is set down 
 as worth only one point, while, in the same scale, the 
 horns and ears are valued at two points each, and the 
 color o.' the nose, and the expression of the eye, are 
 valued at four points each. Supposing, therefore, that 
 
48 ESTIMATION OF THE UDDER. 
 
 each of these points were valued at one dollar, and a 
 perfect North Devon cow was valued at one hundred 
 dollars ; then another cow of the same blood, and equal 
 to the first in every respect except in her udder, which 
 is such as to make it certain that she can never be 
 capable of giving milk enough to nourish her calf, must 
 be worth, according to the estimation of the best Devon 
 breeders, ninety-nine dollars ! It is safe, therefore, to 
 say that an animal whose udder and lacteal glands are 
 regarded, by those who best know her capacities and 
 her merits, as of only one quarter part as much conse- 
 quence as the color of her nose, or half as much as the 
 shape and size of her horns, cannot be recommended 
 for the dairy. The improved North Devon cow may 
 be classed, in this respect, with the Hereford, neither 
 of which has well-developed milk-vessels a point of 
 the utmost consequence to the practical dairyman. 
 
 The list of pure-bred races in America may be said 
 to end here ; for, though other and well-established 
 breeds, like the long-horns, the Galloways, the Spanish, 
 <fcc., have, at times, been imported, and have had some 
 influence on our American stock, they have not been 
 kept distinct to such an extent as to have become the 
 prevailing stock of any particular section, so far as I 
 am aware, and hence a notice of them properly comes 
 in the next chapter. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 AMERICAN GRADE OR NATIVE CATTLE. THE PRIN- 
 CIPLES OF BREEDING. 
 
 WE have dwelt thus far mainly upon the prominent 
 breeds of cattle known among us, and especially those 
 adapted to the dairy. But a large proportion by far 
 the largest proportion, indeed cannot be included 
 under any of the races alluded to. 
 
 The term breed, properly understood, applies only to 
 animals of the same species, possessing, besides the gen- 
 eral characteristics of that species, other characteristics 
 peculiar to themselves, which they owe to the influence 
 of soil, climate, nourishment, and habits of life to which 
 they are subjected, and which they transmit with cer- 
 tainty to their progeny. The characteristics of certain 
 breeds or families are so well marked, that if an individ- 
 ual supposed to belong to any one of them were to pro- 
 duce an offspring not possessing them, or possessing 
 them only in part, with others not belonging to the 
 breed, it would be just ground for suspecting a want 
 of purity of blood. 
 
 If this definition of the term breed be correct, no 
 grade animals, and no animals not possessing fixed pecu- 
 liarities or characteristics which they share with all 
 other animals of the class of which they are a type, and 
 which they are capable of transmitting with certainty 
 to their descendants, can be recognized by breeders as 
 belonging to any one distinct race, breed, or family. 
 5 4 
 
50 "NATIVES" OR GRADES. ORIGIN. 
 
 The term " native," or " scrub," is applied to a vast 
 majority of our American cattle, which, though born on 
 the soil, and thus in one sense natives, do not constitute 
 a breed, race, or family, as properly understood by 
 breeders. They do not possess characteristics peculiar 
 to them all, which they transmit with any certainty to 
 their offspring, either of form, size, color, milking or 
 working properties. But, though an animal may be 
 made up of a mixture of blood almost to infinity, it does 
 not follow that, for specific purposes, it may not, as an 
 individual animal, be one of the best of the species. 
 And for particular purposes individual animals might 
 be selected from among those commonly called natives 
 in New England, and scrubs at the West and South, 
 equal, and perhaps superior, to any among the races 
 produced by the most skilful breeding. There can be 
 no impropriety in the use of the term " native," there- 
 fore, when it is understood as descriptive of no known 
 breed, but only as applied to the common stock of the 
 country, which does not constitute a breed. But per- 
 haps the whole class of animals commonly called " na- 
 tives " would be better described as grades, since they 
 are well known to have sprung from a great variety of 
 cattle procured in different places and at different times 
 on the continent of Europe, in England, and in the 
 Spanish West Indies, brought together without any 
 regard to fixed principles of breeding, but only from 
 individual convenience, and by accident. 
 
 The first importations to this country were doubtless 
 those taken to Virginia previous to 1609, though the 
 exact date of their arrival is not known. Several cows 
 were carried there from the West Indies in 1610, and 
 the next year no less than one hundred arrived there 
 from abroad. 
 
 The earliest cattle imported into .the Plymouth col- 
 
EARLY IMPORTATIONS. DUTCH. 51 
 
 ony, and undoubtedly the earliest introduced into New 
 England, arrived in 1624. At the division of cattle 
 which took place in 1627, three years after, one or two 
 are distinctly described as black, or black and white, 
 others as brindle, showing that there was no uniformity 
 of color. Soon after this, a large number of cattle were 
 brought over from England for the settlers at Salem. 
 These importations formed the original stock of Massa- 
 chusetts. 
 
 In 1625 the first importation was made into New 
 York from Holland, by the Dutch West India Company, 
 and the foundation was then laid for an exceedingly 
 valuable race of animals, which subsequent importations 
 from the same country, as well as from England, have 
 greatly improved. 
 
 Dairy farming in some parts of Holland, it may be 
 remarked in passing, became a highly important branch 
 of industry at a very early date, and a large and 
 valuable race of dairy cattle existed there long before 
 the efforts of modern breeders began in England. 
 The attention of farmers there is at the present time 
 devoted especially to the dairy, and the manufacture of 
 butter and cheese. They support themselves, to a con- 
 siderable extent, upon this branch of farming; and 
 hence it is held in the highest respect, and carried to a 
 greater degree of exactness and perfection, perhaps, 
 than in any other part of the world. They are espe- 
 cially particular in the breeding, keeping, and care of 
 milch cows, as on them very much of their success 
 depends. The principles on which they practise, in 
 selecting a cow to breed from, are as follows: She 
 should have, they say, considerable size not less than 
 four and a half or five feet girth, with a length of body cor- 
 responding; legs proportionally short; a finely-formed 
 head, with a forehead or face somewhat concave ; clear, 
 
52 FORM OF THE DUTCH CUW. 
 
 large, mild, and sparkling eyes, yet with no expression 
 of wildness ; tolerably large and stout ears, standing out 
 from the head ; fine, well-curved horns ; a rather .short 
 than long, thick, broad neck, well set against the chest 
 and withers ; the front part of the breast and the shoul- 
 ders must be broad and fleshy ; the low-hanging dewlap 
 must be soft to the touch ; the back and loins must be 
 properly projected, somewhat broad, the bones not too 
 sharp, but well covered with flesh ; the animal should 
 have long, curved ribs, which form a broad breast-bone ; 
 the body must be round and deep, but not sunken into 
 a hanging belly ; the rump must not be uneven, the hip- 
 bones should not stand out too broad and spreading, 
 but all the parts should be level and well filled up ; a 
 fine tail, set moderately high up and tolerably long, but 
 slender, with a thick, bushy tuft of hair at the end, 
 hanging down below the hocks ; the legs must be short 
 and low, but strong in the bony structure ; the knees 
 broad, with flexible joints ; the muscles and sinews must 
 be firm and sound, the hoofs broad and flat, and the 
 position of the legs natural, not too close and crowded ; 
 the hide, covered with fine glossy hair, must be soft and 
 mellow to the touch, and set loose upon the body. A 
 large, rather long, white and loose udder, extending 
 well back, with four long teats, serves also as a char- 
 acteristic mark of a good milch cow. Large and prom- 
 inent milk-veins must extend from the navel back to 
 the udder ; the belly of a good milch cow should not be 
 too deep and hanging. The color of the North Dutch 
 cattle is mostly variegated. Cows with only one color 
 are no favorites. Red or black variegated, gray and 
 blue variegated, roan, spotted and white variegated 
 cows, are especially liked. 
 
 The annexed cut gives a correct idea of the cow most 
 esteemed in Holland ; the type of the race so noted for 
 
THE DENMARKS. 
 
 53 
 
 the production of milk, and of the excellent round 
 Dutch cheeses. 
 
 In 1627, cattle were brought from Sweden to the set- 
 tlements on the Delaware by the Swedish West India 
 Company. In 1631, 1632, and 1633, several importa- 
 
 Fig. 13. Dutch Dairy Cow 
 
 tions were made into New Hampshire by Capt. John 
 Mason, who, with Gorges, procured the patent of large 
 tracts of land in the vicinity of Piscataqua River, and 
 immediately formed settlements there. The object of 
 Mason was to carry on the manufacture of potash. 
 For this purpose he employed the Danes ; and it was in 
 his voyages to and from Denmark that he procured 
 many Danish cattle and horses, which were subse- 
 quently diffused over that whole region, and large num- 
 bers of which were driven to the vicinity of Boston and 
 sold. These facts are authenticated by original doc- 
 uments and depositions now on file in the office of the 
 Secretary of State of New Hampshire. The Danish cat- 
 tle are there described as large and coarse, of a yellow 
 color ; and it is supposed that they were procured by 
 5* 
 
54 WORKING AND MILKING QUALITIES. 
 
 Mason as being best capable of enduring the severity of 
 the climate and the hardships to which they were to be 
 subjected. However this may have been, they very 
 soon spread among the colonists of the Massachusetts 
 Bay, and have undoubtedly left their marks on the 
 stock of New England and the Middle States, which 
 exist to some extent even to the present day, mixed in 
 with an infinite multitude of crosses with the Dev- 
 ons, the Dutch cattle already alluded to, the black cattle 
 of Spain and Wales, and the long-horn and the short- 
 horn, most of which crosses were accidental, or due to 
 local circumstances or individual convenience. Many 
 of these cattle, the descendants of such crosses, are of 
 a very high order of merit, but to what particular cross 
 it is due it is impossible to say. They make generally 
 hardy, strong, and docile oxen, easily broken to the 
 yoke and quick to work, with a fair tendency to fatten 
 when well fed ; while the cows, though often ill-shaped, 
 are sometimes remarkably good milkers, especially as 
 regards the quantity they give. 
 
 I have very often heard the best judges of stock say 
 that if they desired to select a dairy of cows for milk 
 for sale, they would go around and select cows com- 
 monly called native, rather than resort to pure-bred ani- 
 mals of any of the established breeds, and that they be- 
 lieved they should find such a dairy the most profitable. 
 
 In color, the natives, made up as already indicated, 
 are exceedingly various. The old Denmarks, which to 
 a considerable extent laid the foundation of the stock 
 of Maine and New Hampshire, were light yellow. The 
 Dutch of New York and the Middle States were black 
 and white ; the Spanish and Welsh were generally 
 black ; the Devons, which are supposed to have laid the 
 foundation of the stock of some of the states, were red. 
 Crosses of the Denmark with the Spanish and Welsh 
 
WANT OF UNIFORMITY. 55 
 
 naturally made a dark brindle. Crosses of the Denmark 
 and Devon often made a lighter or yellowish brindle, 
 while the more recent importations of Jerseys and 
 short-horns have generally produced a beautiful spotted 
 progeny. The deep red has long been a favorite color 
 in New England ; but the prejudice in its favor is fast 
 giving way to more variegated colors. 
 
 But, though we have already an exceedingly valua- 
 ble foundation for improvement, no one will pretend to 
 deny that our cattle, as a whole, are susceptible of it in 
 many respects. They possess neither the size, the sym- 
 metry, nor the early maturity, of the short-horns ; they 
 do not, as a general thing, possess the fineness of bone, 
 the beauty of form and color, nor the activity, of 
 the Devons or the Herefords; they do not possess 
 that uniform richness of milk, united with generous 
 quantity, of the Ayrshires, nor the surpassing richness 
 of milk of the Jerseys : but, above all, they do not pos- 
 sess the power of transmitting the many good qualities 
 which they often have to their offspring, which is a 
 characteristic of all well-established breeds. 
 
 Equally certain is it, in the opinion of many good 
 judges, that the dairy stock of New England has not 
 been improved in its intrinsic good qualities during the 
 last thirty or forty years. Cows of the very highest 
 order as milkers were as frequently met with, they say, 
 in 1825, as at the present time. Any increased product 
 of our dairies they ascribe to improved care and feed- 
 ing, rather than to improvement in the dairy qualities 
 of the stock. 
 
 This may not be true of some other sections of the 
 country, where the dairy has been a more special 
 object of pursuit, and where the custom of raising the 
 best male calves of the neighborhood, or those that 
 came from the best dairy cows, and then of using only 
 
56 MILKING BY THE MOU 7 . TREATMENT. 
 
 the best-formed bulls, has long prevailed. In this way 
 some progress has, doubtless, been made. 
 
 There is an old adage among the dairy farmers of 
 Ayrshire, that " The cow gives her milk by the mou'," 
 which was slightly varied from an old German proverb, 
 that " The cow milks only through the throat." It is 
 fortunate, indeed, that wiser and more humane ideas 
 prevail with regard to the care of stock of all kinds ; 
 for it is well known that the treatment the stock of 
 the country received for the first two centuries after 
 its settlement was often barbarous and cruel in the 
 extreme, and that thousands perished, in the early his- 
 tory of the colonies, from exposure and starvation. 
 Even within my own distinct recollection, it was 
 thought, for miles around my native place, that cows 
 and young stock should remain out of doors exposed 
 to the cold winter days, to " toughen ; " and that, too, 
 by men who styled themselves " practical " farmers. 
 
 Mr. Henry Colman truly asserted, in 1841, that the 
 general treatment of cows in New England would not 
 be an inapt subject of presentment by a grand jury. 
 There were, at that time, it is true, many honorable 
 exceptions ; but the assertion was strictly correct so 
 far as it applied to the section of which I then had a 
 personal knowledge. Judging from the anxiety mani- 
 fested by those who enter superior milch cows for the 
 premiums offered by agricultural societies to show that 
 they have had nothing, or next to nothing, to eat, it is evi- 
 dent that the false ideas with regard to the feeding and 
 treatment of this animal have not yet wholly disap- 
 peared. But, if little improvement has been made in 
 our dairy stock except that produced by more liberal 
 feeding, it simply shows that our efforts have not been 
 made in the right direction. 
 
 The raising of cattle has now become a source of 
 
GREAT QUESTIONS. ECONOMY. 57 
 
 profit in many sections to a greater extent, at least, 
 than formerly, and it becomes a matter of great practi- 
 cal importance to our farmers to take the proper steps 
 to improve them. Indeed, the questions, what is the 
 best breed, and what are the best crosses, and how 
 shall I improve my stock, are now almost daily asked ; 
 and their practical solution would add many thousand 
 dollars to the aggregate wealth of the farmers of the 
 country, if they would all study their own interests. 
 The time is gradually passing away when the intelli- 
 gent practical farmer will be willing to put his cows 
 to any mere " runt " of a bull, simply because his ser- 
 vice may be had for twenty-five cents ; for, even if the 
 progeny is to go to the butcher, the calf sired by a 
 pure-bred bull, particularly of a race distinguished for 
 fineness of bone, symmetry of form, and early maturity, 
 will bring a much higher price at the same age than the 
 calf sired by a scrub. Blood has a money value, which 
 will, sooner or later, be generally appreciated. The 
 first and most important object of the farmer is to 
 get the greatest money-return for his labor and his 
 produce; and it is for his interest to obtain an animal 
 a calf, for instance that will yield the largest profit on 
 the outlay. If a calf, for which the original outlay was 
 five dollars, will bring at the same age, and on the same 
 keep, more real net profit than another, the original out- 
 lay for which was but twenty-five cents, it is certainly 
 for the farmer's interest to pay the larger original out- 
 lay, and have the superior animal. Setting all fancj 
 aside, it is merely a question of dollars and cents ; but 
 one thing is certain, and that is, that the farmer cannot 
 afford to keep poor stock. It eats as much, and requires 
 nearly the same amount of care and attention, as stock 
 of the best quality; while it is equally certain that stock 
 of ever so good a quality, whether grade, " native," or 
 
58 HOW TO IMPROVE. DIFFICULTIES. 
 
 thorough-bred, will be sure to deteriorate and sink tu 
 the level of poor stock, by neglect and want of proper 
 attention. 
 
 How, then, are we to improve our stock ? Not, surely, 
 by that indiscriminate crossing, Avith a total disregard to 
 all well-established principles, which has thus far marked 
 our efforts generally with foreign stock, and which is 
 one prominent reason why so little improvement has 
 been made in our dairies ; nor by leaving all the results 
 to chance, when, by a careful and judicious selection, they 
 may be within our own control. Two modes of improve- 
 ment seem to suggest themselves to the mind of the 
 breeder, either of which, apparently, promises good 
 results. The first is, to select from among our native 
 cattle the most perfect animals not known or suspected 
 to be related to any of the well-established breeds, and 
 to use them as breeders. This is a mode of improve- 
 ment simple enough, if adopted and carried on with 
 animals of any known breed ; and, indeed, it is the onty 
 mode of improvement which preserves the purity of 
 blood ; but, to do it successfully, requires great expe- 
 rience, a good and eure eye for stock, a mind free from 
 prejudice, arid indefatigable patience and perseverance. 
 It is absolutely necessary, also, to pay special attention 
 to the calves thus produced; to furnish them at all times, 
 summer and winter, with an abundant supply of nutri- 
 tious food, and to regulate it according to their growth. 
 Few men are to be found willing to undertake the 
 herculean task of building up a new breed in this way 
 from grade stock. An objection meets us at the very 
 outset, which is that it would require a long series of 
 years to arrive at any satisfactory results, from the fact 
 that no two animals, made up, as our " native " cattle 
 are, of such a variety of elements and crosses, could 
 be found sufficiently alike to produce their kind. The 
 
SECOND METHOD. CHANCE ANIMALS. 59 
 
 principle that like produces like may be perfectly true, 
 and in the well-known breeds it is not difficult to find 
 two animals that will be sure to transmit their own 
 characteristics to their offspring ; but, with two animals 
 which cannot be classed with any breed, the defects of 
 an ill-bred ancestry will be liable to appear through sev- 
 eral generations, and thus thwart and disappoint the 
 expectations of the breeder. The objection of time, and 
 expense, and disappointment, attending this method, 
 should have no weight, if there were no more speedy 
 method of accomplishing equally desirable results. 
 
 The second mode is somewhat more feasible ; and 
 that is, to select animals from races already improved 
 and well-nigh perfected, to cross with our cattle, using 
 none but good specimens of pure-bred males, and select- 
 ing, if our object is to improve stock for the dairy, only 
 such as belong to a race distinguished for dairy qual- 
 ities; or, if resort is had to other breeds less remarkable 
 for such qualities, such only as are descended from large 
 and generous milkers. And here it may be remarked 
 that these qualities do not belong to any one breed ex- 
 clusively, though, as they depend mainly on structure 
 and temperament, which are hereditary to a considerable 
 extent, they are themselves transmissible. In almost 
 every breed we can find individual good milkers which 
 greatly surpass the average of the cows of the same 
 race or family, and from such many suppose that good 
 crosses may be expected. How often do we see farm- 
 ers raising the calves of their best milking-cows simply 
 because they are the best cows, without regard to the 
 qualities of the bull, or to the progenitors of either 
 parent ; and how often are they disappointed, at the end 
 of three or four years of labor and expense 1 Now, 
 though a cow of a bad milking family, or of a breed not 
 at all distinguished for dairy qualities, may turn out to 
 
60 EXCEPTIONAL QUALITIES. 
 
 be an excellent milker, and all else that may be desirable 
 in a cow, yet these qualities in her are accidental. They 
 are not supposed to be transmissible with anything like 
 the certainty which exists where they are the fixed 
 and constant characteristics of the family. She is an 
 exception to the rule of her race. A good calf from 
 her, though not, of course, an impossibility, would be 
 very much the result of chance. The resort to any 
 but a distinguished breed of milkers cannot, therefore, 
 be recommended, nor can we expect to improve our 
 dairies by it. A disregard of this important matter has 
 led to endless disappointment, and has done much to 
 raise up unjust prejudices against the use of all im- 
 proved stock on our native cows. As if we could 
 expect nature to go out of her regular course to give 
 us a good animal, when we have violated her laws ! 
 
 The offspring of these crosses will be grades ; but 
 grades are often better for the practical purposes of 
 the farmer than pure-bred animals. The skill of the 
 breeder is especially manifest in the selection of animals 
 to breed from, since both parents undoubtedly have a 
 great influence in transmitting the milking qualities of the 
 race. But this method of improvement requires less 
 exact and critical knowledge than the first, from the fact 
 that it is easier to appreciate the good points of an ani- 
 mal already perfected, or greatly improved, than to dis- 
 cover them in animals which it is our desire to improve, 
 and which are inferior in form, possessing only the ele- 
 ments of a better stock. It has also an immense advan- 
 tage, since results may be far more rapidly attained, and 
 improvements effected which, by the first method, that 
 of creating or building up a race from the so-called 
 natives, by judicious selections, would be looked for 
 in vain in the ordinary life of man. All grades are pro- 
 duced by this second method ; but all grades are not 
 
SPECIAL OBJECTS. GOOD POINTS. 61 
 
 equally good, nor equally well adapted to meet the 
 farmer's wants. It is desirable to know, then, what, 
 on the whole, are the best and most profitable to the 
 practical farmer. 
 
 We want cattle for distinct purposes, as for milk, 
 beef, or labor. In a large majority of cases, espe- 
 cially in the dairy districts, comprising the Middle and 
 Eastern States, at least, the farmer cares more for 
 the milking qualities of his cows, especially for the 
 quantity they give, than for their fitness for grazing, or 
 aptness to fatten. These latter points become more 
 important in the Western and some of the Southern 
 States, where far greater attention is paid to breeding 
 and to feeding, and where comparatively little attention 
 is given to the productions of the dairy. A stock of 
 cattle that might suit one farmer might be wholly 
 unsuited to another ; and in each particular case the 
 breeder should have some special object in view, and 
 select his animals with reference to it. But there 
 are some general principles that apply to breeding 
 everywhere, and which, in many cases, are not well 
 understood. 
 
 It would not be desirable, even if it were possible, by 
 crossing, to breed out all the general characteristics of 
 many of out native cattle. They have many valuable 
 qualities adapted to our climate and soil, and to the 
 geological structure of the country ; and these should 
 be preserved, while we improve the points in which 
 many of them are deficient, such as a want of precocity 
 and aptitude to fatten, where it is an object to attain 
 this quality, coarseness of bone, and lack of symmetry, 
 which is often apparent, especially when the form of 
 the animal does not indicate a near relation to some of 
 the established breeds. 
 
 It 's a well-known fact that, in crossing, the produce 
 6 
 
62 INFLUENCE OF MALE AND FEMALE. 
 
 most frequently takes after the male parent, especially, 
 it is thought, in exterior form, in its organs of locomo- 
 tion, such as the bones, the muscles, &c. Particularly 
 is this the case when the male belongs to an old and 
 well-established breed, and the female belongs to no 
 known breed, and has no strongly-marked and fixed 
 points. Put a Galloway bull, for instance, to a native 
 cow, and the calf will, as a general rule, be hornless. 
 Put a ram without horns to ewes with horns, and most 
 of the lambs will be destitute of horns ; that is, they 
 take the characteristics of the father rather than the 
 dam ; and this rule holds good generally in breeding, 
 though, like all other rules, it has, of course, its excep- 
 tions. Hence, if this position be correct, the first 
 principle which the good sense of the farmer would 
 dictate would be to select a bull from a breed most 
 noted for the qualities he wishes to obtain in their 
 greatest perfection, and especially if the cow is defi- 
 cient in those qualities. A bull, for instance, of fine 
 bone, and other good points in perfection, will make 
 up for the deficiency of some of these points in the 
 cow. 
 
 On the other hand, say the advocates of this doctrine, 
 in the physiology of breeding the internal structure 
 of the offspring, the organs of secretion, the mucous 
 membranes, the respiratory organs, &c., are imparted 
 chiefly by the dam. Hence it has sometimes been 
 found that by taking a cow remarkable for milking 
 properties, though deficient in many other points, as in 
 the coarseness of bone and in early maturity, and put- 
 ting to her a bull remarkable for symmetry of form and 
 fineness oi bone, the offspring has been superior to the 
 cow in beauty of form and proportions, and has still 
 retained the milking qualities of the dam. This prin- 
 ciple, as already intimated, is questioned by some, who 
 
PRINCIPLES OF BREEDING. 63 
 
 say that the milking qualities, as well as the external 
 form, &c., are transmitted through the male offspring. 
 
 Mr. James Dickson, an experienced breeder and 
 drover, who views the subject from his own standpoint, 
 says : " A great part of the art of breeding lies in the 
 principle of judicious crossing ; for it is only by attend- 
 ing properly to this that success is to be attained, and 
 animals produced that shall yield the greatest amount 
 of profit for the food they consume. All eminent 
 breeders know full well that ill-bred animals are un- 
 profitable both to the breeder and feeder. To carry 
 out the system of crossing judiciously, certain breeds 
 of cattle, sheep, pigs, &c., must be kept pure of their 
 kind males especially ; indeed, as a general rule, no 
 animal possessing spurious blood, or admixture with 
 other breeds, should be used. The produce in almost 
 all cases assimilates to the male parent ; and I should 
 say that in crossing the use of any males not pure-bred 
 is injudicious, and ought to be avoided." 
 
 If, therefore, a cross is effected with satisfactory results, 
 it should be continued by resorting to pure-bred bulls, 
 and not by the use of any grade bulls thus obtained ; 
 for, though a grade bull may be a very fine animal, it 
 has been found that he does not transmit his good 
 qualities with anything like the certainty of a pure- 
 bred one. The more desirable qualities are united in 
 the bull, the better ; but the special reason for the use 
 of a pure-bred male in crossing is not so much that the 
 particular individual selected has these qualities most 
 perfectly developed in himself, as that they are hered- 
 itary in the breed to which he belongs. The moment 
 the line is crossed, and the pedigree broken, uncer- 
 tainty commences. Although the form of the grade 
 bull may, in individual cases, be even superior to that 
 of his pure-bred sire, yet there is less likelihood of his 
 
64 GUENON'S METHOD. MARKS OF A MILKER. 
 
 transmitting the qualities for which his breed is most 
 noted ; and when it is considered that during his life 
 he may scatter his progeny over a considerable section 
 of country, and thus affect the cattle of his whole 
 neighborhood, attention to this becomes a matter of 
 no small public importance. 
 
 This principle, so far as its application to breeding 
 for the shambles is concerned, seems to me to be sound, 
 and fully established by long experience and practice. 
 Perhaps it is equally so, also, in breeding for the 
 dairy. But it may be well to consider whether there 
 are not other rational modes of judgment in the selec- 
 tion of animals for breeding with this specific object 
 in view. 
 
 There is a difference of opinion with regard to the 
 practical value of the system of classification and judg- 
 ment of milch cows discovered and developed by 
 Guenon: some being inclined to ridicule it, as absurd ; 
 others to adopt it implicitly, and follow it out in all 
 its details ; and others still and among this class I gen- 
 erally find a very large number of the most sensible 
 practical judges of stock to admit that in the main it 
 is correct, though they discredit the practicability of 
 carrying it so far, and so minutely into detail, as its 
 author did. 
 
 It may be remarked, at the outset, that the fact that 
 the best of the signs of a great and good milker 
 adopted by Guenon are generally found united with tho 
 best forms and marks almost universally admitted and 
 practised upon by good judges, gives, at least, some 
 plausibility to the system, while the importance of it, 
 if it be correct, is sufficient to demand a careful exam- 
 ination. Every good judge of a milch cow, for instance, 
 wants to see in her a small, fine head, with short and 
 yellowish horns : a soft, delicate, and close coat of hair ; 
 
THE MILK-MIRROR. EXPLANATION. 65 
 
 a skin soft and flexible over the rump ; broad, well- 
 spread ribs, covered with a loose skin of medium thick- 
 ness j a broad chest ; a long, slender tail ; straight 
 hind legs ; a large, regularly-formed udder, covered with 
 short, close, silky hair ; four teats of equal size and 
 length, set wide apart ; large, projecting lacteal veins, 
 which run along under the belly from the udder tow- 
 ards the fore legs, forming a fork at the end, and 
 finally losing themselves in a round cavity ; and when 
 these points, or any considerable number of them, are 
 found united in a cow, she would be pronounced a 
 good milker. An animal in which these signs are 
 found would rarely fail of having a good " milk-mirror," 
 or escutcheon; on which Guenon, after many years of 
 careful observation and experiment, came to lay par- 
 ticular stress ; and on the basis of which he built up a 
 system or theory so complicated as to be of little prac- 
 tical value compared with what it might have been had 
 he seen fit to simplify it so as to bring it within the 
 easy comprehension of the farmer. As one means of 
 forming a judgment of the milking qualities, however, 
 it must be regarded as very important, since it is un- 
 questionably sustained by facts in a very large majority 
 of cases. 
 
 The milk-mirror, or escutcheon, is formed by the hair 
 above the udder, extending upwards between the 
 thighs, growing in an opposite direction from that of 
 other parts of the body. In well-formed mirrors, found 
 only in cows which have the arteries which supply the 
 milky glands large and fully developed, it ordinarily be- 
 gins between the four teats in the middle, and ascends 
 to the vulva, and sometimes even higher, the hair grow- 
 ing upwards. The direction of the hair is subordinate 
 to that of the arteries ; for the relation existing between 
 the direction of the hair above the udder and the 
 6* 5 
 
66 CORRESPONDENCE OF THE MIRRORS. 
 
 activity of the milky glands is apparent on a careful 
 examination of all the cases. When the lower part 
 of the mirror is large and broad, with the hair grow- 
 ing from below upwards, and extending well out on the 
 thighs, it indicates that the arteries which supply the 
 milky glands, and which are situated just behind it, 
 are large and capable of conveying much blood, and 
 of giving great activity to the functions of secretion. 
 
 Now, in the bull, the arteries which correspond to 
 the mammary or lacteal arteries of the cow are not 
 so fully developed ; and the escutcheons are smaller, 
 shorter, and narrower. Guenon applied the same name, 
 milk-mirror, to these marks in the bull ; and the natural 
 inference was, that there should exist a correspondence 
 or similarity in the mirror of the bull and the cow which 
 are coupled for the purpose of producing an offspring 
 fit for the dairy, that the mirror in the bull should be 
 of the same class, or of a better class than that of the cow. 
 
 It is confidently asserted by the advocates of Gue- 
 non's method, and with much show of reason, that 
 the very large proportion of cows of bad or indiiferent 
 milking qualities, compared with the good, is owing to 
 the mistakes in selecting bulls without reference to the 
 proper marks or points. As to the transmission of the 
 milk-mirror, it has been found in many cases that bulls 
 sprung from cows with good mirrors had smaller and 
 more heart-shaped mirrors, spreading out pretty broad 
 upon the thighs. Pabst, a successful German breeder, 
 says that he has used such bulls for three years, and 
 that the milk-mirrors were transmitted in the majority 
 of the male progeny, and in nearly every case very 
 large and beautiful mirrors were given to the heifer- 
 calves. A son of the bull with which he began was 
 serving at the time of which he speaks, having a mir- 
 ror more highly developed than his sire, and the 
 
TRANSMISSION OP MILK-MIRROR. 67 
 
 first calves of his get had also very large milk-mir- 
 rors. The female offspring of the first bull of good milk- 
 mirror promised first rate, though they had not then 
 come in. His inference is, that in breeding from cows 
 noted as milkers regard should be had to the form 
 of the mirror on the bull, and the chance of his 
 transmitting it. If any credit is due to this inge- 
 nious method, it may be laid down, as a principle in 
 the selection of a bull to get dairy stock, that the one 
 possessing the largest and best-developed milk-mirror 
 is the best for the purpose, and will be most likely to 
 get milkers of large quantity and continued flow. This 
 method will be more fully developed in the chapter on 
 the Selection of Milch Cows. 
 
 But, however careful we may be to select good 
 milkers, and to breed from them with the hope of im- 
 provement, it is by no means easy to select such as are 
 capable of transmitting their qualities to their off- 
 spring. This is rendered still more difficult by the 
 fact that there is no known mark to indicate it, and we 
 are left to use our own judgment ; for, in the case of 
 bulls, we are often obliged to give them up before their 
 progeny have arrived at an age to show their qualities 
 by actual trial. We are thrown back, therefore, upon 
 their external marks. But, as M. Magne, a very sensible 
 French writer, justly observes in his admirable little 
 work (Clioix des Vaches Latieres, p. 86, Paris, 1857), 
 the fixed characteristics which have existed in races 
 for several generations will be transmitted with most 
 certainty. Hence the importance, he says, of selecting 
 milch cows from good breeds and good families, and 
 especially, in breeding stock, of selecting carefully both 
 male and female. The male designed to get dairy stock 
 ought to possess the structure which, in the cow, indi- 
 cates the greatest activity of the mammary glands, as 
 
68 CHOICE OF THE BULL. 
 
 fineness of form, mellowness of skin, large hind quarters, 
 large and well-developed veins and escutcheon. 
 
 A cow of a race or family not noted as milkers may 
 chance to be an excellent milker, and this is enough, 
 if we do not desire to breed from her ; but she would 
 not transmit her exceptional qualities like a cow of 
 which these qualities were the fixed characteristics, 
 constant and transmissible in the breed. These con- 
 siderations apply also, as already said, in the choice of 
 a bull. The attention of practical men has been so 
 much directed to the best points of good cows, of late 
 years, that it becomes necessary to study to propagate 
 these, if the breeder desires to find buyers for his stock. 
 The buyer judges more from external signs than from 
 the intrinsic qualities of the cow, with which he may not 
 be acquainted. 
 
 To explain the variations in the transmission of 
 milking qualities, we should bear in mind that these 
 qualities are not found in wild cows, and that they are 
 developed only when man can, by a particular course of 
 treatment, as by the act of milking, the separation of 
 the sexes, etc., cause certain natural powers to act with 
 greater strength than others ; that they incline to dis- 
 appear as soon as these powers, the nature of the soil, 
 the peculiarities of climate, the properties of plants, 
 and the temperament of the cows, are permitted to act 
 according to the original plan of creation ; so that the 
 variations which we consider as sports of nature are 
 incontestible proofs of the uniformity of her works. 
 
 It is only by observing animals carefully, by noting - 
 accurately their good qualities and their faults, by 
 watching the circumstances in which individuals are 
 produced, raised, and kept, that we can account for 
 what seems to us a sport or caprice of nature. We can 
 then tell, first, how the same bull and cow have pro- 
 
PRINCIPLES OF BREEDING. 69 
 
 dnced three calves with different properties ; and, 
 secondly, trace out the rules which we are to follow, to 
 be almost uniformly successful in obtaining stock of the 
 best quality. 
 
 Experience shows that the qualities which are trans- 
 mitted with most certainty depend on the most import- 
 ant organs of life ; and so, in the forms of the viscera 
 and the skeleton, variations are rare, not only in breeds 
 of the same species, but in different species of the same 
 genera. 
 
 Moreover, in cases where the transmission of proper- 
 ties is so uncertain as to seem the result of caprice in 
 nature, these properties are formed by superficial 
 organs, by the skin, the horns, the state of the hair, 
 etc. 
 
 But it is in qualities which are, in a measure, arti- 
 ficial, qualities produced by domestication, and often 
 more injurious than useful to the health of animals, that 
 variations most commonly occur. These change not 
 only with the breed of one species, but with the dif- 
 ferent individuals of the same breed, of the same half- 
 breed, and often of the same family. 
 
 Bearing these elementary principles of natural his- 
 tory and physiology in mind, we shall comprehend how 
 cows and bulls well marked in regard to escutcheons 
 have produced stock which did not resemble them. M. 
 Lefebvre Sainte Marie asserts that the influence of the 
 escutcheons is very feeble in the act of reproduction. 
 
 In this view, the escutcheon is almost nothing in 
 itself. It depends on the state of the hair, on one of 
 the most fleeting of peculiarities, on that which is least 
 hereditary in animals. It has no value as a mark of 
 good getters of stock, unless it is supported by marks 
 superior to it from their stability, a larger skeleton, 
 double loins, ? wide rump, highly-developed blood- 
 
70 RELATIVE SIZE OF MALE AND FEMALE. 
 
 vessels, unless it is united with a spacious chest, 
 round ribs, large lungs, and a strong constitution. 
 
 The more complete the correspondence between 
 these marks, the more the milking quality is connected 
 with the general condition of the animal, the greater 
 the chances of transmission ; and when, with a view to 
 breeding, we shall choose only animals having the two- 
 fold character of general vigor of constitution and 
 activity of the mammary system, and place the progeny 
 under favorable circumstances, the qualities will rarely 
 prove defective. Thus far the conclusions of Magne. 
 
 Another well-known fact in natural history is, that 
 the size of animals depends very much upon the fer- 
 tility of the region they inhabit. Where food is abun- 
 dant and nutritious, they increase in size in proportion 
 to the quantity and quality ; and this size, under the 
 same circumstances, will run through generations, unless 
 interrupted by artificial means. So, if the food is 
 more difficult to obtain, and the pastures are short, the 
 pliancy of the animal organization is such that it 
 naturally becomes adapted to it, and the animal is of 
 smaller size ; and hence* Mr. Cline observes that " the 
 general mistake in crossing has arisen from an attempt 
 to increase the size of a native race of animals, being a 
 fruitless effort to counteract the laws of nature." Mr. 
 Cline also says, in his treatise " On the Form of Ani- 
 mals : " " Experience has proved that crossing has only 
 succeeded in an eminent degree in those instances ill 
 which the females were larger than the usual propor- 
 tion of females to males ; and that it has generally failed 
 when the males were disproportionally large. When 
 the male is much larger than the female, the offspring 
 is generally of an imperfect form j if the female be 
 proportionally larger than the male, the offspring is 
 generally of an improved form. For instance, if a 
 
OPINIONS DIFFER. 71 
 
 well-formed large ram be put to ewes proportionally 
 smaller, the lambs will not be so well shaped as their 
 parents ; but, if a small ram be put to larger ewes, the 
 lambs will be of an improved form." " The improve- 
 ment depends on the principle that the power of the 
 female to supply her offspring with nourishment is in 
 proportion to her size, and to the power of nourishing 
 herself from the excellence of her constitution : as 
 larger animals eat more, the larger female may afford 
 most nourishment to her young." 
 
 This should, I am inclined to think, be regarded as 
 another principle of breeding, that, when improvement 
 in form is desired, the size of the female selected 
 should be proportionally larger than the male ; though 
 Lord Spencer, a successful breeder, strongly contested 
 it, and Mr. Dickson, an excellent judge of stock, advised 
 the attempt to build up a new breed by selecting some 
 Zetland cows, a very diminutive breed of Scotch cattle, 
 of good symmetry, points, arid handling, and a high-bred 
 West Highland bull to put to them. " The produce 
 would probably be/' says he, " a neat, handsome little 
 animal, of a medium size, between the two breeds. The 
 shaggy hide, long horns, symmetry, and fine points, of 
 the West Highlanders, would be imparted to this cross, 
 which would not only be a good feeder and very hardy, 
 but the beef of superior quality. The great point 
 would, of course, be the proper selection of breeding ani- 
 mals. The next step towards improving this would be 
 the crossing of these crosses with a pure Hereford bull, 
 which would improve the size, and impart still finer 
 points, more substance, with greater aptitude to fatten. 
 By combining these favorite breeds, the produce would, 
 in all probability, be very superior, not only attaining 
 to good weights, but feeding well, and arriving at 
 maturity at an early age. The breeder must not be 
 
72 THE OAKES COW. 
 
 satisfied and rest here, but go a point further, and 
 cross the heifers of the third cross with a short-horn 
 bull." These successive steps imply the use of a bull 
 of larger breed, though not necessarily, perhaps, pro- 
 portionally larger than the cow, in any individual case. 
 
 This, it will be perceived, is a case of breeding with 
 less reference to the milking or dairy qualities than the 
 grazing. Great milkers are found of all shapes, and 
 the chief object of improving their form is to improve 
 their feeding qualities, or, in other words, to unite, as 
 far as possible, the somewhat incompatible properties 
 of grazing and milking. Graceful, well-rounded, and 
 compact forms, which constitute beauty in the eyes of 
 the grazier, as well as in the estimation of those not 
 accustomed to consider the intrinsic qualities of an 
 animal, or not capable of appreciating them in a milch 
 cow, will very rarely be found united, to any consider- 
 able extent, with active mammary glands or milk vessels. 
 The best milkers often look coarse and flabby; for, 
 even if their bony structure is good and symmetrical, 
 they will appear, especially when in milk, to have 
 large, raw bones and sharp points, particularly if they 
 are largely developed in the hind quarters, which is 
 most frequently the case, as is strikingly seen in the 
 form of the Oakes cow, a native animal, the most cele- 
 brated of her time, in Massachusetts, and winner of the 
 first premium at the State Fair of 1816. 
 
 She yielded in that year no less than four hundred 
 and sixty-seven and a quarter pounds of butter from 
 May 15th to December 20th, at which time she was 
 giving over eight quarts of milk, beer measure, a day. 
 The weight of her milk in the height of the season, 
 in June, was but forty-four and a half pounds ; not so 
 great as that of some cows of the present day, on far 
 less feed in proportion to their size. Many cows can 
 
HANDSOME IS THAT HANDSOME DOES. 
 
 73 
 
 be named in New England, at the present time, whose 
 yield, under the most favorable circumstances, exceeds 
 fifty pounds a day, and some, whose yield will be fifty- 
 five pounds, on less feed than the Oakes cow had. 
 
 Fig. 14. Oakes Cow. 
 
 The flesh on the hind quarters of most large milkers 
 bears little proportion to the bone ; the hips protrude, 
 the pelvis is broad, the legs far apart, giving great 
 space for the receptacle of large milk-vessels ; whilst 
 great flow of blood to the milky glands, incident to this 
 peculiar structure, keeps them in more constant and 
 greater activity than any other organs, so that the 
 muscles develop less than they otherwise would, 
 remain slender, and leave the buttocks and thighs 
 small and narrow. Such animals will seldom acquire 
 the reputation of being beautiful in form, and if they 
 are not decidedly ugly, the owner may console himself 
 with the adage that " handsome is that handsome does.'' 
 
 But, though it is to the influence of the male that we 
 are chiefly to look for improvements in the form, size, 
 7 
 
74 CROSSES MOST DESIRABLE. 
 
 muscular development, and general appearance, of our 
 stock, and for transmitting their milking qualities, to a 
 considerable extent, the influence of the female is no 
 less important ; and undoubtedly the safest course to 
 pursue, to obtain improved animals, is to select the 
 best-formed animals, on both sides, from the greatest 
 milking families. 
 
 With regard to the particular breeds to select for 
 crossing with our natives, opinions will naturally differ 
 widely. Those who are favored with luxuriant pastures 
 and abundance of winter feed will have no objection 
 to large-sized animals, and will naturally wish to obtain 
 or possess grade short-horns. There is no breed in 
 the world to which, it is more desirable to resort, under 
 such circumstances, particularly where improvement in 
 form, early maturity, and general symmetry, are sought, 
 in union with other qualities. It is well known that 
 some families of short-horns have been bred for the 
 pail, while most others have been bred chiefly for 
 beef. If resort is had to this breed, therefore, great 
 care and caution should be observed to select bulls 
 from the milking families only ; and, unless this is done 
 we shall run the risk of losing the milking qualities of 
 our stock, for which the improvement in form and 
 early maturity can be little compensation, when breed- 
 ing for the dairy. 
 
 It is a remarkable and significant fact that the large 
 dairies of London are nearly filled with the short-horns, 
 or short-horn and Yorkshire grades ; and the fact that 
 this breed is selected in such circumstances for the 
 production of milk to supply the milk-market speaks 
 volumes in favor of this cross. It is found that grade 
 short-horns, after yielding extraordinary quantities of 
 milk, during which they very naturally present the 
 most ungainly appearance, will, when dried off and fed, 
 
THE LONDON DAIRIES. 75 
 
 take on flesh very rapidly, and yield large weights of 
 beef. This is one prominent reason for keeping them ; 
 and another is, that they occupy less space than would 
 be required to produce the same quantity of milk from 
 smaller animals, which might give even more milk per 
 cow in proportion to size and food consumed. 
 
 The cross of the well-bred short-horn and the native 
 or Dutch cows of the dairy districts of New York is 
 very highly esteemed ; arid six hundred pounds of 
 cheese a year is no uncommon yield for such grades in 
 Herkimer and adjacent counties. 
 
 The Ayrshirea have been tried in the London dairies, 
 but it was found that they were too difficult to obtain 
 in sufficient numbers, and at sufficiently low prices; 
 and that where quantity was the chief object, as in a 
 milk-dairy, and space a matter of great importance, 
 they could not compete with the short-horn and the 
 Yorkshire cows, and crosses between these races. 
 
 It often happens, particularly in milk-dairies, that the 
 farmer is so situated as not to desire to raise his 
 calves, but disposes of them at the highest price to 
 the butcher. He will obtain the greatest weight and 
 the highest quality of veal from the use of a pure- 
 bred short-horn or Hereford bull. But, on poorer 
 pastures, where there is too little feed to bring young 
 stock to their most perfect development, the pure-bred 
 short-horns and high grades of the short-horn are 
 thought, by some, to be too large, and consequently 
 unprofitable. How far this objection to them might be 
 obviated by stall feeding or soiling, and the use of roots, 
 is for each one to consider who has these facilities at 
 command. For most parts of New England they are 
 unquestionably too large to be well maintained. 
 
 As to the Herefords, they cannot be recommended 
 for the dairy, either as pure bloods or grades ; but in 
 
76 HEREFORD AND DEVON GRADES. 
 
 grazing districts, devoted to raising beef or working 
 cattle, they are highly and justly prized. 
 
 The same may be said of the North Devons. The 
 pure-bred Devon bull, put to a good, young native 
 cow, produces a beautiful and valuable cross, either 
 for the yoke or the shambles ; and if the cow is a 
 remarkably good milker to begin with, and the bull 
 from a milking family, there would be no fear of mate- 
 rially lessening the quantity in the offspring, while its 
 form, and other qualities, would probably be greatly 
 improved. 
 
 Grade Devons are very much sought for working 
 oxen, and high prices are readily obtained for them, 
 while as beef cattle they are by some highly esteemed. 
 But, unfortunately, very few herds are to be found 
 where attention has been paid to breeding for milk; and 
 great milkers are the exception, and very rarely met 
 with among the pure breeds. In their native country 
 they are bred almost exclusively for beef. The estima- 
 tion in which they are held as dairy stock, even by 
 Devon breeders themselves, both in England and in this 
 country, has been shown in the low value placed upon 
 the development of the udder in the establishment of 
 the scale of points spoken of on a preceding page ; from 
 which it is evident that, in judging of them, it was not 
 contemplated that their milking qualities should be 
 taken into consideration. As cows for the dairy, there- 
 fore, they possess no advantages over our common 
 stock, and we should hardly look for improvement from 
 them in this respect. 
 
 The Jerseys, as already seen, are justly celebrated for 
 the richness of their milk and the butter made from it. 
 In this respect no pure breed can excel them. They 
 are, therefore, as a dairy breed, worthy of attention. 
 On farms where the making of butter is an object of 
 
JERSEY AND AYRSHIRE GRADES. T( 
 
 pursuit and profit, an infusion of Jersey blood will be 
 likely to secure richness of milk, and high-flavored, 
 delicious butter. Many good judges of stock recom- 
 mend this cross for dairy purposes; and the chief objec- 
 tion that can be urged against them is that they are, as 
 a breed, very deficient in quantity, which in a milk- 
 dairy would be fatal to them, while, at the same time, 
 they have little to recommend them, as the Devons 
 have, on the score of beautiful forms and symmetrical 
 proportions. Put upon a large and roomy native cow, 
 remarkable as a milker, the produce would be likely 
 to be a very superior animal. 
 
 The Ayrshires, as already seen, have been bred with 
 reference both to quality and quantity of milk, and the 
 grades are usually of a very high order. The best 
 milkers I have ever known, in proportion to their size 
 and food, have been grade Ayrshires ; and this is also 
 the experience of many who keep dairies for the manu 
 facture of butter and cheese, as well as for the sale of 
 milk. A cross obtained from an Ayrshire bull of good 
 size and a pure-bred short-horn cow will produce a 
 stock which it will be hard to beat at the pail, espe- 
 cially if the cow belong to any of the families of short- 
 horns which have been bred with reference to their 
 milking qualities, as some of them have. I have taken 
 great pains to inquire of dairymen as to the breed or 
 grade of their best cows, and what they consider the 
 best cows for milk for their purposes ; and the answer 
 has almost invariably been the Ayrshire and the native. 
 The Ayrshires have by no means been a failure in this 
 country, although I do not think that, as a general 
 thing, we have been so fortunate hitherto as to import 
 the best specimens of them. If any improvement has 
 been made in our dairy stock apart from that effected 
 by a higher and more liberal course of feeding, it has 
 7* 
 
78 GALLOWAYS. SUFFOLKS. 
 
 come, in a great measure, from the Ayrshires ; and, 
 nad the facilities been offered to cross our common 
 stock with them to greater extent, there can be little 
 doubt that the improvement would have been greater 
 and more perceptible. 
 
 It should, however, be said, that in sections where 
 the feed is naturally luxuriant, and adapted to grazing 
 large animals, some families of the short-horns crossed 
 with our natives have produced an equally good stock 
 for cheese and milk dairies. 
 
 Before closing this part of the subject, it is proper to 
 observe that among the earlier importations were sev- 
 eral varieties of hornless cattle, and that they have been 
 kept distinct in some sections, or where they have been 
 crossed with the common stock there has been a tend- 
 ency to produce hornless grades. These are not unfre- 
 quently known under the name of buffalo cattle. They 
 were, in many cases, supposed to have belonged to the 
 Galloway breed ; or, which is more likely, to the Suffolk 
 dun, a variety of the Galloway, and a far better milking- 
 stock than the Galloways, from which it sprung. The 
 polled, or hornless cattle, vary in color and qualities, 
 but they are usually very good milkers when well 
 kept, and many of them fatten well, and attain good 
 weights. 
 
 The Hungarian cattle have also been imported, to 
 some extent, into different parts of the country, and 
 have been crossed upon the natives with some success. 
 Many other strains of blood from different breeds have 
 contributed to build up the common stock of the coun- 
 try of the present day ; and there can be no question 
 that its appearance and value have been largely im- 
 proved during the last quarter of a century, nor that 
 improvements are still in progress which will lead to 
 sat is fact or} T results in future. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE SELECTION OP MILCH COWS. 
 
 WE have now reviewed the prominent races of cattle 
 found in American dairy herds, and devoted some space 
 to an examination of the principles to be followed in 
 the breeding of dairy stock ; and this has involved, to 
 some extent, the choice of breeds, and the selection of 
 individual animals, with special reference, however, to 
 transmitting and improving their milking properties. 
 But the selection of cows for the dairy is of such im- 
 portance as to demand the most careful consideration. 
 
 The objects of a dairy are three-fold: the production of 
 milk for sale, mainly confined to milk-dairies, and to small- 
 er farms in the vicinity of large towns, where a mixed 
 husbandry is followed; the production of butter, chiefly 
 confined to farms at a distance from cities and large 
 towns, which furnish a ready market for milk ; and the 
 fabrication of cheese, carried on under circumstances 
 somewhat similar to the manufacture of butter, and some- 
 times united with it as an object of pursuit, on the farm. 
 
 These different objects should, therefore, be kept in 
 view, in the selection of cows ; for animals which would 
 be most profitable for the milk-dairy might be very 
 unprofitable in the butter-dairy a fact of almost daily 
 experience. The productiveness of the cow does not 
 depend on her breed so much as upon her food and 
 management, her temperament and health, and the activ- 
 ity and energy of the organs of digestion and secretion. 
 
80 JUDGING OF STOCK. 
 
 These latter, it is true, depending upon the structure of 
 the chest and other parts, are far better developed, and 
 more permanently fixed, in some races than in others, 
 and are derived more or less by descent, and capable 
 of being transmitted. The breed, therefore, cannot be 
 wholly disregarded, inasmuch as it is an element in 
 forming a judgment of the merits of a milch cow. 
 
 Cows, of whatever breed, having the best developed 
 external marks of good milkers, will very rarely disap- 
 point the practised eye or the skilful hand ; while cows 
 of breeds in highest repute for the dairy, and which do 
 not show these marks, will as certainly fail to answer 
 the expectations of those who select them simply for 
 the breed. Those who would obtain skill in judging of 
 these marks, and by means of them be able to estimate 
 the value of a cow, need not expect to attain this end 
 without long study and practical observation, for which 
 some men have far greater talent than others ; being 
 able, while examining a particular mark or favorite 
 characteristic of a milker, to take in ail others at a 
 glance, and so, while appearing to form their opinion 
 from one or two important points, actually to estimate 
 the whole development of the animal, while others 
 must examine in detail each point by itself. Long prac- 
 tice is required, therefore, to become an adept in the 
 judgment and selection of milch cows ; but still much 
 assistance may, unquestionably, be derived by careful 
 attention to the external signs which have been long 
 observed to indicate the milking qualities. 
 
 It is important, in the first place, to be able to judge 
 of the age of the cow. Few farmers wish to pur- 
 chase a cow for the dairy after she has passed her 
 prime, which will ordinarily be at the age of nine or 
 ten years, varying, of course, according to care, feed- 
 ing, &c j in the earlier part of her life. 
 
RINGS ON THE HORNS. 
 
 81 
 
 The most usual mode of forming air estimate of the 
 age of cattle is by an examination of the horn. At 
 three years old, as a general rule, the horns are per- 
 fectly smooth ; after this, a ring appears near the root, 
 and annually afterward a new one is formed ; so that ; 
 by adding two years to the first ring, the age is calcu- 
 lated. This is a very uncertain mode of judging. The 
 rings are distinct only in the cow ; and it is well known 
 that, -if a heifer goes to bull when she is two years old, 
 or a little before or after that time, a change takes place 
 in the horn, and the first ring appears ; so that a real 
 three-year-old would carry the mark of a four-year-old. 
 
 The rings on the horns of a bull are either not seen 
 until five, or they cannot be traced at all ; while in the 
 ox they do not appear till he is five years old, and then 
 are often very indistinct. In addition to this, it is by no 
 means an uncommon practice to file the horns, so as to 
 make them smoolh, and to give the animal the appear- 
 ance of being much younger than it really is. This is, 
 therefore, an exceedingly fallacious guide, and we can- 
 not rely on it without being subject to imposition. 
 
 Fig. 15. Teeth at birth. Fig. 16. Second week. 
 
 The surest indication of the age is given by the teeth. 
 
 6 
 
82 THE TEETH AT VARIOUS AGES. 
 
 The calf, at birth, will usually have two incisor or front 
 teeth : in some cases just appearing through the gums ; 
 in others, fully set, varying as the cow falls short or 
 exceeds her regular time of calving. If she overruns 
 several days, the teeth will have set and attained con- 
 siderable size, as appears in Fig. 15. During the sec- 
 ond week, a tooth will usually be added on each side, 
 and the mouth will generally appear as in Fig. 16 ; and, 
 before the end of the third week, the animal will gener- 
 ally have six incisor teeth, as shown in Fig. 17 ; and 
 in a week from that time the full number of incisors 
 will have appeared, as seen in Fig. 18. 
 
 Fig. 17. Third week. Fig. 18. Month. 
 
 These teeth are temporary, and are often called milk- 
 teeth. Their edge is very sharp; and, as the animal 
 begins to live upon more solid food, this edge becomes 
 worn, showing the bony part of the tooth beneath, and 
 indicates, with considerable precision, the length of 
 time they have been used. The centre or oldest teeth 
 show the marks of age first, and often become some- 
 what worn before the corner teeth appear. At eight 
 weeks, the four inner teeth are nearlv as sharp as be- 
 
WEARING AWAY. 
 
 83 
 
 fore. They appear worn not so much on the outer 
 edge or line of the tooth, as inside this line ; but, after 
 this, the edge begins gradually to lose its sharpness, 
 and to present a more flattened surface ; while the next 
 
 Pig. 19. Five to eight months. Fig. 20. Ten months. 
 
 outer teeth wear down like the four central ones ; and 
 at three months this wearing off is very apparent, till 
 at four months all the incisor teeth appear worn, but 
 
 Fig. 21. Twelve months. Fig. 22. Fifteen months. 
 
 the inner ones the most. Now the teeth begin slowly 
 to diminish in size by a kind of contraction, as well as 
 
84 
 
 THE PERMANENT INCISORS. 
 
 \\earing down, and the distance apart becomes more and 
 more apparent. 
 
 From the fifth to the eighth month the inner teeth 
 will usually appear as in Fig. 19 ; and at ten months 
 this change shows more clearly, as in Fig. 20, and the 
 spaces between them begin to show very plainly, till 
 at a year old they ordinarily present the appearance 
 of Fig. 21 ; and at the age of fifteen months that shown 
 in Fig. 22, where the corner teeth are not more than 
 half the original size, and the centre ones still smaller. 
 
 The permanent teeth are now rapidly growing, and 
 preparing to take the place of the milk-teeth, which 
 are gradually absorbed till they disappear, or are pushed 
 out to give place to the two permanent central incisors, 
 which, at a year and a half, will generally present the 
 appearance indicated in Fig. 23, which shows the inter- 
 nal structure of the lower jaw at this time, with the 
 cells of the teeth, the two central ones protruding into 
 the mouth, the two next pushing up, but not quite 
 
 Fig. 23. Eighteen months. 
 
 Fig. 24. Two years past 
 
 grown to the surface, with the third pair just percep- 
 tible. These changes require time ; and at two years 
 past the jaw will usually appear as in Fig. 24, where 
 
THE UNCERTAIN PERIOD. 
 
 85 
 
 four of the permanent central incisors are seen. After 
 this the other milk-teeth decrease rapidly, but are slow 
 to disappear ; and at three years old the third pair of 
 permanent teeth are but formed, as in Fig. 25 ; and at 
 four years the last pair of incisors will be up, as in 
 Fig. 26 ; but the outside ones are not yet fully grown, 
 
 Fig. 25. Three years past. 
 
 Fig. 26. Four years past 
 
 and the beast can hardly be said to be full-mouthed till 
 the age of five years. But before this age, or at the age 
 of four years, the two inner pairs of permanent teeth 
 are beginning to wear at the edges, as shown in Fig. 
 26, while at five years old the whole set becomes some- 
 what worn down at the top, and on the two centre ones 
 a darker line appears in the middle, along a line of 
 harder bone, as appears in Fig. 27. 
 
 Now will come a year or two, and sometimes three, 
 when the teeth do not so clearly indicate the exact age, 
 and the judgment must be guided by the extent to 
 which the dark middle lines are worn. This will de- 
 pend somewhat upon the exposure and feeding of the 
 animal ; but at seven years these lines extend over 
 all the teeth. At eight years another change begins, 
 8 
 
86 
 
 SOUNDNESS OF CONSTITUTION. 
 
 which cannot be mistaken. A kind of absorption begins 
 with the two central incisors, slow, at first, but percep- 
 tible, and these two teeth become smaller than the rest, 
 while the dark lines are worn into one in all but the 
 
 Fig. 27. Five years past. 
 
 Fig. 28. Ten years past. 
 
 corner teeth, till at ten years four of the central incisors 
 have become smaller in size, with a smaller and fainter 
 mark, as seen in Fig. 28. At eleven the six inner teeth 
 are smaller than the corner ones ; and at twelve all 
 become smaller than they were, while the dark lines 
 are nearly gone, except in the corner teeth, and the 
 inner edge is worn to the gum. 
 
 After being satisfied with regard to the age of a cow, 
 we should examine her with reference to her soundness 
 of constitution. A good constitution is indicated by 
 large lungs, which are found in a deep, broad, and promi- 
 nent chest, broad and well-spread ribs, a respiration some- 
 what slow and regular, a good appetite, and if in milk a 
 strong inclination to drink, which a large secretion of 
 milk almost invariably stimulates. In such cows the 
 digestive organs are active and energetic, and they make 
 an abundance of good blood, which in turn stimulates 
 
UNION TO BE RELIED ON. 87 
 
 the activity of the nervous system, and furnishes the 
 milky glands with the means of abundant secretion. 
 Such cows, when dry, readily take on fat. When activ- 
 ity of the milk-glands is found united with close ribs, 
 small and feeble lungs, and a slow appetite, often 
 attended by great thirst, the cow will generally possess 
 only a weak and feeble constitution ; and if the milk is 
 plentiful, it will generally be of bad quality, while the 
 animal, if she does not die of diseased lungs, will not 
 take on fat readily when dry and fed. 
 
 Other external marks of great milkers have already 
 been given in part. They should be found united, as 
 far as possible ; for, though no one of them, however 
 well developed, can be taken as a sure indication of 
 extraordinary milking powers, several of them united 
 may, as a general rule, be implicitly relied on. 
 
 In order to have no superfluous flesh, the cow should 
 have a small, clean, and rather long head, tapering tow- 
 ards the muzzle. A cow with a large, coarse head will 
 seldom fatten readily, or give a large quantity of milk. 
 A coarse head increases the proportion of weight of the 
 least, valuable parts, while it is a sure indication that the 
 whole bony structure is too heavy. The mouth should 
 be large and broad ; the eye bright and sparkling, but 
 of a peculiar placidness of expression, with no indica- 
 tion of wildness, but rather a mild and feminine look. 
 These points will indicate gentleness of disposition, 
 Such cows seem to like to be milked, are fond of 
 being caressed, and often return caresses. The horna 
 should be small, short, tapering, yellowish, and glisten- 
 ing. The neck should be small, thin, and tapering tow- 
 ards the head, but thickening when it approaches the 
 shoulder ; the dewlaps small. The fore quarters should 
 be rather small when compared with the hind quarters. 
 The form of the barrel will be large, and each rib 
 
88 GOOD SIGNS. THE MILK-VEINS. 
 
 should project further than the preceding one, up to the 
 loins. She should be well formed across the hips and 
 in the rump. 
 
 The spine or back-bone should be straight and long, 
 rather loosely hung, or open along the middle part, the 
 result of the distance between the dorsal vertebrae, 
 which sometimes causes a slight depression, or sway 
 back. By some good judges this mark is regarded as 
 of great importance, especially when the bones of the 
 hind quarters are also rather loosely put together, leav- 
 ing the rump of great width, and the pelvis large, and 
 the organs and milk-vessels lodged in the cavities 
 largely developed. The skin over the rump should be 
 loose and flexible. This point is of great importance ; 
 and as, when the cow is in low condition, or very poor, 
 it will appear somewhat harder and closer than it other- 
 wise would, some practice and close observation are 
 required to judge well of this mark. The skin, indeed, 
 all over the body, should be soft and mellow to the 
 touch, with soft and glossy hair. The tail, if thick at 
 the setting on, should taper and be fine below. 
 
 But the udder is of special importance. It should be 
 large in proportion to the size of the animal, and the skin 
 thin, with soft, loose folds extending well back, capable 
 of great distension when filled, but shrinking to a small 
 compass when entirely empty. It must be free from 
 lumps in every part, and provided with four teats set 
 well apart, and of medium size. Nor are the milk-veins 
 less important to be carefully observed. The principal 
 ones under the belly should be large and prominent, 
 and extend forward to the navel, losing themselves, ap- 
 parent!} 7 , in the very best milkers, in a large cavity in 
 the flesh, into which the end of the finger can be insert- 
 ed ; but, when the cow is not in full milk, the milk- 
 vein, at other times very prominent, is not so distinctly 
 
THE NETWORK OF VEINS. 89 
 
 traced; and hence, to judge of its size when the cow is 
 dry, or nearly so, this vein may be pressed near its end, 
 or at its entrance into the body, when it will immedi- 
 ately fill up to its full size. This vein does not carry 
 the milk to the udder, as some suppose, but is the chan- 
 nel by which the blood returns ; and its contents ccnsist 
 of the refuse of the secretion, or what has not been 
 taken up in forming milk. There are, also, veins in the 
 udder, and the perineum, or the space above the udder, 
 and between that and the buttocks, which it is of spe- 
 cial importance to observe. These veins should be 
 largely developed, and irregular or knotted, especially 
 those of the udder. They may be seen in Figs. 29, 
 30, 31, &c. They are largest in great milkers. 
 
 The knotted veins of the perineum, extending from 
 above downwards in a winding line, are not readily 
 seen in young heifers, and are very difficult to find in 
 poor cows, or cows of only a medium quality. They 
 are easily found in very good milkers, and, if not 
 at first apparent, they are made so by pressing upon 
 them at the base of the perineum, when they swell up, 
 and send the blood back towards the vulva. They form 
 a kind of thick network under the skin of the perineum, 
 raising it up somewhat, in some cases near the vulva, 
 in others lower down and nearer to the udder. It is 
 important to look for these veins, as they often form a 
 very important guide, and by some they would be con- 
 sidered as furnishing the surest indications of the milk- 
 ing qualities of the cow. Their full development almost 
 always indicates an abundant secretion of milk; but 
 they are far better developed after the cow has had two 
 or three calves, when two or three years' milking has 
 given full activity to the milky glands, and attracted a 
 large flow of blood. The larger and more prominent 
 these veins, the better. It is needless to say that in 
 8* 
 
90 GUENON'S METHOD. 
 
 observing them some regard should be had to the con- 
 dition of the cow, the thickness of skin and fat by which 
 they may be surrounded, and the general activity and 
 food of the animal. Food calculated to stimulate the 
 greatest flow of milk will naturally increase these veins, 
 and give them more than usual prominence. 
 
 We come now to an examination of the system of 
 Guenon, whose discovery, whatever may be said of it, 
 has proved of immense importance to agriculture. Gue- 
 non was a man of remarkable practical sagacity, a close 
 observer of stock, and an excellent judge. This gave 
 him a great advantage in securing the respect of those 
 with whom he came in contact, and assisted him vastly 
 in introducing his ideas to the knowledge of intelligent 
 men. Born in France, in the vicinity of Bordeaux, in 
 humble circumstances, he early had the care of cows, 
 and spent his whole life with them. His discovery, for 
 which a gold medal was awarded by the agricultural 
 society of Bordeaux, on the 4th of July, 1837, consisted 
 in the connection between the milking qualities of the 
 cow and certain external marks on the udder, and on 
 the space above it, called the perineum, extending to 
 the buttocks. To these marks he gave the name of 
 milk-mirror, or escutcheon, which consists in certain 
 perceptible spots rising up from the udder in different 
 directions, forms, and sizes, on which the hair grows 
 upwards, whilst the hair on other parts of the body 
 grows downwards. To these spots various names have 
 Leen given, according to their size and position, as tufts, 
 fringes, figures or escutcheons, which last is the most 
 common term used. The reduction of these marks into 
 a system, explaining the value of particular forms and 
 sizes of the milk-mirror, belongs, so far as I know, ex- 
 clusively to Guenon, though the connection of the milk- 
 ing qualities of the cow and the size of the ovals with 
 
1' ROVING TOO MUCH. 91 
 
 downward-growing hair on the back part of the udder 
 above the teats was observed and known in Massachu- 
 setts more than forty years ago, and some of the old 
 farmers of that day were accustomed to say that when 
 these spots were large and well developed the cow 
 would be a good milker. 
 
 Guenon divided the milk-mirror into eight classes, 
 and each class into eight orders, making in all no less 
 than sixty-four divisions, which he afterwards increased 
 by sub-divisions, making the whole system complicated 
 in the extreme, especially as he professed to be able to 
 judge with accuracy, by means of the milk-mirror, not 
 only of the exact quantity a cow would give, but also 
 the quality of the milk and the length of time it would 
 continue. He tried to prove too much, and the conse- 
 quence was that he was himself frequently at fault, 
 notwithstanding his excellent knowledge of other gene- 
 ral characteristics of milch cows, while others, of lesa 
 knowledge, and far more liable to err in judgment, were 
 inclined to view the whole system with distrust. 
 
 My own attention was called to Gu^non's method of 
 judging of cows some eight or ten years ago, and since 
 that time 1 have examined many hundreds, with a 
 view to ascertain the correctness of its main features, 
 inquiring, at the same time, after the views and opinions 
 of the best breeders and judges of stock, with regard 
 to their experience and judgment of its merits; and the 
 result of my observation has been, that cows with tho 
 most perfectly-developed milk-mirrors, or escutcheons, 
 are, with rare exceptions, the best milkers of their 
 breed, and that cows with small and slightly-developed 
 mirrors are, in the majority of cases, bad milkers. 
 
 I say the best milkers of their breed ; for I do not 
 believe that precisely the same sized and formed milk- 
 mirrors on a Hereford or a Devon, and an Ayrshire or a 
 
92 REGARD TO THE BREED. EXCEPTIONS. 
 
 native, will indicate anything like the same or equal 
 milking properties. It will not do, in my opinion, to 
 disregard the general and well-known characteristics of 
 the breed, and rely wholly on the milk-mirror. But I 
 think it may be safely said that, as a general rulo the 
 best-marked Hereford will turn out to be the best 
 milker among the Herefords, all of which are poor 
 milkers ; the best-marked Devon the best among the 
 Devons, and the best-marked Ayrshire the best among 
 the Ayrshires ; that is, it will not do to compare two 
 animals of entirely distinct breeds, by the milk-mirrors 
 alone, without regard to the fixed habits and education, 
 so to speak, of the breed or family to which they 
 belong. 
 
 There are cows with very small mirrors, which are, 
 nevertheless, very fair in the yield of milk ; and among 
 those with middling quality of mirrors instances of 
 rather more than ordinary milkers often occur, while at 
 the same time it is true that now and then cases occur 
 where the very best marked and developed mirrors are 
 found on very poor milkers. I once owned a cow of 
 most extraordinary marks, the milk-mirror extending 
 out broadly upon the thighs, and rising broad and very 
 distinctly marked to the buttocks, giving every indica- 
 tion, to good judges, of being as great a milker as ever 
 stood over a pail ; and yet, when she calved, the calf 
 was feeble and half nourished, and she actually gave too 
 little to feed it. But I believe that this exception, and 
 most others which appear to be direct contradictions, 
 could be clearly explained by the fact, of which I was 
 not aware at the time, that she had been largely over- 
 fed before she came into my possession. I mention 
 this case simply to show how impossible it is to esti- 
 mate with mathematical accuracy either the quantity, 
 the quality, or the duration of the milk, since it is 
 
APPARENT CONTRADICTION. 93 
 
 affected by so many chance circumstances, which cannot 
 always be known or estimated by even the most skilful 
 judge; as the food, the treatment, the temperament, 
 accidental diseases, inflammation of the udder, premature 
 calving, the climate and season, the manner in which 
 she has been milked, and a thousand other things which 
 interrupt or influence the flow of milk, without materi- 
 ally changing the size or the shape of the milk-mirror. 
 M. Magne, who appears to me to have simplified and 
 explained the system of Guenon, and to have freed it 
 from many of the useless details with which it is en- 
 cumbered in the original work, while he has preserved 
 all that is of practical value, very justly observes that 
 we often see cows, equally well formed, with precisely 
 the same milk-mirror, and kept in the same circum- 
 stances, yet giving neither equal quantities nor similar 
 qualities of milk. Nor could it be otherwise ; for, 
 assuming a particular tuft on two cows to be of equal 
 value at birth, it could not be the same in the course 
 of years, since innumerable circumstances occur to 
 change the activity of the milky glands without chang- 
 ing the form or size of the tuft ; or, in other words, the 
 action of the organs depends not merely on their size 
 and form, but, to a great extent, on the general con- 
 dition of each individual. 
 
 To give a more distinct idea of the milk-mirror, it will 
 be necessary to refer to the figures, and the explana- 
 tions of these I translate literally from the little work 
 already referred to, the Choix des Vaches Latieres, or, 
 the Choice of Milch Cows. 
 
 The different forms of milk-mirrors are represented 
 by the shaded part of figures 29, 30, 31, etc.; but it is 
 necessary to premise that upon the cows themselves 
 they are always partly concealed by the thighs, the 
 udder, arid the folds of the skin, which are not shown, 
 
94 VARIATION IN SIZE. 
 
 and so they are not always so uniform in nature as they 
 appear in the cuts. 
 
 Their size varies as the skin is more or less folded or 
 stretched, while we have supposed in the figures that 
 the skin is uniform or free from folds, but not stretched 
 out. In order to understand the differences which the 
 milk-mirrors present in respect to size, according to the 
 state of the skin, the milk-mirror is shown in two ways 
 in Figs. 52 and 53. In Fig. 53 the proportions are 
 preserved the same as in the other mirrors represented, 
 but an effort is made to represent the folds of the skin ; 
 while in Fig. 52 the mirror is just as it would have 
 been had the folds of the udder been smoothed out, and 
 the skin between the udder and the thighs stretched 
 out ; or, in other words, as if the skin, covered with up- 
 growing hair, had been fully extended. 
 
 This mirror, but little developed, just as shown in 
 Fig. 53, was observed on a very large Norman cow. 
 
 It is usually very easy to distinguish the milk-mirrors 
 by the upward direction of the hair which forms them. 
 They are sometimes marked by a line of bristly hair 
 growing in the opposite direction, which surrounds 
 them, forming a sort of outline by the upward and 
 downward growing hair. Yet, when the hair is very 
 fine and short, mixed with longer hairs, and the skin 
 much folded, and the udder voluminous and pressed by 
 the thighs, it is necessary, in order to distinguish the 
 part enclosed between the udder and the legs, and 
 examine the full size of the mirrors, to observe them 
 attentively, and to place the legs wide apart, and to 
 sniuoth out the skin, in order to avoid the folds. 
 
 The mirrors may also be observed by holding the 
 back of the hand against the perineum, and drawing it 
 from above downwards, when the nails rubbing against 
 
GUENON EXPLAINED. 95 
 
 the up-growing hair ; make the parts covered by it very 
 perceptible. 
 
 As the hair of the milk-mirror has not the same direc- 
 tion as the hair which surrounds it, it may often be dis- 
 tinguished by a difference in the shade reflected by it. 
 It is then sufficient to place it properly to the light to 
 see the difference in shade, and to make out the part 
 covered by the upward-growing hair. Most frequently, 
 however, the hair of the milk-mirror is thin and fine, 
 and the color of the skin can easily be seen. If we 
 trust alone to the eye, we shall often be deceived. 
 Thus, in Figs. 52 and 53, the shaded part, which 
 extends from the vulva to the mirror E, represents a 
 strip of hair of a brownish tint, which covered the peri- 
 neum, and which might easily have been taken for a 
 part of the milk-mirror. 
 
 In some countries cattle-dealers shave the back part 
 of the cows. Just after this operation the mirrors can 
 neither be seen nor felt ; but this inconvenience ceases 
 in a few days. It may be added that the shaving, 
 designed, as the dealers say, to beautify the cow, is 
 generally intended simply to destroy the milk-mirror, 
 and to deprive buyers of one means of judging of the 
 milking qualities of the cows. 
 
 It is not necessary to add that the cows most care- 
 fully shaven are those which are badly marked, and that 
 it is prudent to take it for granted that cows so shorn 
 are bad milkers. 
 
 Milk-mirrors vary in position, extent, and the figure 
 they represent. They may be divided, according to 
 their position, into mirrors or escutcheons, properly so 
 called, or into lower and upper tufts, or escutcheons. The 
 hitter are very small in comparison with the former, and 
 are situated in close proximity to the vulva, as seen at S 
 in Figs. 38, 39, 40, etc. They are very common on cows 
 
96 GUENON EXPLAINED. 
 
 of bad milking races, but are very rarely seen on the 
 best milch cows. They consist of one or two ovals, or 
 small bands of up-growing hair, and serve to indicate 
 the continuance of the flow of milk. The period is 
 short in proportion as the tufts are large. They must 
 not be confounded with the escutcheon proper, which 
 is often extended up to the vulva. They are separated 
 from it by bands of hair, more or less large, as in Figs. 
 40, 42, &c. 
 
 The mirrors shown in Figs. 38 to 42, and 29 to 35, 
 <fcc., exist, more or less developed, on nearly all cows, 
 and indicate the quantity of milk, which will be in pro- 
 portion to their size. Sometimes they form only a 
 small plate on the posterior surface of the udder, as in 
 Fig. 49. In other cases they cover the udder, the inner 
 surface of the legs and the thighs, the perineum, and 
 a part of the buttocks, as in Figs. 29, 30, 31, &c. 
 
 Two parts may be distinguished in the lower tufts : 
 one situated on the udder, the legs, and the thighs, as at 
 M M, Fig. 30 ; and the other on the perineum, extend- 
 ing sometimes more or less out upon the thighs, as at 
 P P, in the same figure. 
 
 The first part is represented by itself, in Figs. 37 and 
 49. We shall call the former mammary, and the latter 
 perinean. The former is sometimes large, extending 
 over the milky glands, the thighs, and the legs, as shown 
 in Figs. 29 to 37; and sometimes circumscribed, or more 
 or less checked over with tufts of downward-growing 
 hair, as in Figs. 43 to 52. It is sometimes terminated 
 towards the upper part of the udder by a horizontal 
 line, straight, as in Fig. 37, or angular, as in Fig. 49 ; 
 but more frequently it continues without interruption 
 over the perineum, and constitutes the perinean part. 
 
 This presents a large band, Fig. 30, straight, as in 
 Fig. 43, and bounded on the sides by two parallel lines, 
 
FORMS OP THE MILK-MIRROR. 
 
 97 
 
 M 
 
98 GUENON EXPLAINED. 
 
 as seen in the same figures, or by curved lines, as in Fig. 
 34. It sometimes rises scarcely a fourth part up the 
 perineum, as in Fig. 38 ; at others, it reaches or passes 
 beyond that part, forming a straight band, as in Figs. 
 35 and 43, or is folded into squares, as in Figs. 31 and 36, 
 or truncated, Fig. 38, or terminated by one or several 
 points, Figs. 32, 33, 41, 50. In some cows this band 
 extends as far as the base of the vulva, Figs. 40 and 
 48 ; in others, it embraces more or less of the lower 
 part of the vulva, Figs. 29, 30, 39, and 47. 
 
 Milk-mirrors are sometimes symmetrical, as in Figs. 
 29, 30, 34, 35, 37, and 38 ; sometimes without sym- 
 metry, as in Figs. 42, 45, and 50. When there is a great 
 difference in the extent of the two halves, it almost 
 always happens that the teats on the side where the 
 mirror is best developed give, as we shall see, more 
 milk than those of the opposite side. We will remark 
 here that the left half of the mirror is almost always 
 the largest ; arid so, when the perinean part is folded 
 into a square, it is on this side of the body that it un- 
 folds, as in Figs. 31, 36, and 42. Of three thousand cows 
 in Denmark, M. Andersen found only a single one whose 
 escutcheon varied even a little from this rule. We have 
 observed the contrary only in a single case, and that 
 was on a bull. The perinean part of the mirror 
 formed a band of an inch to an inch and a half in 
 breadth, irregular, but situated, in great measure, on 
 the right side of the body. Stretching towards the 
 upper part of the perineum, it formed a kind of 
 square, with a small projecting point on the right, 
 Pig. 51. 
 
 The mirrors having a value in proportion to tb*. 
 space they occupy, it is of great importance to at- 
 tend to all the rows of down-growing hairs, which 
 diminish its extent of surface, whether these tufts are 
 
FORMS OF THE MILK-MIRROR. 
 
 99 
 
 LJT . 37 . 
 
100 HEAL EXTENT OP THE MIRROR. 
 
 in the midst of the mirror, Figs. 45, 46, and 47, or form 
 indentations on its edges, as in Figs. 42, 44, 45, 46, 
 and 48. 
 
 These indentations, concealed in part by the folds of 
 the skin, are sometimes seen with difficulty ; but it is 
 important to take them into account, since in a great 
 many cows they materially lessen the size of the mir- 
 ror. We often find cows whose milk-mirror at first' 
 sight appears very large, but which are only medium 
 milkers; and it will usually be found that lateral indent- 
 ations greatly diminish the surface of up-growing hair. 
 Many errors are committed in estimating the value of 
 such cows, from a want of attention to the real extent 
 of the milk-mirror. 
 
 All the interruptions in the surface of the mirror 
 indicate a diminution of the quantity of milk, with the 
 exception, however, of small oval or elliptical plates 
 which are found in the mirror, on the back part of the 
 udders of the best cows, as in Figs. 29, 30, 32, 34, 35, 
 36, and 40. These ovals have a peculiar tint, which 
 is occasioned by the downward direction of the hair 
 which forms them. In the best cows these ovals exist 
 with the lower mirrors very well developed, as in Figs. 
 29, 30, and 32. 
 
 In fine, we should state that in order to determine 
 the extent and significance of a mirror it is necessary 
 to consider the state of the perineum as to fat, and of 
 the fulness of the udder. In a fat cow, with an in- 
 flated udder, the mirror would appear larger than it 
 really is; whilst in a lean cow, with a loose and wrinkled 
 udder, it appears smaller. Fat will cover faults, a fact 
 to be kept in mind in selecting a cow. 
 
 In bulls, Fig. 51, the mirrors present the same pecu- 
 liarities as in cows ; but they are less varied in their 
 form, and especially much less in size. This will easily 
 
FORMS OF THE MILK-MIRROR, 
 
 101 
 
 i- 40. 
 
 Jig. 42. 
 
102 MILK-MIRRORS ON CALVES. 
 
 be understood from the explanation of mirrors given 
 on a preceding page. 
 
 In calves the mirrors show the shapes they are after- 
 wards to have, only they are more contracted, because 
 the parts which they cover are but slightly developed. 
 They are easily seen after birth ; but the hair which 
 then covers them is long, coarse, and stiff; and when 
 this hair falls off, the calf's mirror will resemble that of 
 the cow, but be of less size. 
 
 With calves, however, it should be stated, in addition 
 to what has already been said, that the milk-mirrors are 
 more distinctly recognized on those from cows that are 
 well kept, and that they will generally be fully devel- 
 oped at two years old. Some changes take place in 
 the course of years, but the outlines of the mirror 
 appear prominent at the time of advanced pregnancy, 
 or, in the case of cows giving milk, at the times when 
 the udder is more distended with milk than at others. 
 
 The classification adopted by Magne appears still 
 further to simplify the whole method, and to bring it 
 within the easy reach and comprehension of every one 
 who will examine the figures and the explanations con- 
 nected with them. He divides cows, according to the 
 quantity they give, into four classes : First, the very 
 good; second, the good; third, the medium; and 
 fourth, the bad. 
 
 In the first class he places cows both parts of whose 
 milk-mirror, the mammary and the perinean, are large, 
 continuous, uniform, covering at least a great part of 
 the perineum, the udder, the inner surface of the 
 thighs, and extending more or less out upon the legs, 
 as in Figs. 29 to 33, with no interruptions, or, if any, 
 small ones, oval in form, and situated on the posterior 
 face of the udder, Figs. 29, 30, and 32. 
 
 Such mirrors are found on most very good cows. 
 
FORMS OF THE MILK-MIRROR 
 
 103 
 
 Fig. 45. 
 
 Tig. 46 
 
 . 47. 
 
104 FIRST-KATE COWS. 
 
 but may also be found on cows which can scarcely be 
 called good, and which should be ranked in the next 
 class. But cows, whether having very well-developed 
 mirrors or not, may be reckoned as very good, and as 
 giving as much milk as is to be expected from their 
 size, feed, and the hygienic circumstances in which they 
 are kept, if they present the following characteristics : 
 
 Yeins of the perineum large, as if swollen, and visible 
 on the exterior, as in Figs. 29 32, or which can be 
 easily made' to appear by pressing upon the base of the 
 perineum ; veins of the udder large and knotted, milk- 
 veins large, often double, equal on both sides, and 
 forming zig-zags under the belly. 
 
 To the signs furnished by the veins and by the mir- 
 ror may be added also the following marks : A uniform, 
 very large and yielding udder, shrinking much in milk- 
 ing, and covered with soft skin and fine hair; good 
 constitution, full chest, regular appetite, and great pro- 
 pensity to drink. Cows rather inclining to be poor than 
 fat. Soft, yielding skin, short, fine hair, small head, fine 
 horns, bright, sparkling eye, mild expression, feminine 
 look, with a fine neck. 
 
 Cows of this first class are very rare. They give, 
 even when small in size, from ten to fourteen quarts of 
 milk a day, and the largest sized from eighteen to 
 twenty-six quarts a day, and even more. Just after 
 calving, if arrived at maturity and fed with good, 
 wholesome, moist food in sufficient quantity and 
 quality, adapted to promote the secretion of milk, 
 they can give about a pint of milk for every ten 
 ounces of hay, or its equivalent, which they eat. 
 
 They continue in milk for a long period. The best 
 never go dry, and may be milked even up to the time 
 of calving, giving from eight to twelve quarts of milk 
 a day. The Dutch cow, Fig. 54, was giving daily 
 
FORMS OF THE MILK-MIRROR. 105 
 
 Eg.53. 
 
106 SECOND-RATE COWS. 
 
 twenty-two quarts of milk, a year after calving. But 
 even the best cows often fall short of the quantity of 
 milk they are able to give, from being fed on food that 
 is too dry, or not sufficiently varied, or not rich enough 
 in nutritive qualities, or deficient in quantity. 
 
 The second class is that of good cows ; and to this 
 belong the best commonly found in the market and 
 among the cow-feeders of cities. 
 
 They have the mammary part of the milk-mirror 
 well developed, but the perinean part contracted or 
 wholly wanting, as in Figs. 34 and 37 ; or both parts of 
 the mirror are moderately developed, or slightly 
 indented, as Figs. 35 and 36. Figs. 38, 39, 40, and 41, 
 belong also to this class, in the lower part ; but they 
 denote cows which, as the upper mirrors, s s s, indi- 
 cate, dry up sooner when again in calf. 
 
 These marks, though often seen on many good cows, 
 should be considered as certain only when the veins of 
 the perineum form, under the skin, a kind of network, 
 which, without being very apparent, may be felt by a 
 pressure on them ; when the milk-veins on the belly are 
 well developed, though less knotted and less prominent 
 than in cows of the first class ; in fine, when the udder 
 is well developed, and presents veins which are suffi- 
 ciently numerous, though not very large. 
 
 It is necessary, then, as in the preceding class, to 
 have a mistrust of cows in which the mirror is not 
 accompanied by large veins. This remark applies 
 especially to cows which have had several calves, and 
 are in full milk. They are medium or bad, let the milk- 
 mirror be what it may, if the veins of the belly are not 
 large, and those of the udder apparent. 
 ' The general characteristics which depend on form 
 and constitution combine less than in cows of the pre- 
 
, 
 
 A COW OF THE FIRST CLASS. 107 
 
 Fig. 54. A Good MUch Coir. 
 
 ceding class the marks of good health and excellent 
 constitution with those of a gentle and feminine look. 
 
 Small cows of this class give from seven to ten or 
 eleven quarts of milk a day, and the largest from 
 thirteen to seventeen quarts. They can be made to 
 give three fourths of a pint of milk, just after calving, 
 
108 THIRD CLASS. BAD COWS. 
 
 for every ten ounces of hay consumed, if well cared for, 
 and fed in a manner favorable to the secretion of milk. 
 
 They hold out long in milk when they have no uppor 
 mirrors or tufts. At seven or eight months in calf, 
 they may give from five to eight quarts a day. 
 
 T!HJ third class consists of middling cows. When the 
 milk-mirror really presents only the lower or mammary 
 part slightly developed or indented, and the perinean 
 part contracted, narrow, and irregular, as in Figs. 42 
 to 47, the cows are middling. The udder is slightly 
 developed or hard, arid shrinks very little after milking. 
 The veins of the perineum are not apparent, and those 
 which run along the lower sides of the abdomen are 
 small, straight, and sometimes unequal. In this case 
 the mirror is not symmetrical, and the cow gives more 
 milk on the side where the vein is largest. 
 
 These cows often have large heads, and a thick and 
 hard skin. Being ordinarily in good condition, and 
 even fat, they are beautiful to look at, and seem to be 
 well formed. Many of them are nervous and restive, 
 and not easily approached. 
 
 Cows of this class give, according to size, from three 
 or four to ten quarts of milk. They very rarely give, 
 even in the most favorable circumstances, half a pint 
 for every ten ounces of hay which they consume. 
 
 The milk diminishes rapidly, and dries up wholly the 
 fourth or fifth month in calf. 
 
 The fourth class is composed of bad cows. As they 
 are ordinarily in good condition, these cows are often the 
 most beautiful of the herd and in the markets. They 
 have fleshy thighs, thick and hard skin, a large and 
 coarse neck and head, and horns large at the base. 
 w The udder is hard, small, and fleshy, with a skin 
 covered with long, rough hair. No veins are to be 
 &een either on the perineum or the udder, while those 
 
ANOTHER CLASSIFICATION. 109 
 
 of the belly are very slightly developed, and the mir- 
 rors are ordinarily small, as in Figs. 48, 49, and 50. 
 
 With these characteristics, cowg give only a few 
 quarts of rriilk a day, and dry up a short time after 
 calving. Some such can scarcely nourish their calves, 
 even when they are well cared for and well fed. 
 
 Sickly habits, chronic affections of the digestive 
 organs, the chest, the womb, and the lacteal system, 
 sometimes greatly affect the milk secretions, arid cause 
 cows troubled with them to fall from the first or 
 second to the third, and sometimes to the fourth class. 
 
 The above classification is very similar to that of 
 Pabst, a German farmer of large experience and obser- 
 vation of stock, who, with a view to simplify the 
 method of Gunon, and render it of greater practical 
 value to the farmer, made five divisions or classes, con- 
 sisting of, 1st, Very good or extraordinary ; 2d, Good 
 or good middling ; 3d, Middling and little below mid- 
 dling ; 4th, Small ; and, 5th, Very bad milkers. 
 
 These classifications, adopted by Magne, Pabst, and 
 other good breeders and judges of cows, appear to me 
 to be far more simple and satisfactory than the more 
 extended and complicated classification of Gu6non him- 
 self. Without pretending to be able to judge with any 
 accuracy of the quantity, the quality, or the duration, 
 which any particular size or form of the mirror will 
 indicate, they give to Guenon the full credit of his 
 important discovery of the escutcheon, or milk-mirror, 
 as a new and very valuable element in forming our 
 judgment of the milking qualities of a cow ; and simply 
 assert, with respect to the duration or continuance of 
 the flow of milk, that the mirror that indicates the 
 greatest quantity will also indicate the longest dura- 
 tion. The mirror forms, in other words, an important 
 additional mark or point for distinguishing good milk- 
 10 
 
110 SPECIAL CASES. 
 
 ers ; and it is safe to lay it down as a rule that, in the 
 selection of milch cows, as well as in the choice of 
 young animals as breeders, we should, by all means, 
 examine and consider the milk-mirror, but not limit or 
 confine ourselves exclusively to it, and that other and 
 long-known marks should be equally regarded. 
 
 But there are cases where a knowledge and careful 
 examination of the form and size of the mirror becomes 
 of the greatest importance. It is well known that cer- 
 tain signs or marks of great milkers are developed only 
 as the capacities of the animal herself are fully and 
 completely developed by age. The milk-veins, for 
 instance, are never so large and prominent in heifers 
 and young cows as in old ones, and the same may be 
 said of the udder, and the veins of the udder and per- 
 ineum; all of which it is of great importance to observe 
 in the selection of milch cows. Those signs, then, which 
 in cows arrived at maturity are almost sufficient in 
 themselves to warrant a conclusion as to their merits 
 as milkers, are, to a great extent, wanting in younger 
 animals, and altogether in calves, of which there is 
 often doubt whether they shall be raised j and here a 
 knowledge of the form of the mirror is of immense 
 advantage, since it gives, at the outset, and before any 
 expense is incurred, a somewhat reliable means of 
 judging of the future milking capacities of the animal 
 or, if a male, of the probability of his transmitting 
 milking qualities to his offspring. 
 
 It will be seen, from an examination of the points of 
 a good milch cow, that, though the same marks which 
 indicate the greatest milking qualities may not indicate 
 any great aptitude to fatten, yet that the signs which 
 indicate good fattening qualities are included among 
 the signs favorable to the production of milk, such as 
 soundness of constitution, indicated by good organs of 
 
BUYING DAIRY STOCK. Ill 
 
 digestion and respiration, fineness and mellowness of 
 the skin and hair, quietness of disposition, which 
 inclines the animal to rest and lie down in chewing the 
 cud, and other marks which are relied on by graziers 
 in selecting animals to fatten. 
 
 In buying dairy stock the farmer generally finds it 
 for his interest to select young heifers. They give 
 the promise of longer usefulness. But it is often the 
 case that older cows are selected with the design of 
 using them for the dairy for a limited period, and then 
 feeding them for the butcher. In either case, it is ad- 
 visable, as a rule, to choose animals in low or medium 
 condition. The farmer cannot ordinarily afford to buy 
 fat ; it is more properly his business to make it, and to 
 have it to sell. Good and well-marked cows in poor 
 condition will rapidly gain in flesh and products when 
 removed to better pastures and higher keeping, and 
 they cost less in the original purchase. 
 
 It is unnecessary to say that regard should be had to 
 the quality of the pasturage and keeping which a cow has 
 previously had, as compared with that to which she is to 
 be subjected. The size of the animal should also be con- 
 sidered with reference to the fertility of the pastures 
 into which she is to be put. Small or medium-sized 
 animals accommodate themselves to ordinary pastures 
 far better than large ones. Where a very large cow 
 will do well, two small ones will usually do better , 
 while the large animal might fail entirely where two 
 small ones would do well. It is better to have the 
 whole herd, so far as may be, uniform in size ; for, if 
 they vary greatly, some may get more than they need, 
 and others will not have enough. This, however, can- 
 not always be brought about. 
 
112 
 
 A GOOD DAIRY COW. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 FEEDING AND MANAGEMENT OF DAIRY COWS. 
 
 No branch of dairy farming can compare in import- 
 ance with the management of cows. The highest 
 success will depend very much upon it, whatever breed 
 be selected, and whatever amount of care and attention 
 be given to the points of the animals ; for experience 
 will show that very little milk comes out of the bag 
 that is not first put into the throat. It is poor econ- 
 omy, therefore, to attempt to keep too many cows for 
 the amount of feed we have ; for it will generally be 
 found that one good cow well bred and well fed will 
 yield as much as two ordinary cows kept in the ordi- 
 nary way, while a saving is effected both in labor and 
 room required, and in the risks on the capital invested. 
 If the larger number on poorer feed is urged for the 
 sake of the manure, which is the only ground on which 
 it can be put, it is sufficient to remark that it is a very 
 expensive way of making manure. It is not too much 
 to say that a proper regard to profit and economy 
 would require many an American farmer to sell off 
 nearly half his cows, and to feed the whole of his hay 
 and roots hitherto used into the remainder. 
 
 A certain German farmer was visited, one day, by 
 
 some Swiss from over the border, who desired to buy 
 
 of him all the milk of his cows for the purpose of 
 
 making cheese. Not being able to agree upon tho 
 
 10* 8 
 
114 CAUSES AND EFFECTS. 
 
 terms, he finally proposed to let them take the entire 
 charge of his cows, and agreed to furnish feed amply 
 sufficient, the Swiss assuming the whole care of feeding 
 it out, and paying a fixed price by measure for all tlio 
 milk. "I found myself, at once," says he, "under the 
 necessity of selling almost half my cows, because the 
 Swiss required nearly double the quantity of fodder 
 which the cows had previously had, and I was well sat- 
 isfied that all the produce I could raise on my farm 
 would be far from sufficient to feed in that way the 
 number of cows I had kept. I was in despair at find- 
 ing them using such a quantity of the best quality of 
 feed, though it was according to the strict letter of the 
 contract, especially as I knew that I had given my cows 
 rather more than the quantity of food recommended by 
 men in whom I had perfect confidence. Thus, while 
 Thaei names twenty-three pounds of hay, or its equiv- 
 alent, as food sufficient for a good-sized cow, I gave mine 
 full twenty-seven pounds. But, if the change effected 
 in the management of my cows was great, the result 
 was still more striking. The quantity of milk kept 
 increasing, and it reached the highest point when the 
 cows attained the condition of the fat kine of Pharaoh's 
 dream. The quantity of milk became double, triple, 
 and even quadruple, what it had been before ; so that, 
 if I should compare the product with that previously 
 obtained, a hundred pounds of hay produced three 
 times more milk than it had produced with my old 
 mode of feeding. Such results, of course, attracted my 
 attention to this branch of my farming. It became a 
 matter of pleasure ; and my observations were followed 
 up with great care, and during several years I devoted 
 a large part of my time to it. I even went so far as to 
 procure scales for weighing the food and the animals, in 
 order to establish .exact data on the most positive basis." 
 
A FARMER'S CONCLUSIONS. 115 
 
 The conclusions to which he arrived were, that an 
 animal, to be fully fed and satisfied, requires a quantity 
 of food in proportion to its live weight ; that no feed 
 could be complete that did not contain a sufficient 
 amount of nutritive elements ; hay, for example, being 
 more nutritive than straw, and grains than roots. He 
 found, too. that the f6od must possess a bulk sufficient 
 to fill up to a certain degree the organs of digestion or 
 the stomach ; and that, to receive the full benefit of 
 its food, the animal must be wholly satisfied, as, if the 
 stomach is not sufficiently distended, the food cannot 
 be properly digested, and of course many of the nutri 
 tive principles it contains would not be perfectly assim- 
 ilated. An animal regularly fed eats till it is satisfied, 
 and no more than is requisite. A part of the nutritive 
 elements in hay and other forage-plants is needed to 
 keep an animal on its feet, that is, to keep up its con- 
 dition, and if the nutrition of its food is not sufficient 
 for this the weight decreases, and if it is more than 
 sufficient the weight increases, or else this excess is 
 consumed in the production of milk or in labor. About 
 one sixtieth of their live weight in hay, or its equiva- 
 lent, will keep horned cattle on their feet ; but, in order 
 to be completely nourished, they require about one 
 thirtieth in dry substances, and four thirtieths in water, 
 or other liquid contained in their food. The excess of 
 nutritive food over and above what is required to sus- 
 tain life will go in milch cows generally to the produc- 
 tion of milk, or to the growth of the foetus, but not in 
 all cows to an equal extent ; the tendency to the secre- 
 tion of milk being far more developed in some than in 
 others. 
 
 With regard to the consumption of food in propor- 
 tion to the live weight of the animal, however far it 
 may apply as a general principle, it should, I think/ 
 
116 NUTRITIVE ELEMENTS OF FOOD. 
 
 be taken with some qualifications. The proportion is 
 probably not uniform as applied to all breeds indiscrim- 
 inately, though it may be more so as applied to animals 
 of the same breed. BakewelPs idea was that the quan- 
 tity of food required depended much on the shape of 
 the barrel ; and it is well known that an animal of a 
 close, compact, well-rounded barrel will consume less 
 than one of an opposite make. 
 
 The variations in the yield of milch cows are caused 
 more by the variations in the nutritive elements of their 
 food than by a change of the form in which it is given. 
 " A cow, kept through the winter on mere straw," says a 
 practical writer on this subject, " will cease to give 
 milk ; and, when fed in spring on green forage, will give 
 a fair quantity of milk. But she owes the cessation 
 and restoration of the secretion to respectively the 
 diminution and the increase of her nourishment, and 
 not at all to the change of form, or of outward sub- 
 stance, in which the nourishment is administered. Let 
 cows receive through winter nearly as large a propor- 
 tion of nutritive matter as is contained in the clover, 
 lucerne, and fresh grasses, which they eat in summer, 
 and, no matter in what precise substance or mixture 
 that matter may be contained, they will yield a winter's 
 produce of milk quite as rich in caseine and butyr- 
 aceous ingredients as the summer's produce, and far 
 more ample in quantity than almost any dairyman with 
 old-fashioned notions would imagine to be possible. 
 The great practical error on this subject consists not 
 in giving wrong kinds of food, but in not so propor- 
 tioning and preparing it as to render an average ration 
 of it equally rich in the elements of nutrition, and es- 
 pecially in nitrogenous elements, as an average ration 
 of the green and succulent food of summer." 
 
 We keep too much stock for the quantity of good 
 
MOIST FEED. DAIRYMAN'S MOTTO. 117 
 
 and nutritious food which we have for it ; and the con- 
 sequence is cows are, in nine cases out of ten, poorly 
 wintered, and come out in the spring weakened, if not,* 
 indeed, positively diseased, and a long time is required 
 to bring them into a condition to yield a generous 
 quantity of milk. 
 
 It is a hard struggle for a cow reduced in flesh and 
 in blood to fill up the wasted system with the food 
 which would otherwise have gone to the secretion of 
 milk ; but, if she is well fed, well housed, well littered, 
 and well supplied with pure, fresh water, and with 
 roots, or other moist food, and properly treated to the 
 luxury of a frequent carding, and constant kindness, 
 she comes out ready to commence the manufacture of 
 milk under favorable circumstances. 
 
 Keep the cows constantly in good condition, ought, 
 therefore, to be the motto of every dairy farmer, posted 
 up over the barn-door, and over the stalls, and over the 
 milk-room, and repeated to the boys whenever there is 
 danger of forgetting it. It is the great secret of suc- 
 cess, and the difference between success and failure 
 turns upon it. Cows in milk require more food in pro- 
 portion to their size and weight than either oxen or 
 young cattle. 
 
 In order to keep cows in milk well and economically, 
 regularity is next in importance to a full supply of 
 wholesome and nutritious food. The healthy animal 
 stomach is a very nice chronometer, and it is of the 
 utmost importance to observe regular hours in feeding, 
 cleaning, and milking. This is a point, also, in which 
 very many farmers are at fault feeding whenever it 
 happens to be convenient. The cattle are thus kept in 
 a restless condition, constantly expecting food when 
 the keeper enters the barn, while, if regular hours are 
 strictly adhered to, they know exactly when they are 
 
118 COURSE OF FEEDING. 
 
 to be fed, and they rest quietly till the time arrives. Go 
 into a well-regulated dairy establishment an hour before 
 the time of feeding, and scarcely an animal will rise to 
 its feet ; while, if it happens to be the hour of feeding, 
 the whole herd will be likely to rise and seize their 
 food with an avidity and relish not to be mistaken. 
 
 With respect to the exact routine to be pursued, no 
 rule could be prescribed which would apply to all cases ; 
 and each individual must be governed much by circum- 
 stances, both in respect to the particular kinds of feed 
 at different seasons of the year, and the system of feed- 
 ing. I have found in my own practice, and in the prac- 
 tice of the most successful dairymen, that, in order to 
 encourage the largest secretion of milk in stalled cows, 
 one of the best courses is, to feed in the morning, 
 either at the time of milking which I prefer or imme- 
 diately after, with cut feed, consisting of hay, oats, 
 millet, or corn-stalks, mixed with shorts, and Indian, lin- 
 seed, or cotton-seed meal, thoroughly moistened with 
 water. If in winter, hot or warm water is far better 
 than cold. If given at milking-time, the cows will gen- 
 erally give down the milk more readily. The stalls and 
 mangers ought always to be well cleaned out first. 
 
 Roots and long hay may be given during the day; and 
 at the evening milking, or directly after, another gen- 
 erous meal of cut feed, well moistened and mixed, 
 as in the morning. No very concentrated food, like 
 grains alone or oil-cakes, should, it seems to me, be fed 
 early in the morning on an empty stomach, though it is 
 sanctioned by the practice in the London milk-dairies. 
 The processes of digestion go on best when the stom- 
 ach is sufficiently distended ; and for this purpose the 
 bulk of food is almost as important as the nutritive 
 qualities. The flavor of some roots, as cabbages and 
 turnips, is more apt to be imparted to the flesh and 
 
ECONOMY IN WARMTH. 119 
 
 milk when fed on an empty stomach than otherwise. 
 After the cows have been milked, and have finished 
 their cut feed, they are carded and curried down, in 
 well-managed dairies, and then either watered in the 
 stall, which in very cold or stormy weather is far pref- 
 erable, or turned out to water in the yard. When they 
 are out, if they are let out at all, the stables are put in 
 order ; and, after tying them up, they are fed with long 
 hay, and left to themselves till the time of next feed- 
 ing. This may consist of roots, such as cabbages, 
 beets, carrots, or turnips, sliced, or of potatoes, a peck, 
 or, if the cows are very large, a half-bushel each, and 
 cut feed again at the evening milking, as in the morn- 
 ing, after which water in the stall, if possible. 
 
 The less cows are exposed to the cold of winter, the 
 better. They eat less, thrive better, and give more milk, 
 when kept housed all the time, than when exposed to 
 the cold. Caird mentions a case where a herd of cows, 
 which had been usually supplied from troughs and 
 pipes in the stalls, were, on account of an obstruction 
 in the pipes, obliged to be turned out twice a day 
 to be watered in the yard. The quantity of milk 
 instantly decreased, and in three days the falling off 
 became very considerable. After the pipes were mended, 
 and the cows again watered as before, in their stalls, the 
 flow of milk returned. This, however, will te gov- 
 erned much by the weather; for in very mild, warm 
 days it may be judicious not only to let them out, but 
 to allow them to remain out for a short time, to ex- 
 ercise. 
 
 Anyone can arrange the hour for the several process- 
 es named above, to suit himself; but, when once fixed, 
 let it be rigidly and regularly followed. If the regular 
 and full feeding be neglected for even a day, the yield 
 of milk will immediately decline, and it will be very 
 
120 REGULARITY. CHANGE. 
 
 difficult to restore it. It may safely be asserted, as the 
 result of many trials and long practice, that a larger 
 flow of milk follows a complete system of regularity in 
 this respect than from a higher feeding where this sys- 
 tem is not adhered to. 
 
 One prime object which the dairyman should keep 
 constantly in view is, to maintain the animal in a sound 
 and healthy condition. Without this, no profit can be 
 expected from a milch cow for any considerable length 
 of time ; and, with a view to this, there should be an 
 occasional change of food. But, in making changes, 
 great care is required to supply an equal amount of 
 nourishment, or the cow falls off in flesh, and eventu- 
 ally in milk. We should therefore bear in mind that 
 the food consumed goes not alone to the secretion of 
 milk, but also to the growth and maintenance of the 
 bony structure, the flesh, the blood, the fat, the skin, 
 and the hair, and in exhalations from the body. These 
 parts of the body consist of different organic con- 
 stituents. Some are rich in nitrogen, as the fibrin of the 
 blood, albumen, &c. ; others destitute of it, as fat ; some 
 abound in inorganic salts, phosphate of lime, salts of pot- 
 ash, &c. To explain how the constant waste of these 
 substances may be supplied, Dr. Voelcker observes that 
 the albumen, gluten, caseine, and other nitrogenized 
 principles of food, supply the animal with materials 
 required for the formation of muscle and cartilage ; they 
 are, therefore, called flesh-forming principles. 
 
 "Fats, or oily matters of the food," says he, " are used 
 to lay on fat, or for the purpose of sustaining respiration. 
 
 " Starch, sugar, gum, and a few other non-nitrogenized 
 substances, consisting of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen, 
 supply the carbon given off in respiration, or they are 
 used for the production of fat. 
 
 "Phosphates of lime and magnesia in food principally 
 
FEEDING FOR SPECIAL PURPOSES. 121 
 
 furnish the animal with the materials of which the bony 
 skeleton of its body consists. 
 
 "Saline substances chlorides of sodium and pota&- 
 sium, sulphate and phosphate of potash and soda, and 
 some other mineral matters occurring in food supply 
 the blood, juice of flesh, and various animal juices, with 
 the necessary mineral constituents. 
 
 " The healthy state of an animal can thus only be pre- 
 served by a mixed food; that is, food which contains all 
 the proximate principles just noticed. Starch or sugar 
 alone cannot sustain the animal body, because neither of 
 them furnishes the materials to build up the fleshy parts 
 of the animal. When fed on substances in which an in- 
 sufficient quantity of phosphates occurs, the animal will 
 become weak, because it does not find any bone-pro- 
 ducing principles in its food. Due attention, therefore, 
 ought to be paid by the feeder to the selection of food 
 which contains all the kinds of matter required, nitro- 
 genized as well as non-nitrogenized, and mineral sub- 
 stances ; and these should be mixed together in the 
 proportion which experience points out as best for the 
 different kinds of animals, or the particular purpose for 
 which they are kept." 
 
 "On the nutrition of cows for dairy purposes," Dr. 
 Voelcker still further observes that "milk may be re- 
 garded as a material for the manufacture of butter or 
 of cheese ; and, according to the purpose for which the 
 milk is intended to be employed, whether for the manu- 
 facture of butter or the production of cheese, the cow 
 should be differently fed. 
 
 " Butter contains carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, and 
 no nitrogen. Cheese, on the contrary, is rich in nitro- 
 gen. Food which contains much fatty matter, or sub- 
 stances which in the animal system are readily con- 
 verged into fat, will tend to increase the proportion of 
 11 
 
122 FOR MILK, BUTTER, AND CHEESE. 
 
 cream in milk. On the other hand, the proportion of 
 caseine or cheesy matter in milk is increased by the use 
 of highly nitrogenized food. Those, therefore, who 
 desire much cream, or who produce milk for the manu- 
 facture of butter, select food likely to increase the pro- 
 portion of butter in the milk. On the contrary, where 
 the principal object is the production of milk rich ir. 
 curd, that is, where cheese is the object of the farmer, 
 clover, peas, and bean-meal, and other plants which 
 abound in legumine, a nitrogenized organic com- 
 pound, almost identical in properties and composition 
 with caseine, or the substance which forms the curd of 
 milk, will be selected." And so the quality, as well as 
 the quantity, of butter in the milk, depends on the kind 
 of food consumed, and on the general health of the 
 animal. Cows fed on turnips in the stall always pro- 
 duce butter inferior to that of cows living upon the 
 fresh and aromatic grasses of the pastures. 
 
 Succulent food in which water abounds the green 
 grass of irrigated meadows, green clover, brewers' 
 refuse, distillers' refuse, etc. increases the quantity, 
 rather than the quality, of the milk ; and by feeding 
 these substances the milk-dairyman studies his own 
 interest, and makes thin milk, without diluting it with 
 water, though, in the opinion of some, this may be no 
 more legitimate than watering the milk. 
 
 But, though the yield of milk may be increased by 
 succulent or watery food, it should be given so as not 
 to interfere with the health of the cow. 
 
 Food rich in starch, gum, or sugar, which are the 
 'respiratory elements, an excess of which goes to the 
 production of fatty matters, increases the butter in milk. 
 Quietness promotes the secretion of fat in animals and 
 increases the butter. Cheese will be increased by food 
 rich in albumen, such as the leguminous plants. 
 
SUMMER FOOD FOR COWS. 
 
 123 
 
 The most natural, and of course the healthiest food 
 for milch cows in summer, is the green grass of the 
 pastures ; and when these fail from drought, or over- 
 stocking, the complement of nourishment may be made 
 up with green clover, green oats, barley, millet, or corn- 
 fodder, and cabbage-leaves, or other succulent vegeta- 
 bles ; and if these are wanting, their place may be 
 partly supplied with shorts, Indian-meal, linseed or cot- 
 ton-seed meal. Green grass is more nutritious than 
 hay, which always loses more or less of its nutritive 
 qualities in curing ; the amount of the loss depending 
 chiefly on the mode of curing, and the length of ex- 
 posure to sun and rain. But, apart from this, grass is 
 more easily and completely digested than hay, though 
 the digestion of hay may be greatly aided by cutting 
 and moistening, or steaming ; and by this means it is 
 rendered more readily available, and hence far better 
 adapted to promote a large secretion of milk a fact 
 too often overlooked by many even intelligent farmers. 
 
 That green grass is better adapted than most other 
 kinds of food to promote a large flow of milk, may be 
 be seen from the following table, from which it will 
 appear that greater attention should be given to the 
 proper constituents of food for milch cows. Two 
 cows were taken in the experiment. 
 
 Food of two cows. 
 
 Milk in 
 fire days. 
 
 Butter in 
 five days. 
 
 Nitrogen in 
 food in 
 five days. 
 
 1. Grass, 
 
 114 Ibs. 
 
 3.501bs. 
 
 2.321bs. 
 
 2. Barley and hay, . . . 
 
 107 
 
 3.43 
 
 3.89 
 
 3. Malt and hay, . . . 
 
 , 102 
 
 3.20 
 
 3.34 
 
 4. Barley, molasses, and) 
 hay, . . . . J 
 
 106 
 
 3.44 
 
 3.82 
 
 5. Barley, linseed, and\ 
 
 I 108 
 
 3.48 
 
 4.14 
 
 hay, ....]" 
 
 
 
 
 6. Beans and hay, . 
 
 -108 
 
 3.72 
 
 5.27 
 
124 AUTUMN FOOD FOR COWS. 
 
 Here grass produced the largest flow of milk, but of 
 a quality less rich than bean-meal and hay, which pro- 
 duced the richest quality ; one hundred and eight 
 pounds making more butter than one hundred and four- 
 teen pounds of grass-made milk. 
 
 In autumn, the best fe'ed will be the grasses of the 
 pastures, so far as they are available, green-corn fod- 
 der, cabbage, carrot and turnip leaves, and an addition 
 of meal or shorts. Towards the middle of autumn, the 
 cows fed in the pastures will require to be housed reg- 
 ularly nights, especially in the more northern latitudes, 
 and put, in part at least, upon hay. But every farmer 
 knows that it is not judicious to feed out the best part 
 of his hay when his cattle are first put into the barn, 
 and that he should not feed so well in the early part of 
 winter that he cannot feed better as it advances. 
 
 At the same time, it should always be borne in mind 
 that the change from grass to a poor quality of hay or 
 straw, for cows in milk, should not be too sudden. A 
 poor quality of dry hay is far less palatable in the early 
 part of winter, after the cows are taken from grass, 
 than at a later period ; and, if it is resorted to with 
 milch cows, will inevitably lead to a falling off in the 
 milk, which no good feed can afterwards wholly restore. 
 
 It is desirable, therefore, to know what can be used 
 instead of his best English or upland meadow hay, and 
 yet not suffer any greater loss in the flow of milk, or 
 condition, than is absolutely necessary. In some sec- 
 tions of New England, the best quality of swale hay 
 will be used ; and the composition of that is as variable 
 as possible, depending on the varieties of grasses of 
 which it was made, and the manner of curing. But, 
 in other sections., many will find it necessary to use 
 straw, and other substitutes ; and it may be desirable to 
 know how much is required to form an equivalent in 
 
NUTRITIVE EQUIVALENTS, 
 
 125 
 
 nutrition to good meadow or English hay. The follow- 
 ing brief table of nutritive equivalents will be conve- 
 nient for reference : 
 
 
 Nutritive 
 equivalent. 
 
 Percentage of Nitrogen* 
 
 ' Dried. 
 
 Undried. 
 
 100 
 75 
 479 
 383 
 426 
 460 
 64 
 
 1.34 
 
 1.70 
 0.30 
 0.36 
 0.36 
 0.30 
 1.45 
 
 1.15 
 
 1.54 
 0.24 
 0.30 
 0.27 
 0.25 
 1.79 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 The following is the composition of these several 
 substances, in which their relative value will more 
 distinctly appear : 
 
 Water. 
 
 Woody fibre. 
 
 Starch, Gum, 
 Sugar. 
 
 Gluten, Albu- 
 men, etc. 
 
 Fatty matter. 
 
 Saline 
 matter. 
 
 14 
 14 
 
 12 to 15 
 12 
 12 to 15 
 12 to 15 
 10 to 15 
 
 30 
 
 25 
 45 
 45 
 50 
 50 
 25 
 
 40 
 40 
 38 
 35 
 30 
 30 
 45 
 
 7.1 
 9.3 
 1.3 
 1.3 
 1.3 
 1.3 
 12.3 
 
 2to5 
 3 to 5 
 
 0.8 
 2 to 3 
 
 1.5 
 
 5 to 10 
 
 9 
 
 4 
 6 
 5 
 5 
 4 to 6 
 
 From these tables it will be seen that, taking good 
 English or meadow hay as the standard of comparison, 
 and calling that one, 4.79 times the weight of rye-straw, 
 or 3.83 times the weight of oat-straw, contains the same 
 amount of nutritive matter; that is, it would take 4.79 
 times as much rye-straw to produce the same result 
 as good meadow hay. 
 
 The more elaborate nutritive equivalents of Boussin- 
 gault will be found to be very valuable and suggestive, 
 and the following table is given in this connection for 
 the sake of convenient reference. 
 
126 
 
 TABLE OF EQUIVALENTS. 
 
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WINTER FOOD FOR COWS. 127 
 
 The reader will find no difficulty in making this table 
 of practical value in deciding upon the proper course 
 of feeding to be pursued. 
 
 In winter the best food for cows in milk will be good 
 sweet meadow hay, a part of which should be cut a^d 
 moistened with water, as all inferior hay or straw should 
 be. with an addition of root-crops, such as turnips, car- 
 rots, parsnips, potatoes, mangold wurzel, with shorts, 
 oil-cake, Indian-meal, or bean-meal. 
 
 It is the opinion of most successful dairymen that 
 the feeding of moist food cannot be too highly recom- 
 mended for cows in milk, especially to those who desire 
 to obtain the largest quantity. Hay cut and thoroughly 
 moistened becomes more succulent and nutritive, and 
 partakes more of the nature of green grass. 
 
 As a substitute for the oil-cake, hitherto known as an 
 exceedingly valuable article for feeding stock, there is 
 probably nothing better than cotton-seed meal, now to 
 be had in large quantities in the market. This- is an 
 article whose economic value has been but recently 
 made known, but which, from practical trials already 
 made, has proved eminently successful as food for milch 
 cows. An average specimen of this was submitted for 
 analysis to Professor Johnson, who reported that its 
 composition is not inferior to that of the best flax-seed 
 cake, and that in some respects its agricultural value 
 surpasses that of any other kind of oil-cake, as is shown 
 in the following table, containing in column first the 
 analysis of cotton-seed meal made by himself; in column 
 second, some of the results obtained by Dr. C. T. Jack- 
 son on cake prepared by himself from hulled cotton-seed; 
 in column third, an analysis of cotton-seed cake, made by 
 Dr. Anderson, of Edinburgh ; in column fourth, the aver- 
 age composition of eight samples of American linseed- 
 cake ; and in column fifth, an analysis of meadow hay, 
 
128 ON WHAT THE VALUE OF FOOD DEPENDS 
 
 obtained by Dr. Wolff in Saxony, given as a means of 
 comparison. 
 
 ir. 
 
 in. 
 
 iv. 
 
 v. 
 
 Water, 
 
 6.82 
 
 
 11.19 
 
 9 23 
 
 16.94 
 
 Oil, 
 
 16 47 
 
 
 9 08 
 
 12 96 
 
 
 Albuminous bodies, . 
 
 44.41 
 
 48.82 
 
 25.16 
 
 28.28 
 
 10.69 
 
 Mucilaginous and Saccha- 
 rine matters, .... 
 
 } 12.74 
 
 ! 
 
 48.93 
 
 34.22 
 
 40.11 
 
 Fibre, 
 
 11 76 
 
 
 
 9 00 
 
 27 16 
 
 Ash, 
 
 7 80 
 
 8 96 
 
 5 64 
 
 6 21 
 
 5 04 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 100.00 
 
 
 100.00 
 
 100.00 
 
 100.00 
 
 
 7 05 
 
 7 75 
 
 3 95 
 
 447 
 
 
 Phosphoric acid in ash, . 
 
 2.36 
 
 2.45 
 
 
 
 _ 
 
 Sand, . 
 
 .94 
 
 _ 
 
 1.32 
 
 _ 
 
 _ 
 
 Johnson also remarks, in this connection, that the 
 great value of linseed-cake, as an adjunct to hay for fat 
 cattle and milch cows, has long been recognized ; and 
 is undeniably traceable in the main to three ingredients 
 of the seeds of the oil-yielding plants. The value of 
 food depends upon the quantity of matters it contains 
 which may be appropriated by the animal which con- 
 sumes the food. Now, it is proved that the fat of ani- 
 mals is derivable from the starch, gum, and sugar, and 
 more directly and easily from the oil of the food. 
 These four substances are, then, the fat-formers. The 
 muscles, nerves, and tendons of animals, the fibrine of 
 their blood, and the curd of their milk, are almost iden- 
 tical in composition, and strongly similar in many of 
 their properties with matters found in all vegetables, 
 but chiefly in such as form the most concentrated food. 
 These blood (and muscle) formers are characterized by 
 containing about fifteen and a half per cent, of nitrogen ; 
 and hence are called nitrogenous substances. They are 
 also often designated as the albuminous bodies. 
 
 The bony framework of the animal owes its solidity 
 to phosphate of lime, and this substance must be fur- 
 
COTTON-SEED CAKE. 129 
 
 nished by the food. A perfect food must supply the 
 animal with these three classes of bodies, and in proper 
 proportions. The addition of a small quantity of a food 
 rich in oil and albuminous substances to the ordinary 
 kinds of feed, which contain a large quantity of vegeta- 
 ble fibre or woody matter, more or less indigestible, but 
 nevertheless indispensable to the herbivorous animals, 
 their digestive organs being adapted to a bulky food, 
 has been found highly advantageous in practice. Nei- 
 ther hay alone nor concentrated food alone gives the 
 best results. A certain combination of the two pre- 
 sents the most advantages. 
 
 A Bavarian farmer has recently announced that heif- 
 ers fed, for three months before calving, with a little 
 linseed-cake, in addition to their other fodder, acquire 
 a larger development of the milk-vessels, and yield 
 more milk afterwards, than similar animals fed as usual. 
 Cotton-seed cake must have an equally good effect. 
 
 Some of those who have used cotton-seed cake have 
 found difficulty in inducing cattle to eat it. By giving 
 it at first in small doses, mixed with other palatable 
 food, they soon learn to eat it with relish. 
 
 On comparing the analyses II. and I. with the aver- 
 age composition of linseed-cake IV., it will be seen that 
 the cotton-seed cake is much richer in oil and albumi- 
 nous matters than the linseed-cake. A correspondingly 
 less quantity will therefore be required. Three pounds 
 of this cotton-seed cake are equivalent to four of linseed- 
 cake of average quality. 
 
 During the winter season, as already remarked, a fre- 
 quent change of food is especially necessary, both as 
 contributing to the general health of animals, and as a 
 means of stimulating the digestive organs, and thus 
 increasing the secretion of milk. A mixture used as 
 cut feed, and well moistened, is now especially benefi- 
 
130 BULK AS AN ELEMENT OF FOOD. 
 
 cial, since concentrated food, which would otherwise 
 be given in small quantities, may -be united with larger 
 quantities of coarser and less nutritive food, and the 
 complete assimilation of the whole be better secured. 
 On this subject Dr. Voelcker truly observes that the 
 most nutritious kinds of food produce little or no effect 
 when they are not digested by the stomach, or if the 
 digested food is not absorbed by the lymphatic vessels, 
 and not assimilated by the various parts of the body. 
 Now, the normal functions of the digestive organs not 
 only depend on the composition of the food, but also 1 
 on its volume. The volume or bulk of the food con- 
 tributes to the healthy activity of the digestive organs, 
 by exercising a stimulating effect on the nerves which 
 govern them. Thus the whole organization of ruminat- 
 ing animals necessitates the supply of bulky food, to 
 keep the animal in good condition. 
 
 Feed sweet and nutritious food, therefore, regu- 
 larly, frequently, and in small quantities, and change it 
 often, and the best results may be confidently expected. 
 If the cows are not in milk, but are to come in in the 
 spring, the difference in feeding should be rather in the 
 quantity than the quality, if the highest yield is to be 
 expected from them the coming season. 
 
 The most common feeding is hay alone, and oftentimes 
 very poor hay, at that. The main point is to keep the 
 animal in a healthy and thriving condition, and not to 
 suli'er her to fail in flesh ; and with this object some 
 change and variety of food is highly important. And 
 here it may be remarked that cows in calf should not, 
 as a general rule, be milked the last month or six weeks 
 before calving, and many prefer to have them run dry 
 as many as eight or ten weeks. The yield of milk is 
 better the coming season, and holds out better, than if 
 they are milked up to the time of calving. 
 
PARTURITION OF THE COW. 131 
 
 There are exceptions, however, and it is often very 
 difficult to dry off a cow sufficiently to make it judicious 
 to cease milking much, if any, before the time of calving. 
 Some even prefer to milk quite up to this time ; but the 
 weight of authority among the best practical farmers is 
 BO decidedly against it, that there can be no question 
 of its bad economy. Towards the close of winter, a 
 herd of cows will begin to come in, or approach their 
 time of calving. Care should then be taken not to feed 
 too rich or stimulating food for the last week or two 
 before this event, as it is often attended with ill conse- 
 quences. A plenty of hay, a few potatoes or shorts, 
 and pure water, will be sufficient. 
 
 As the time of calving approaches, the cow should be 
 removed from the rest of the herd, to a pen with a level 
 floor, by herself. Nothing is needed, usually, but to 
 supply her regularly with food and drink, and leave her 
 quietly to herself. In most cases the parturition will 
 be natural and easy, and the less the cow is disturbed 
 or meddled with, the better. She will do better with- 
 out help than with ; but she should be watched, in order 
 to see that no difficulty occurs which may require aid 
 and attention. In cases of difficult parturition the 
 aid of a skilful veterinary surgeon may be required. 
 For those who may desire to make themselves familiar 
 with the details of such cases so far as to be able to act 
 for themselves, Skellett's "Practical Treatise on the 
 Parturition of the Cow, or the Extraction of the Calf," 
 an elaborate work, published in London in 1844, will be 
 an important guide. 
 
 In spring the best feeding for dairy cows will be 
 much the same as that for winter ; the roots in store 
 over winter, such as carrots, mangold wurzel, turnips, 
 and parsnips, furnishing very valuable aid in increasing 
 the quantity and improving the quality of milk. Tow- 
 
132 FEEDING FOR QUANTITY. 
 
 ards the close of this season, and before the grass of 
 the pastures is sufficiently grown to make it judicious 
 to turn out the cows, the best dairymen provide a sup- 
 ply of green fodder in the shape of winter rye, which, 
 if cut while it is tender and succulent, and before it is 
 half grown, will be greatly relished. Unless cut young, 
 however, its stalk soon becomes hard and unpalatable. 
 
 Having stated briefly the general principles of feed- 
 ing cows for the dairy, it is proper to give the state- 
 ments of successful practical dairymen, both as corrob- 
 orating what has already been said, and as showing the 
 difference in practice in feeding and managing with 
 reference to the specific objects of dairy farming. And 
 first, a farmer of Massachusetts, supplying milk for the 
 Boston market, and feeding for that object, says : " For 
 thirty cows, cut with a machine thirty bushels for one 
 feed ; one third common English hay, one third salt hay, 
 and one third rye or barley straw ; add thirty quarts of 
 wheat bran or shorts, and ten quarts of oat and corn 
 meal moistened with water. One bushel of this mixture 
 is given to each cow in the morning, and the same 
 quantity at noon and in the evening. In addition to 
 this, a peck of mangold wurzel is given to each cow 
 per day. This mode of feeding has been found to pro- 
 duce nearly as much milk as the best grass feed in sum- 
 mer. When no wheat-bran or any kind of meal is given, 
 the hay is fed without cutting." 
 
 Another excellent farmer, of the western part of toe 
 same state, devoting his attention to the manufacture 
 of cheese, and the successful competitor for the first 
 prize of the state society for dairies, says of his feeding: 
 " My pastures are upland, and yield sweet feed. I fed, 
 in the month of June, all the whey from the milk made 
 into cheese, without any meal. In September, my pas- 
 tures being very much dried up, I fed all the whey, 
 
FEEDING FOR QUALITY. 133 
 
 with one quart of meal to each cow, and also ten pounds 
 of corn fodder to each cow per day. 
 
 " I commence feeding my cows in the spring, before 
 calving, with three quarts of meal each per day, until 
 the feed in the pasture is good. 
 
 " I consider the best mixture of grain, ground into 
 meal, for milk, is equal quantities of rye, buckwheat, 
 and oats. For the last ten years I have not made less 
 than five hundred pounds of cheese and twenty pounds 
 of butter to each cow ; and one year I made six hundred 
 and forty pounds of cheese and twenty pounds of butter 
 to each cow. 
 
 " A cow will give more milk on good fresh grass than 
 any other feed. When the grass begins to fail, I make 
 up the deficiency by extra feed of meal and corn fodder. 
 I feed all my whey to my cows. I let them run dry 
 four months, and during this time I give them no extra 
 feed, always keeping salt before them." 
 
 Another, with one of the best butter dairies in the 
 same state, explains his mode of management of cows 
 in the stall as follows : " In the management of my stock 
 the utmost gentleness is observed, and exact regularity 
 in the hours of feeding while confined to the stable, and 
 of milking throughout the year. 
 
 " The stock is fed regularly three times a day. 
 
 " In the morning, as soon as the milking is over, each 
 cow (having been previously fed, and her bag cleaned 
 by washing, if necessary) is thoroughly cleaned and 
 groomed, if the expression may be used, with a curry- 
 comb, from head to foot, and, when cleaned, turned out 
 to drink. The stable is now cleaned out, the mangers 
 swept, and the floors sprinkled with plaster ; and as the 
 cows return, which they do as soon as inclined, they 
 are tied up and left undisturbed until the next hour of 
 feeding, which is at noon, 
 12 
 
134 A PRACTICAL STATEMENT. 
 
 "The cattle at this time are again turned out to 
 drink, and, after being tied up on their return again, 
 fed. Of course the stable is at this time again thor- 
 oughly cleansed. And so again at night the same 
 course is pursued. At this time a good bedding is 
 spread for each cow, and, after all are in, they are fed. 
 
 " At six o'clock the milking commences, and at its 
 termination, after removing from the floor whatever 
 manure may have been dropped, the stable is closed for 
 the night. If carrots are fed, which is the only root 
 allowed to my cows in milk, they are given at the time 
 of the evening milking. 
 
 " Whatever material is taken for bedding (as corn- 
 stalks, husks, &c.) is passed through a cutting-machine, 
 and composes the noon feed, such portions as are not 
 consumed by the cows being used for bedding. The 
 additional labor of cutting up is amply compensated by 
 the reduced amount of labor in working (loading) and 
 ploughing under the manure. 
 
 " While I consider it highly desirable that the cows, 
 during the period they are stabled, should be kept warm 
 and dry, I regard it as indispensable that they should 
 be perfectly clean ; and, although the stock is stabled 
 the whole time, care is taken that there is a sufficient 
 degree of ventilation." 
 
 In Herkimer county, New York, one of the best dairy 
 districts in the country, a dairy farmer who kept twenty- 
 five cows for the manufacture of cheese, making in ono 
 year nearly seven hundred pounds per cow, states his 
 mode of feeding as follows : " When the ground is set- 
 tled, and grass is grown so that cows can get their fill 
 without too much toil, they are allowed to graze an 
 hour, only, the first day ; the second day a little longer, 
 and so on, till they get accustomed to the change of 
 feed before they are allowed to have full range of pas- 
 
CHANGE OP PASTURE. CORN FODDER. 135 
 
 ture. Shift of pasture is frequently made to keep feed 
 fresh and a good bite. About one acre per cow affords 
 plenty of feed till the first of August. If enough land 
 was turned to pasture to feed the cows through the 
 season, it would get a start of them about this time, and 
 be hard and dry the balance of the season. To avoid 
 turning on my meadows in the fall, I take one acre to 
 every ten cows, plough and prepare it the fore part 
 of June for sowing ; I commence sowing corn broadcast, 
 about half an acre at a time (for twenty-five cows), so 
 that it may grow eighty or ninety days before it is cut 
 and fed. I have found, by experiment, that it then con 
 tains the most saccharine juice, and will produce the 
 most milk. If the ground is strong, I sow two bushels 
 per acre ; more if the ground is not manured. 
 
 " The common yield is from fifteen to twenty tons (of 
 green feed) per acre. About the first of August, when 
 heat and flies are too oppressive for cows to feed quietly 
 in the day-time, I commence feeding them with what 
 corn they will eat in the morning, daily, which is cut up 
 with a grass-scythe, and drawn on a sled or wagon to 
 the milk-barn and fed to them in the stalls, which is 
 one hour's work for a man at each feeding. When thus 
 plentifully fed, my cows have their knitting-work, on 
 hand for the day, which they can do up by lying quietly 
 under artificial shades, erected in such places as need 
 manuring most, and are most airy, by setting posts and 
 putting poles and bushes on top, the sides being left 
 open. These shades may be made and removed annu- 
 ally, to enrich other portions of soil, if desired, at the 
 small expense of one dollar for each ten cows. At 
 evening, my cows are fed whey only, because they can 
 feed more quietly, with less rambling, and will give 
 more milk by feeding most when the dew is on the 
 grass. 
 
136 AIR AND WARMTH. 
 
 " The capacity of cows for giving milk is varied 
 much by habit. In fall, after the season of feeding is 
 past, I feed four quarts of wheat bran or shorts made 
 into slop with whey, or a peck of roots to each cow, till 
 milking season closes (about the first of December). 
 When confined in stables and fed hay and milked, they 
 are fed each one pail full of thin slop at morning before 
 foddering, and also at evening, to render their food 
 more succulent, and they will not drink so much cold 
 water when let out in the middle of the day. In cold 
 weather cows are kept well attended in warm stables. 
 No foddering is done on the ground. Thus a supply 
 of milk is kept up, and the cows get in good flesh, 
 while their blood and bags are left in a healthy con- 
 dition when dried off. 
 
 " This flesh they hold till milk season in spring, with- 
 out other feed than good hay. They will not get 
 fleshy bags, but come into milk at once. About the 
 first of April they are carded daily, till they are turned 
 to grass. Wheat-bran in milk or whey, slops, or 
 roots, are daily fed, as they are found best adapted to 
 the nature of different cows, and most likely to estab- 
 lish a regular flow of milk till grass comes." 
 
 All practical dairymen concur in saying that a warm 
 and well-ventilated barn is indispensable to the promo- 
 tion of the highest yield of milk in winter ; and most 
 agree that cows in milk should not be turned out even 
 to drink in cold weather, all exposure to cold tending 
 to lessen the yield of milk. 
 
 In the London dairies, where, of course, the cows 
 are fed so as to produce the largest flow of milk, the 
 treatment is as follows : The cows are kept at night in 
 stalls. About three A. M. each has half a bushel of 
 grains. When milking is finished, each receives a 
 bushel of turnips (or mangolds), and shortly afterwards 
 
THE WILLOWBANK DAIRY. 137 
 
 one tenth of a truss of hay of the best quality. This 
 feeding occurs before eight A. M., when the animals are 
 turned into the yard. Four hours after, they are again 
 tied up in their stalls, and have another feed of grains. 
 When the afternoon milking is over (about three P. M.), 
 they are fed with a bushel of turnips, and after the 
 lapse of an hour, hay is given them as before. This 
 mode of feeding usually continues throughout the root 
 season, or from November to March. During the 
 remaining months they are fed with grains, tares, and 
 cabbages, and a proportion of rowen or second-cut hay. 
 They are supplied regularly until they are turned out 
 to grass, when they pass the whole of the night in the 
 field. The yield is about six hundred and fifty gallons 
 a year for each cow. 
 
 Mr. Harley, whose admirable dairy establishment has 
 been already alluded to, as erected for the purpose of 
 supplying the city of Glasgow with a good quality of 
 milk, and which contributed more than anything else to 
 improve the quality of milk furnished to all the cities 
 of Great Britain, adopted the following system of feed- 
 ing with the greatest profit: In the early part of 
 summer, young grass and green barley, the first cut- 
 ting especially, mixed with a large proportion of old 
 hay or straw, and a good quantity of salt to prevent 
 swelling, were used. As summer advanced less hay 
 and straw were given, and as the grass approached 
 ripeness they were discontinued altogether, but young 
 and wet clover was never given without an admixture 
 of dry provender. When grass became scarce, young 
 turnips and turnip-leaves were steamed with hay, and 
 formed a good substitute. As grass decreased the 
 turnips were increased, and at length became a com- 
 plete substitute. As the season advanced a large pro- 
 portion of distillers' grains and wash was given with 
 12* 
 
138 MR. HORSFALL'S COURSE OF FEEDING. 
 
 other food, but these were found to be apt to make the 
 cattle grain-sick ; and if this feeding were long con- 
 tinued, the health of the cows became affected. Boiled 
 linseed and short-cut wheat-straw mixed with the 
 grains were found to prevent the cows from turning 
 sick. As spring approached, Swedish turnips, when 
 cheap, were substituted for yellow turnips. These two 
 roots, steamed with hay and other mixtures, afforded 
 soft food till grass was again in season. When any of 
 the cows were surfeited, the food was withheld till the 
 appetite returned, when a small quantity was given, 
 and increased gradually to the full allowance. 
 
 But the most elaborate and valuable experiments in 
 the feeding and management of milch cows are those 
 recently made by Mr. T. Horsfall, of England, and pub- 
 lished in the Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society. 
 His practice, though adapted, perhaps, more especially 
 to his own section, is nevertheless of such general 
 application and importance as to be worthy of attention. 
 By his course of treatment he found that he could pro- 
 duce as much and as rich butter in winter as in 
 'summer. 
 
 His first object was to afford a full supply of the ele- 
 ments of food adapted to the maintenance and also to 
 the produce of the animal ; and this could not be effected 
 by the ordinary food and methods of feeding, since it is 
 impossible to induce a cow to consume a quantity of 
 hay requisite to supply the waste of the system, and 
 keep up, at the same time, a full yield of the best 
 quality of milk. He used, to some extent, cabbages, 
 kohl rabi, mangolds, shorts, and other substances, rich 
 in the constituents of cheese and butter. " My food for 
 milch cows," says he, " after having undergone various 
 modifications, has for two seasons consisted of rape-cake 
 five pounds and bran two pounds, for each cow, mixed 
 
A NEW KIND OP FOOD. 139 
 
 with a sufficient quantity of bean-straw, oat-straw, and 
 shells of oats, in equal proportions, to supply them 
 three times a day with as much as they will eat. The 
 whole of the materials are moistened and blended 
 together, and, after being well steamed, are given to 
 the animals in a warm state. The attendant is allowed 
 one pound to one and a half pounds per cow, according 
 to circumstances, of bean-meal, which he is charged to 
 give to each cow in proportion to the yield of milk ; 
 those in full milk getting two pounds each per day, 
 others but little. It is dry, and mixed with the steamed 
 food on its being dealt out separately. When this is 
 eaten up, green food is given, consisting of cabbages 
 from October to December, kohl rabi till February, and 
 mangold till grass time. With a view to nicety of 
 flavor, I limit the supply of green food to thirty or 
 thirty-five pounds per day for each. After each feed, 
 four pounds of meadow hay, or twelve pounds per day, 
 is given to each cow. They are allowed water twice 
 a day to the extent they will drink." 
 
 Bean-straw uncooked being found to be hard and 
 unpalatable, it was steamed to make it soft and pulpy, 
 when it possessed an agreeable odor, and imparted its 
 flavor to the whole mess. It was cut for this purpose 
 just before ripening, but after the bean was fully 
 grown, and in this state was found to possess nearly 
 double the amount of albuminous matter, so valuable to 
 milch cows, of good meadow or upland hay. Bean or 
 shorts is also vastly improved by steaming or soaking 
 with hot water, when its nutriment is more readily 
 assimilated. It contains about fourteen per cent, of 
 albumen, and is rich in phosphoric acid. Rape-cake was 
 found to be exceedingly valuable. Linseed and cotton- 
 seed cake may probably be substituted for it in this 
 country. Mr. Horsfall is accustomed to turn his cows 
 
140 \ STIMULATING THE APPETITE. 
 
 in May into a rich pasture, housing them at night: and 
 giving them a mess of the steamed mixture and some 
 hay morning and night; and from June to October they 
 have cut grass in the stall, besides what they get in the 
 pasture, and two feeds of the steamed mixture a day. 
 After the beginning of October the cows are kept 
 housed. With such management, his cows generally 
 yield from twelve to sixteen quarts of milk (wine 
 measure) a day, for about eight months after calving, 
 when they fall off in milk, but gain in flesh, up to calv- 
 ing-time. In this course of treatment the manure is 
 far better than the average, and his pastures are con- 
 stantly improved. The average amount of butter from 
 every sixteen quarts of milk is twenty-five ounces, a 
 proportion far larger than the average. His investi- 
 gations are very full and complete. See Appendix. 
 
 How widely does this course of practice differ from 
 that of most farmers ! The object with many seems 
 to be to see with how little food they can keep the 
 cow alive. Now, it appears to me that the milch cow 
 should be regarded as an instrument of transformation. 
 With so much hay, so much grain, so many roots, how 
 can the most milk, or butter, or cheese, be made ? The 
 conduct of a manufacturer who owned good machinery, 
 and an abundance of raw material, and had the labor at 
 hand, would be considered as very absurd, if he hesi- 
 tated to supply the material, and keep the machinery at 
 work at least so long as he could run it with profit. 
 
 Stimulate the appetite, then, and induce the cow to 
 eat, by a frequent change of diet, not merely enough to 
 supply the constant waste of her system, but enough 
 and to spare, of a food adapted to the production of 
 milk of the quality desired. 
 
 SOILING. Of the advantages of soiling milch cows, 
 or feeding exclusively in the barn, there are still many 
 
THE SOILING SYSTEM. 141 
 
 conflicting opinions. As to its economy of land and 
 feed there is no question, it being generally admitted 
 that a given number of animals may be abundantly fed 
 on a less space ; nor is there much question as to the 
 increased quantity of milk yielded in stall feeding. Its 
 economy in this country turns rather upon the cost of 
 labor and land ; and the question asked by the dairy 
 man is whether it will pay whether its advantages 
 are sufficient to balance the extra expense of cutting 
 and feeding over and above cropping on the pasture. 
 The importance of this subject has been strongly im- 
 pressed upon the attention of farmers in many sections 
 of the country, by a growing conviction that something 
 must be done to improve the pastures, or that they 
 must be abandoned altogether. 
 
 Thousands of acres of neglected pasture-land in the 
 older states are so poor and worn out that from four to 
 eight acres furnish but a miserable subsistence for a 
 good-sized cow. No animal can flourish under such cir- 
 cumstances. The labor and exertion of feeding is too 
 great, to say nothing of the vastly inferior quality 
 of the grasses in such pastures to those on more 
 recently seeded lands. True economy would dictate 
 that such pastures should either be allowed to run up 
 to wood, or be devoted to sheep-walks, or ploughed and 
 improved. Cows, to be able to yield well, must have 
 plenty of food of a sweet and nutritious quality ; and 
 unless they find it, they wander over a large space, if 
 at liberty, and deprive themselves of rest. 
 
 If a farmer or dairyman is the unfortunate owner of 
 such pastures, there can be no question that, as a mat- 
 ter of real economy, he had better resort to the soiling 
 system for his milch cows, by which means he will 
 largely increase his annual supply of good manure, and 
 thus have the means of improving, and bringing his 
 
142 THE TRUE TEST. 
 
 land to a higher state of cultivation. A very success- 
 ful instance of this management occurs in the report of 
 the visiting committee of an agricultural society in 
 Massachusetts, in which they say : " We have now in 
 mind a farmer in this county who keeps seven or eight 
 cows in the stable through the summer, and feeds them 
 on green fodder, chiefly Indian-corn. We asked him 
 the reasons for it. His answer was : 1. That he gets 
 more milk than he can by any other method. 2. That 
 he gets more manure, especially liquid manure. 3. 
 That he saves it all, by keeping a supply of mould or 
 mud under the stable, to be taken out and renewed as 
 often as necessary. 4. That it is less troublesome than 
 to drive his cows to pasture ; that they are less vexed 
 by flies, and have equally good health. 5. That his 
 mowing-land is every year growing more productive, 
 without the expense of artificial manure. He estimates 
 that on an acre of good land twenty tons of green fod- 
 der may be raised. That which is dried is cut fine, and 
 mixed with meal or shorts, and fed with profit. He- 
 believes that a reduced and partially worn-out farm 
 supposing the land to be naturally good could be 
 brought into prime order in five years, without extra 
 outlay of money for manure, by the use of green fod- 
 der in connection with the raising and keeping of pigs; 
 not fattening them, but selling at the age of four or five 
 months." He keeps most of his land in grass, improv- 
 ing its quality and productiveness by means of top- 
 dressing, and putting money in his pocket, which is, 
 after all, the true test both for theory and practice. 
 
 Another practical case in hand on this point is that 
 of a gentleman in the same state, who had four cows, 
 but not a rod of land to pasture them on. They were, 
 therefore, never out of the barn, or, at least, not 
 out of the yard/ and were fed with grass, regularly 
 
ECONOMY OF LAND. 143 
 
 mown for them ; with green Indian-corn fodder, which 
 had been sown broadcast for the purpose ; and with 
 about three pints of meal a day. Their produce in but- 
 ter was kept for thirteen weeks. Two of them were 
 but two years old, having calved the same spring. All 
 the milk of one of them was taken by her calf six 
 weeks out of the thirteen, and some of the milk of the 
 other was taken for family use, the quantity of which 
 was not measured. These heifers could not be esti- 
 mated, therefore, as more than equal to one cow in full 
 milk. And yet from these cows no less than three 
 hundred and eighty-nine pounds of butter were made in 
 the thirteen weeks. Another pound would have made 
 an average of thirty pounds a week for the whole time. 
 
 It appears from these, and other similar instances of 
 successful soiling, or stall-feeding in summer on green 
 crops cut for the purpose, that the largely increased 
 quantity of the yield fully counterbalances the slightly 
 deteriorated quality. And not only is the quantity 
 yielded by each cow increased, but the same extent of 
 land, under good culture, will carry double or treble the 
 number of ordinary pastures, and keep them in better 
 condition. There is also a saving of manure. But with 
 us the economy of soiling is the exception, and not the 
 rule. 
 
 In adopting this system of feeding, regularity is 
 required as much as in any other, and a proper variety 
 of food. A succession of green crops should be 
 provided, as near as convenient to the stable. The 
 first will naturally be winter rye, in the Northern 
 States, as that shoots up with great luxuriance. Win- 
 ter rape would probably be an exceedingly valuable 
 addition to the plants usually cultivated for soiling 
 in this country, in sections where it withstands the 
 severity of the winter. Cabbages kept in the cellar, or 
 
144 STILL-SLOPS. SWILL-MILK. 
 
 pit, and transplanted early, will also come in here to 
 advantage, and clover will very soon follow them ; 
 oats, millet, and green Indian-corn, as the season ad- 
 vances: and, a little later still, perhaps, the Chinese 
 sugar-cane, which should not be cut till headed out. 
 These plants, in addition to other cultivated grasses, will 
 furnish an unfailing succession of succulent and tender 
 fodder; while the addition of a little Indian, linseed, 
 or cotton-seed meal will be found economical. 
 
 In the vicinity of large towns and cities, where the 
 object is too often to feed for the largest quantity, 
 without reference to quality, an article known as dis- 
 tillers' swill, or still-slop, is extensively used. This, if 
 properly fed in limited quantities, in combination Avith 
 other and more bulky food, may be a valuable article 
 for the dairyman ; but, if given, as it too often is, with- 
 out the addition of other kinds of food, it soon affects 
 the health and constitution of the animals fed on it. 
 This swill contains a considerable quantity of water, 
 some nitrogenous compounds, and some inorganic mat- 
 ter, in the shape of phosphates and alkaline salts found 
 in the different kinds of grain of which it is made up, 
 as Indian corn, wheat, barley, rye, &c. Where this 
 forms the principal food of milch cows, the milk is of a 
 very poor quality blue in color, and requiring the 
 addition of coloring substances to make it salable. It 
 contains, often, less than one per cent, of butter, and 
 seldom over one and three tenths or one and a half per 
 cent., while good, salable milk ought to contain from 
 three to five per cent. It will not coagulate, it is said, 
 in less than five or six hours, while good milk will 
 invariably coagulate in one hour or less, under the 
 same conditions. Its effect on the system of young 
 children is therefore very destructive, causing diseases 
 of various kinds, and, if continued, certain death. 
 
STRUCTURE OF THE UDDER. 145 
 
 MILKING. The manner of milking exerts a more 
 powerful and lasting influence on the productiveness of 
 the cow than most farmers are aware of. That a slow 
 and careless milker soon dries up the best of cows, 
 every practical farmer and dairyman knows ; but a care- 
 ful examination of the beautiful structure of the udder 
 will serve further to explain the proper mode of milking, 
 to obtain and keep up the largest yield. " The udder 
 of a cow," says a writer in the Rural Cyclopaedia, " is a 
 unique mass, composed of two symmetrical parts, simply 
 united to each other by a cellular tissue, lax, "and very 
 abundant ; and each of these parts comprises two 
 divisions or quarters, which consist of many small 
 granules, and are connected together by a compact 
 laminous tissue; and from each quarter proceed systems 
 of ducts, which form successive unions and confluences, 
 somewhat in the manner of the many affluents of a 
 large river, until they terminate in one grand excretory 
 canal, which passes down through the elongated mam- 
 millary body called the teat. Its lactiferous or milk 
 tubes, however, do not, as might be supposed, proceed 
 exactly from smaller to larger ducts by a gradual and 
 regular enlargement, because it would not have been 
 proper that the secretion of milk should escape as it 
 was formed; and therefore we find an apparatus adapted 
 for the purpose of retaining it for a proper time. This 
 apparatus is to be found both in the teat and in the in- 
 ternal construction of the udder. The teat resembles a 
 funnel in shape, and somewhat in office ; and it is pos- 
 sessed of a considerable degree of elasticity. It seems 
 formed principally of the cutis, with some muscular 
 fibres, and it is covered on the outside by cuticle, like 
 every other part of the body ; but the cuticle here not 
 only covers the exterior, but also turns upwards, and 
 lines the inside of the extremity of the teat, as far as it 
 13 10 
 
146 MANNER OF MILKING. 
 
 is contracted, and there terminates by a frilled edge / 
 the rest of the interior of the teats and ducts being 
 lined by mucous membrane. But, as the udder in most 
 animals is attached in a pendulous manner to the body, 
 and as the weight of the column of fluid would press 
 with a force which would, in every case, overcome the 
 resistance of the contractions of the extremity, or 
 prove oppressive to the teat, there is in the internal 
 arrangement of the udder a provision made to obviate 
 this difficulty. The various ducts, as they are united, 
 do not become gradually enlarged so as to admit the 
 ready flow of milk in a continual stream to the teat, 
 but are so arranged as to take off, in a great measure, 
 the extreme pressure to which the teat would be other- 
 wise exposed. Each main duct, as it enters into another, 
 has a contraction produced, by which a kind of valvular 
 apparatus is formed in such a manner as to become 
 pouches or sacks, capable of containing the great body 
 of the milk. In consequence of this arrangement, it is 
 necessary that a kind of movement upwards, or lift, 
 should be given to the udder before the teat is drawn, 
 to force out the milk ; and by this lift the milk is dis- 
 placed from these pouches, and escapes into the teat, 
 and is then easily squeezed out ; while the contractions, 
 or pouches, at the same time resist, in a certain degree, 
 the return or reflux of the displaced milk." 
 
 The first requisite of a good milker is, of course, 
 the utmost cleanliness. Without this, the milk is unen- 
 durable. The udder should, therefore, be carefully 
 cleaned before the milking commences. The milker 
 may begin gradually and gently, but should steadily 
 increase the rapidity of the operation till the udder is 
 emptied, using a pail sufficiently large to hold all, with- 
 out the necessity of changing. Cows are very sensi- 
 tivc 3 and the pail cannot be changed, nor can the 
 
EFFECT OF CARELESS MILKING. 147 
 
 milker stop or rise during the process of milking, with- 
 out leading the cow more or less to withhold her milk. 
 The utmost care should be taken to strip to the last drop, 
 and to do it rapidly, and not in a slow and negligent 
 manner, which is sure to have its effect on the yield of 
 the cow. If any milk is left, it is reabsorbed into the 
 system, or else becomes caked, and diminishes the tend- 
 ency to secrete a full quantity afterwards. Milking as 
 dry as possible is especially necessary with young cows 
 with their first calf, as the mode of milking, and the 
 length of time to which they can be made to hold out, 
 will have very much to do with their milking qualities 
 as long as they live. 
 
 At the age of two or three years the milky glands 
 have not become fully developed, and their largest 
 development will depend very greatly upon the man- 
 agement after the first calf. Cows should have, 
 therefore, the most milk-producing food ; be treated 
 with constant gentleness ; never struck, or spoken 
 harshly to, but coaxed and caressed ; and in ninety-nine 
 cases out of a hundred they will grow up gentle and 
 quiet. But harshness is worse than useless. Nothing 
 does so much to dry a cow up, especially a young cow. 
 
 The longer the young cow, with her first and sec- 
 ond calf, can be made to hold out, the more surely 
 will this habit be fixed upon her. Stop milking her 
 four months before the next calf, and it will be dif- 
 ficult to make her hold out to within four or six 
 weeks of the time of calving afterwards. Induce her, 
 if possible, by moist and succulent food, and by care- 
 ful milking, to hold out even up to the time of calv- 
 ing, if you desire to milk her so long, and this habit 
 will be likely to be fixed upon her for life. But do 
 not expect to obtain the full yield of a cow the first 
 year after calving. Some of the very best cows are 
 
148 GENTLE TREATMENT. 
 
 slow to develop their best qualities ; and no cow reaches 
 her prime till the age of five or six years. 
 
 The extreme importance of care and attention to 
 these points cannot be over-estimated. The wild cows 
 grazing on the plains of South America are said to give 
 only about three or four quarts a day at the height of 
 the flow ; and many an owner of large herds in Texas, it 
 is said, has too little milk for family use, and sometimes 
 receives his supply of butter from the New York 
 market. There is, therefore, a constant tendency to dry 
 up in milch cows ; and it must be guarded against with 
 special care, till the habit of yielding a large quantity, 
 and yielding it long, becomes fixed in the young animal, 
 when, with proper care, it may easily be kept up. 
 
 If gentle and mild treatment is observed and perse- 
 vered in, the operation of milking appears to be one of 
 pleasure to the animal, as it undoubtedly is ; but if an 
 opposite course is pursued, if, at every restless move- 
 ment, caused, perhaps, by pressing a sore teat, the animal 
 is harshly spoken to, she will be likely to learn to kick 
 as a habit, and it will be difficult to overcome it ever 
 afterwards. To induce quiet and readiness to give 
 down the milk freely, it is better that the cow should 
 be fed at milking-time with cut feed, or roots, placed 
 within her easy reach. 
 
 I have never practised milking more than twice a 
 day, because in spring and summer other farm-work 
 was too pressing to allow of it; but there is no doubt 
 that, for some weeks after calving, and in the height 
 of the flow, the cows ought, if possible, to be milked 
 regularly three times a day at early morning, noon, and 
 night. Every practical dairyman knows that cows thus 
 milked give a larger quantity of milk than if milked 
 only twice, though it may not be quite so rich ; and in 
 young cows, no doubt, it has a tendency to promote the 
 
DAIRY-MAIDS. WARM BARN. 149 
 
 development of the udder and milk-veins. A frequent 
 milking stimulates an increased secretion, therefore, and 
 ought never to be neglected in the milk-dairy, either 
 in the case of young cows or very large milkers, at the 
 height of the flow, which will ordinarily be for two or 
 three months after calving. 
 
 The charge of this branch of the dairy should gen- 
 erally be intrusted to women. They are more gentle 
 and winning than men. The same person should milk 
 the same cow regularly, and not change from one to 
 another, unless there are special reasons for it. 
 
 There being a wide difference in the quality as well 
 as in the quantity of milk of different cows, no dairy- 
 man should neglect to test the milk of each new addi- 
 tion to his dairy stock, whether it be an animal of his 
 own raising or one brought from abroad. A lactometer 
 is a very convenient instrument here ; but any one can 
 set the milk of each cow separately at first, and give it 
 a fair and full trial, when the difference will be found 
 to be great. Economy will dictate that the cows 
 least adapted to the purpose should be disposed of, and 
 their place supplied by better ones. 
 
 THE BARN. The management of dairy stock requires 
 a warm and well-ventilated barn or cow-room, in latitudes 
 where it becomes necessary to stall-feed during several 
 months of the year. This should be arranged in a 
 manner suitable to keeping hay and other fodder dry 
 and sweet, and with reference to the comfort and health 
 of animals, and the economy of labor and manure. The 
 size and finish will, of course, depend on the wants and 
 means of the farmer or dairyman ; but many little con- 
 veniences can be added at trifling cost. 
 
 The cow-room, Fig. 56, is given as an illustration 
 merely of a convenient arrangement for a medium-sized 
 dairy, and not as adapted to all circumstances or situ- 
 
150 DESCRIPTION OF PLAN. 
 
 ations. The barn stands, we will suppose, upon a side 
 hill, or an inclined surface, where it is easy to have a 
 cellar, if it is desired ; and the cow-room, as shown in 
 the figure, is in the second story, or directly over the 
 cellar, the bottom of which should be somewhat dished, 
 or lower in the middle than around the outer sides, and 
 carefully paved or laid in cement. 
 
 The cow-room, as shown in the figure, is drawn on a 
 scale of twenty feet to the inch. On the outside is 
 represented an open shed, m, for carts and wagons to 
 remain under cover, thirty feet by fifteen, while 1 1 II II 
 are bins for vegetables, to be filled through scuttles from 
 the floor of the story above, and surrounded by solid 
 walls. The area of this whole floor equals one hundred 
 feet by fifty-seven. &, open, space, and nearly on a 
 level with the cow-chamber, through the door p. s, 
 stairs to third story and to the cellar, d d d, passage 
 next to the walls, five feet wide, and nine inches above 
 the dung-pit, e e e, dung-pit, two feet wide, and seven 
 inches below the floor where the cattle stand. The 
 manure drops from this pit into the cellar below, five 
 feet from the walls, and quite round the cellar, c c c, 
 plank floor for cows, four feet six inches long, b b b, 
 stalls for three yoke of oxen, on a platform five feet six 
 inches long, n n, calf-pens, which may be used also 
 for cows in calving, r r, feeding-troughs for calves. 
 The feeding-boxes are made in the form of trays, with 
 partitions between them. Water comes in by a pipe, 
 to cistern a. This cistern is regulated by a cock and 
 ball, and the water flows by dotted lines, o o o, to the 
 boxes, and each box is connected by lead pipes well 
 secured from frost, so that, if desired, each animal can 
 be watered without leaving the stall, or water can be 
 kept constantly before it. A scuttle by which sweep- 
 ings, etc., may be put through into the cellar, is seen 
 
PLAN OF COW- ROOM, 
 
 151 
 
 3- 
 
 J- 
 
 t 
 
 " T t 3 l T 
 
 si 
 
 P 
 
 1 
 
 JS 
 
 D c, 
 
 t 
 
 *C 
 
 irmTirr ." 
 
 -i 
 
 r 
 
 - 
 
 ^i 
 H 
 =r 
 
 at/, g is a bin receiving cut hay from third story, or 
 hay-room, h h h h h h, bins for grain-feed, i is a tunnel 
 to conduct manure or muck from the hay-floor to the 
 cellar, jj, sliding doors on wheels. The cows all face 
 towards the open area in the centre. 
 
152 DESCRIPTION OF PLAN. 
 
 This cow-room may be furnished with a thermom- 
 eter, clock, etc., and should always be well ventilated 
 by sliding windows, which at the same time admit the 
 light. 
 
 Fig. 67. 
 
 Fig. 57 is a transverse section of the cow-room, Fig. 
 56, a being a walk behind the cows, five feet wide ; 
 b, dung-pit ; c, cattle-stand ; d, feeding-trough, with a 
 bottom on a level with the platform where the cattle 
 stand ; k, open area, forty-three feet by fifty-six. 
 
 The story above the cow-room, Fig. 58, is one hun- 
 dred feet by forty-two, the bays for hay, ten on each 
 side, being ten feet front and fifteen feet deep, and the 
 open space, p, for the entrance of wagons, carts, etc., 
 twelve feet wide. b, hay-scales, c, scale-beam, m mm 
 m mm, ladders reaching almost to the roof. Ill, &c., 
 scuttle-holes for sending vegetables direct to the bins, 
 III, etc., below, a a b b, rooms on the corners for 
 storage, d, scuttles, four of which are used for straw, 
 one for cut hay, and one for muck for the cellar, n 
 and the other small squares are eighteen-feet posts. /, 
 passage to the tool-house, a room one hundred feet 
 long by fifteen wide, o, stairs leading to the scaffold in 
 the roof of the tool-house, i i, benches, g, floor, h. 
 boxes for hoes, shovels, spades, picks, iron bars, old 
 iron, etc. jjj, bins for fruit. &, scuttles to put apples 
 into wagons, etc., in the shed below. One side of 
 this tool-house may be used for ploughs and large 
 implements, hay-rigging, harrows, etc. 
 
PLAN OF BARN FLOOR 
 
 153 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 D3 
 
 Proper ventilation of the cellar and the cow-room 
 avoids the objection that the hay is liable to injury 
 from noxious gases. 
 
154 THE BARN-CELLAR. 
 
 The excellent manure-cellar beneath this barn extends 
 only under the cow-room. It has a drive-way through 
 doors on each side. No barn-cellar should be kept shut 
 up tight, even in cold weather. The gases are con- 
 stantly escaping from the manure, unless held by absorb- 
 ents, and are liable not only to affect the health of the 
 stock, but to injure the quality of the hay. To prevent 
 this, and yet secure the important advantages of a ma- 
 nure-cellar, the barn may be furnished with good-sized 
 ventilators on the top, for every twenty-five feet of its 
 length, and with wooden tubes leading from the cellar 
 to the top. 
 
 There should also be windows on different sides of 
 the cellar, to admit a free circulation of air. With these 
 precautions, together with the use of absorbents in the 
 shape of loam and muck, there will be no danger of 
 rotting the timbers of the barn, or of risking the health 
 of the cattle or the quality of the hay. 
 
 The temperature at which the cow-room should be 
 kept is somewhere from 50 to 60, Fahr. The practice 
 and the opinions of successful dairymen differ on this 
 point. Too great heat would affect the health and appe- 
 tite of the herd, while too low a temperature is equally 
 objectionable, for various reasons. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE RAISING OP CALVES. 
 
 IT has been found in practice that calves properly 
 bred and raised on the farm have a far greater intrinsic 
 value for that farm, other things being equal, than any 
 that can be procured elsewhere, while on the manner 
 in which they are raised will depend much of their 
 future usefulness and profit. These considerations 
 should have their proper weight in the decision as to 
 whether a promising calf from a good cow and bull 
 shall be kept or sold to the butcher. But, rather than 
 raise a calf at hap-hazard, and simply because its 
 dam was celebrated as a milker, the judicious farmer 
 will judge of the peculiar characteristics of the animal 
 itself. This will often save a great and useless outlay 
 which has sometimes been incurred in raising calves 
 for dairy purposes, that a more careful examination 
 would have rejected as unpromising. 
 
 The method of judging stock developed in a former 
 chapter is of practical use here, and it is safer to rely 
 upon it, to some extent, particularly when other appear- 
 ances concur, than to go on blindly. The milk-mirror 
 on the calf is small, but no smaller in proportion to its 
 size than that of the cow ; while its shape and form can 
 generally be distinctly seen, particularly at the end of 
 ten or twelve weeks. The development of the udder, 
 and other peculiarities, will give some indication of the 
 
156 RAISING CALVES. LOCAL PRACTICES. 
 
 future capacities of the animal, and these should be 
 studied. 
 
 If we except the manure of young stock, the calf is 
 the first product of the cow, and as such demands our 
 attention, whether it is to be raised or hurried off to 
 the shambles. The practice adopted in raising calves 
 differs widely in different sections of the country, being 
 governed very much by local circumstances, as the 
 vicinity of a milk-market, the value of milk for the 
 dair} r , the object of breeding, whether mainly for beef, 
 for work, or for the dairy, etc. ; but, in general, it may 
 be said that, within the range of thirty or forty miles 
 of good veal-markets, which large towns furnish, com- 
 paratively few are raised at all. Most of them are 
 fatted and sold at ages varying from three to eight or 
 ten weeks ; and in milk-dairies still nearer large towns 
 and cities they are often hurried off at one or two 
 days, or, at most, a week old. In both of these cases, 
 as long as the calf is kept it is generally allowed to 
 suckle the cow, and, as the treatment is very simple, there 
 is nothing which particularly calls for remark, unless 
 it be to condemn the practice entirely, on the ground 
 that there is a more profitable way even for fattening 
 calves for the butcher, and to say that allowing the calf 
 to suck the cow at all is objectionable on the score of 
 economy, except in cases where it is rendered neces- 
 sary by the hard and swollen condition of the udder. 
 
 If the calf is so soon to be taken away, I should pre- 
 fer not to suffer the cow to become attached to it at 
 all, since she is apt to withhold her milk when it is 
 removed, and a loss is sustained. The farmer will be 
 governed by the question of profit, whatever course it 
 is proposed to adopt. In raising blood stock, however, 
 or in raising beef cattle, without any regard to economy 
 of milk, the system of suckling the calves, or letting 
 
BRINGING UP BY HAND. 157 
 
 them run with the cow, may and will be adopted, since 
 it is usually attended with somewhat less labor. 
 
 The other course, which is regarded as the best where 
 the calf is to be raised for the dairy, is to bring it up 
 by hand. This is done almost universally in all coun- 
 tries where the raising of dairy cows is best understood, 
 in Switzerland, Holland, some parts of Germany, and 
 England. It requires rather more care, on the whole ; 
 but it is decidedly preferable, since the calves cost less, 
 as the food can be easily modified, and the growth is 
 not checked, as it is apt to be when the calf is finally 
 taken off from the cow. I speak, of course, of sections 
 where the milk of the cow is of some account for the 
 dairy, and where it is too valuable to be devoted entirely 
 to nourishing the calf. In this case, as soon as the calf 
 is dropped the cow is allowed to lick off the slimy moist- 
 ure till it is dry, which she will usually do from instinct, 
 or, if not, a slight sprinkling of salt over the body of the 
 calf will immediately tempt her. The calf is left to suck 
 once or twice, which it will do as soon as it is able to 
 stand. It should, in all cases, be permitted to have the 
 first milk that comes from the cow, which is of a turbid, 
 yellowish color, unfit for any of the purposes of the 
 dairy, but somewhat purgative or medicinal, and admir- 
 ably and wisely designed by nature to free the bowels 
 and intestines of the new-born animal from the mucous, 
 excrementitious matter always existing in them after 
 birth. Too much of this new milk may, however, be 
 hurtful even to the new-born calf, while it should never 
 be given at all to older calves. The best course, it 
 soems to me, and I speak from considerable experi- 
 ence, and much observation and inquiry of others, is to 
 milk the cow dry immediately after the calf has sucked 
 once, especially if the udder is painfully distended, 
 which is often the case, and to leave the calf with the 
 14 
 
158 A THRIFTY START. 
 
 cow during one day, and after that to feed it by putting 
 the fingers into its mouth, and gently bringing its 
 muzzle down to the milk in a pail or trough, when it 
 will imbibe in sucking the fingers. I have never found 
 much difficulty in teaching the calf to drink when taken 
 so young, though some take to it much more readily 
 than others. What the calf does not need should be 
 given to the cow. Some, however, prefer to milk 
 immediately after calving; and if the udder is over- 
 loaded this may be* the best course, though the better 
 practice seems to be to leave the cow as quietly to her- 
 self as possible for a few hours. The less she is dis- 
 turbed, as a general thing, the better. The after-birth 
 should be taken from her immediately after it is 
 dropped. It is customary to give the cow, as soon as 
 convenient, after calving, some warm and stimulating 
 drink, a little meal stirred into warm water, with a 
 part of the first milk that comes from her, seasoned 
 with a little salt. 
 
 In many cases the calf is taken from the cow imme- 
 diately, and before she has seen it, to a warm, dry pen 
 out of her sight, and there rubbed till thoroughly dry ; 
 and then, when able to stand, fed with the new milk 
 from the cow, which it should have three or four times 
 a day, regularly, for the first fortnight, whatever course 
 it is proposed to adopt afterwards. It is of the great- 
 est importance to give the young calf a thrifty start. 
 The milk, unless coming directly from the cow, should 
 be warmed. 
 
 Some object to removing the calf from the cow in this 
 way, on the ground of its apparent cruelty. But the 
 objection to letting the calf suckle the cow for several 
 days, as they do, or indeed of leaving it with the cow 
 for any length of time, is, that she invariably becomes 
 attached to it, and frets and withholds her milk when 
 
HOW THEY DO IN HOLLAND. 159 
 
 it is at last taken from her. She probably suffers a 
 great deal more, after this attachment is once formed, 
 at the removal of the object of it, than she does at its 
 being taken at once out of her sight. The cow's mem- 
 ory is far greater than many suppose ; and the loss and 
 injury sustained by removing the calf after it has been 
 allowed to suck her for a longer or shorter period is 
 never known exactly, because it is not usually known 
 how much milk the calf takes ; but it is, without doubt, 
 very considerable. If the udder is all right, there seems 
 to be no good reason for leaving the calf with the cow 
 two or three days, if it is then to be taken away. 
 
 The practice in Holland is to remove the calf from the 
 mother even before it has been licked, and to take it 
 into one corner of the barn, or into another building, 
 out of the cow's sight and hearing, put it upon soft dry 
 straw, and rub it dry with some hay or straw, when its 
 tongue and gums are slightly rubbed with salt, and the 
 mucus and saliva removed from the nostrils and lips. 
 After this has been done, the calf is made to drink the 
 milk first taken as it comes from the mother. It is 
 slightly diluted with water, if taken last from the udder ; 
 but, if the first of the milking, it is given just as it is. 
 The calf is taught to drink in the same manner as in 
 this country, by putting the fingers in its mouth and 
 bringing it down to the milk, and it soon gets so as to 
 drink alone. It is fed at first from four to six times 
 a day, or even oftener; but soon only three times, 
 at regular intervals. Its food for two or three weeks 
 is clear milk, as it comes warm and fresh from the 
 cow. This is never omitted, as the milk during the 
 most of that time possesses certain qualities which are 
 necessary to the calf, and which cannot be effectually 
 supplied by any other food. In the third or fourth 
 week the milk is skimmed, but warmed to the degree 
 
160 BEGINNING TO EAT. 
 
 of fresh milk ; though, as the calf grows a little older, 
 the milk is given cold, while less care is taken to give 
 it the milk of its own mother, that of other cows now 
 answering equally well. In some places calves are fed 
 on butter-milk at the age of two weeks and after ; but 
 the change from new milk, fresh from the cow, is made 
 gradually, some sweet skim-milk and warm water being 
 at first added to it. 
 
 At three weeks old, or thereabouts, the calf will 
 begin to eat a little sweet, fine hay, and potatoes cut 
 fine, and it very soon becomes accustomed to this food. 
 Many now begin to give linseed-meal mixed into hot 
 water, to which is added some skim-milk or butter-milk; 
 and others use a little bran cooked in hay-tea, made by 
 chopping the hay fine, and pouring on boiling hot water, 
 which is allowed to stand a while on it. An egg is fre- 
 quently broken into such a mixture. Others still at 
 this age take pains to have fresh linseed-cake, broken 
 into pieces of the size of a pigeon's-egg ; putting one 
 of these into the mouth after the meal of milk has been 
 finished, and when it is eager to suck at anything in 
 its way. It will very soon learn to eat linseed-meal. 
 A little sweet clover is put in its way at about the age 
 of three weeks, and it will soon eat that also. 
 
 In this manner the feeding is continued from the 
 fourth to the seventh week, the quantity of solid food 
 being gradually increased. In the sixth or seventh 
 week the milk is by degrees withheld, and water or 
 butter-milk used instead ; and soon after this, green 
 food may be safely given, increasing it gradually with 
 the hay to the age of ten or twelve weeks, when it will 
 do to put them upon grass alone, if the season is favor- 
 able for it. A lot as near the house as possible, where 
 they can be easily looked after and frequently visited, 
 is best. Calves should be gradually accustomed to all 
 
A CRUEL PRACTICE. 161 
 
 changes ; and even after being turned to pasture they 
 ought to be taken in if the weather is not dry and 
 warm. The want of care and attention to these little 
 details will be apparent sooner or later ; while, if the 
 farmer give his own time to these matters, he will be 
 fully paid in the rapid growth of his calves. It is espe- 
 cially necessary to see that the troughs from which 
 they are fed, if troughs are used, are kept clean and 
 sweet. 
 
 But there are some even among intelligent farmers 
 who make a practice of turning their calves out to 
 pasture at the tender age of two and three weeks, 
 and that, too, when they have sucked the cow up to 
 that time, and allow them nothing in the shape of 
 milk or tender care. I cannot but think that this is the 
 poorest possible economy, to say nothing of the cruelty 
 of such treatment. The growth of the calf is checked, 
 and the system receives a shock from so sudden a 
 change, from which it cannot soon recover. The care- 
 ful Dutch breeders bring the calves either skimmed milk 
 or butter-milk to drink several times a day after they 
 are turned to grass, which is not till the age of ten or 
 twelve weeks ; and, if the weather is chilly, the milk is 
 warmed for them. They put a trough generally under 
 a covering, where the calves may come and drink at 
 regular times. Thus they are kept tame and docile. 
 
 In the raising of calves, through all stages of their 
 growth, great care should be taken neither to starve 
 nor to over-feed. A calf should never be surfeited, and 
 never be fed so highly that it cannot be fed more highly 
 as it advances. The most important point is to keep it 
 growing thriftily without getting too fat, if it is to be 
 raised for the dairy. 
 
 Mr. Aiton, in describing the mode of rearing calves 
 in the dairy districts of Scotland, says : " They are fed on 
 14* 11 
 
162 HOW THEY DO IN SCOTLAND. 
 
 milk, with seldom any admixture ; and they are not per- 
 mitted to suckle their dams, but are taught to drink 
 milk by the hand from a dish. They are generally fed 
 on milk only for the first four, five, or six weeks, and are 
 then allowed from two to two and a half quarts of new 
 milk each meal, twice in the twenty-four hours. Soms 
 never give them any other food when young except 
 milk, lessening the quantity when the calf begins to 
 eat grass or other food, which it generally does 
 when about five weeks old, if grass can be had ; and 
 withdrawing it entirely about the seventh or eighth 
 week of the calf's age. But, if the calf is reared 
 in winter, or early in spring, before the grass rises, it 
 must be supplied with at least some milk till it is eight 
 or nine weeks old ; as a calf will not so soon learn to 
 eat hay or straw, nor fare so well on them alone as it 
 will do on pasture. Some feed their calves reared for 
 stock partly with meal mixed in the milk after the 
 third or fourth week. Others introduce gradually some 
 new whey among the milk, first mixed with meal; 
 and, when the calf gets older, they withdraw the milk, 
 and feed it on whey and porridge. Hay-tea, juices of 
 peas and beans, or pea or bean straw, linseed beaten 
 into powder, treacle, <fec., have all been sometimes used 
 to advantage in feeding calves ; but milk, when it can 
 be spared, is by far their most natural food. 
 
 " In Galloway, and other pastoral districts, where the 
 calves are allowed to suckle, the people are so much 
 wedded to their own customs as to argue that suckling is 
 much more nutritive to the calves than any other mode 
 of feeding. That suckling induces a greater secretion 
 of saliva, which, by promoting digestion, accelerates the 
 growth and fattening of the young animal, cannot be 
 doubted ; but the secretion of that fluid may likewise 
 be promoted by placing an artificial teat in the mouth 
 
FEEDING BY HAND. 163 
 
 of the calf, and giving it the milk slowly, and at the 
 natural temperature. In the dairy districts of Scot- 
 land, the dairy-maid puts one of her fingers into the 
 mouth of the calf, when it is fed, which serves the 
 purpose of a teat, and will have nearly the same effect 
 as the natural teat, in inducing the secretion of saliva. 
 If that, or an artificial teat of leather, be used, and the 
 mi.k given slowly before it is cold, the secretion of sal- 
 iva may be promoted to all the extent that can be neces- 
 sary ; besides, that secretion is not confined to the mere 
 period of eating, but, as in the human body, the saliva 
 is formed and part of it swallowed at all times. As 
 part of the saliva is sometimes seen dropping from the 
 mouths of the calves, it might be advisable to give them 
 not only an artificial teat, when fed, but to place, as is 
 frequently done, a lump of chalk before them to lick, 
 thus leading them to swallow the saliva. The chalk 
 would so far supply the want of salt, of which cattle 
 are so improperly deprived, and it would also promote 
 the formation of saliva. Indeed, calves are much dis- 
 posed to lick and suckle everything that comes within 
 their reach, which seems to be the way that nature 
 teaches them to supply their stomachs with saliva. 
 
 " But, though suckling their dams may be most advan- 
 tageous in that respect, yet it has also some disadvan- 
 tages. The cow is always more injured than the calf is 
 benefited, by that mode of feeding. She becomes so 
 fond of the calf that she does not, for a long time after, 
 yield her milk freely to the dairy-maid. The calf doos 
 not when young draw off the milk completely, and 
 when it is taken off by the hand the cow withholds 
 part of her milk ; and, whenever a cow's udder is not 
 completely emptied every time she is milked, the lactic 
 secretion is thereby diminished. 
 
 " Feeding of calves by the hand is in various other 
 
164 PATIENCE AND KINDNESS. 
 
 respects advantageous. Instead of depending on tho 
 uncertain or perhaps precarious supply of the dam, 
 which may be more at first than the young animal can 
 consume or digest, and at other times too little for its 
 supply, its food can, by hand-feeding, be regulated to 
 suit the age, appetite, and purposes for which the calf 
 is intended ; other admixtures or substitutes can be 
 introduced into the milk, and the quantity gradually 
 increased or withdrawn at pleasure. This is highly 
 necessary when the calves are reared for stock. The 
 milk is in that case diminished, and other food intro- 
 duced so gradually that the stomach of the young ani- 
 mal is not injured as it is when the food is too suddenly 
 changed. And, in the case of feeding of calves for the 
 butcher, the quantity of milk is not limited to that of 
 the dam (for no cow will allow a stranger calf to suckle 
 her), but it can be increased, or the richest or poorest 
 parts of the milk given, at pleasure. 7 ' 
 
 In these districts, where, probably, the feeding and 
 management of calves is as well and judiciously con- 
 ducted as in any other part of Britain, the farmers' 
 wives and daughters, or female domestics, have the 
 principal charge of young calves ; and they are, no 
 doubt, much better calculated for this duty than men, 
 since they are more inclined to be gentle and patient. 
 The utmost gentleness should always be observed in 
 the treatment of all stock ; but especially of milch cows, 
 and calves designed for the dairy. Persevering kind- 
 ness and patience will, almost invariably, overcome the 
 most obstinate natures; while rough and ungentle hand- 
 ling will be repaid in a quiet kind of way, perhaps, by 
 withholding the milk, which will always have a tendency 
 to dry a cow up j or, what is nearly as bad, by kicking, 
 and other modes of revenge, which often contribute to 
 the personal discomfort of the milker. The disposition 
 
GENTLE TREATMENT. HAY-TEA. 165 
 
 of the cow is greatly modified, if not, indeed, wholly 
 formed, by her treatment while young ; and therefore 
 it is best to handle calves as much as possible, and 
 make pets of them, lead them with a halter, and caress 
 them in various ways. Calves managed in this way 
 will always be docile, and suffer themselves to be 
 approached and handled both in the pasture and the 
 barn. 
 
 With respect to the use of hay-tea, often used in this 
 country, but more common abroad, where greater care 
 and attention is usually given to the details of breeding, 
 Youatt says : " At the end of three or four days, or per- 
 haps a iveek, or even a fortnight, after a calf has been 
 dropped, and the first passages have been cleansed by 
 allowing it to drink as much of the cow's milk as it feels 
 inclined for, let the quantity usually allotted for a meal 
 be mixed, consisting, for the first week, of three parts 
 milk and one part hay-tea. The only nourishing infu- 
 sion of hay is that ivhich is made from the best and siveet- 
 est hay, cut by a chaff-cutter into pieces about two inches 
 long, and put into an earthen vessel ; over this boiling 
 water should be poured, and the whole allowed to stand 
 for two hours, during which time it ought to be kept 
 carefully closed. After the first week, the proportions 
 of milk and hay-tea may be equal ; then composed of 
 two thirds of hay-tea and one of milk; and at length one 
 fourth part of milk will be sufficient. This food should 
 be given to the calf in a lukewarm state at least three, 
 if not four times a day, in quantities averaging three 
 quarts at each meal, but gradually increasing to four 
 quarts as the calf grows older. Towards the end of the 
 second month, beside the usual quantity given at each 
 meal (composed of three parts of the infusion and one 
 of milk), a small wisp or bundle of hay is to be laid 
 before the calf, which will gradually come to eat it; but, 
 
166 FIRST CALVES. RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. 
 
 if the weather is favorable, as in the month of May, the 
 beast may be turned out to graze in a fine, sweet pas- 
 ture, well sheltered from the wind and sun. This diet 
 may be continued until towards the latter end of the 
 third month, when, if the calf grazes heartily, each meal 
 may be reduced to less than a quart of milk, with hay- 
 water ; or skimmed milk or fresh butter-milk may be 
 substituted for new milk. At the expiration of the 
 third month the animal will hardly require to be fed by 
 hand, though, if this should still be necessary, one quart 
 of the infusion given daily, and which during the sum- 
 mer need not be warmed, will be sufficient." The hay- 
 tea should be made fresh every two days, as it soon 
 loses its nutritious quality. 
 
 This and other preparations are given not because 
 they are better than milk, than which nothing is better 
 adapted to fatten a calf, or promote its growth, but sim- 
 ply to economize by providing the most suitable and 
 cheaper substitutes. Experience shows that the first 
 two or three calves are smaller than those that follow ; 
 and hence, unless they are pure-bred, and to be kept for 
 the blood, they are not generally thought to be so desir- 
 able to raise for the dairy as the third or fourth, and 
 those that come after, up to the age of nine or ten 
 years. On this point opinions differ. 
 
 According to the comparative experiments of a Ger- 
 man agriculturist, cows which as calves had been 
 allowed to suckle their dams from two to four weeks 
 brought calves which weighed only from thirty-five to 
 forty-eight pounds ; while others, which, as calves, had 
 been allowed to suckle from five to eight weeks, 
 brought calves weighing from sixty to eighty pounds. 
 It is difficult to see how there can be so great a differ- 
 ence, if, indeed, there is any ; but it may be worthy of 
 careful observation and experiment, and as such it is 
 
AFTER-FEEDING. 167 
 
 stated in this connection. The increased size of the 
 calf would be due to the larger size to which the cow 
 would attain ; and if as a calf she were allowed to run 
 with her dam in the pasture four or five months, taking 
 all the milk she wanted, she would doubtless be kept 
 growing on in a thriving condition. But taking a calf 
 from the cow at four or even eight weeks must check 
 its growth to some extent, and this may be avoided by 
 feeding liberally, and bringing up by hand. 
 
 After the calf is fully weaned, there is nothing very 
 peculiar in the general management. A young animal 
 will require for the first few months say up to the 
 age of six months an average of five or six pounds 
 daily of good hay, or its equivalent. At the age of six 
 months it will require from four and a half to five 
 pounds, and at the end of the year from three and a 
 half to four pounds of good hay, or its equivalent, for 
 every one hundred pounds of its live weight ; or, in 
 other words, about three and a half or four per cent, of 
 its live weight. At two years old it will require three 
 and a half, and some months later three per cent, of 
 its live weight daily in good hay or its equivalent. In- 
 dian-corn fodder, either green or cured, forms an excel- 
 lent and wholesome food at this age. 
 
 The heifer should not be pampered, nor yet poorly 
 fed or half starved, so as to receive a check in her 
 growth. An abundant supply of good healthy dairy 
 food and drink will do all that is necessary up to the 
 time of having her first calf, which should not ordinarily 
 be till the age of three years, though some choose to 
 allow them to come in at two or a little over, on the 
 ground that it early stimulates the secretion of milk, 
 and that this will increase the milking propensity 
 through life. This is undoubtedly the case, as a gen- 
 eral rule; but I think greater injury is done by checking 
 
168 A SURPRISE. SUCCULENT FOOD. 
 
 the growth, unless the heifer has been fed up to large 
 size and full development from the start, in which case 
 she may perhaps take the bull at fifteen or eighteen 
 months without injury. I have had several come in as 
 early as two years, and one at less than twenty months. 
 This last was not by design, however, and I would 
 rather have given a considerable sum than had it hap- 
 pen, as she was an exceedingly beautiful pure-bred Jer- 
 sey, and I was desirous to have her attain to good size 
 and growth. Even if a heifer comes in at two years, it 
 is generally thought desirable to let her run farrow for 
 the following year, which will promote her growth and 
 more perfect development. 
 
 The feeding which young stock often get is not such 
 as is calculated to make good-sized or valuable cattle of 
 them. They are often fed on the poorest of hay or 
 straw through the winter, not unfrequently left exposed 
 to cold, unprotected and unhoused, and thus stinted in 
 their growth. This seems to me to be the very worst 
 economy, or rather no economy at all. Properly viewed, 
 it is an extravagant wastefulness which no farmer can 
 afford. No animal develops its good points under such 
 treatment ; and if the starving system is to be followed 
 at all, it had better be after the age of two or three 
 years, when the animal's constitution has attained 
 strength and vigor to resist ill treatment. 
 
 To raise up first-rate milkers, it is absolutely neces- 
 sary to feed on dairy food even while young. No 
 matter how fine the breed is, if the calf is raised on 
 poor, short feed, it will never be so good a milker as if 
 raised on better keeping; and hence, in dairy dis- 
 tricts, where calves are raised at all, they ought to be 
 allowed the best pasture during the summer, and good 
 sweet and wholesome food during the winter. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 CULTURE OF GRASSES AND OTHER PLANTS REC- 
 OMMENDED FOR FODDER. 
 
 As already stated, the grasses in summer, and hay in 
 winter, form the most natural and important food for 
 milch cows ; and, whatever other crops come in as ad- 
 ditional, these will form the basis of all systems of 
 feeding. 
 
 The nutritive qualities of the grasses differ widely ; 
 and their value as feed for cows will depend, to a con- 
 siderable extent, on the management of pastures and 
 mowing-lands. 
 
 If the turf of an old pasture is carefully examined, it 
 will be found to contain a large variety of grasses and 
 plants adapted for forage ; some of them valuable for 
 one purpose, and some for another. Some of them, 
 though possessing a lower percentage of nutritive 
 constituents than others, are particularly esteemed for 
 an early and luxuriant growth, furnishing a sweet feed 
 in early spring, before other grasses appear ; some of 
 them, for starting more rapidly than others, after being 
 eaten off by cattle, and consequently of great value as 
 pasture grasses. Most grasses will be found to be of a 
 social character, and to do best in a large mixture with 
 other varieties. 
 
 In forming a mixture for pasture grasses, the pecu- 
 liarities of each species should, therefore, be regarded : 
 15 
 
170 CULTIVATED GRASSES. TIMOTHY/ 
 
 as the time of flowering, the habits of growth, the soil 
 and location on which it grows best, and other charac- 
 teristics. Among the grasses found on cultivated 
 lands, in this country, the following are considered as 
 among the most valuable for ordinary farm cultivation; 
 some of them adapted to pastures, and others almost 
 exclusively to mowing and the hay crop : Timothy 
 (Phleum pratense). Meadow Foxtail (Alopecurus pra- 
 tensis). June, or Kentucky Blue Grass (Poa pratensis). 
 Fowl meadow (Poa serotina). Rough-stalked Meadow 
 (Poa trivialis). Orchard Grass (Dactylis glomerata). 
 Perennial Rye Grass (Lolium perenne). Italian Rye 
 Grass (Lolium italicum). Redtop (Agrostis vulgaris). 
 English Bent (Agrostis alba). Meadow Fescue (Fes- 
 tuca pratensis). Tall Oat Grass (Arrhenatherum aven- 
 aceum). gweet-scented Yernal (Anthoxanthemum odor- 
 atum). Hungarian Grass (Panicum Germanicum). 
 Red Clover (Trifolium pratense). White or Dutch 
 Clover (Trifolium repens), and some others. 
 
 Of these, the most valuable, all things considered, is the 
 first, or Timothy (Fig. 56). It forms a large proportion 
 of what is commonly called English, or in some sections 
 meadow hay, though it originated and was first culti- 
 vated in this country. It contains a large percentage 
 of nutritive matter, in comparison with other agricul- 
 tural grasses. It thrives best on moist, peaty, or loamy 
 soils, of medium tenacity, and is not well suited to very 
 light, sandy lands. On very moist soils its root is 
 almost always fibrous ; while on dry and loamy ones it is 
 bulbous. On soils of the former description, which it 
 especially affects, its growth is rapid, and its yield of 
 hay large, sometimes amounting to three and four tons 
 to the acre, depending much, of course, on cultivation. 
 But, though very valuable for hay, it is not adapted to 
 pastures, as it will neither endure severe grazing, nor 
 
TIMOTHY. JUNE GRASS. 
 
 171 
 
 Fig. 56. Timothy grass. Fig. 57. June grass. 
 
 is its aftermath to be compared with meadow foxtail, 
 and some of the other grasses. 
 
172 JUNE GRASS. MEADOW FOXTAIL. 
 
 JUNE GRASS (Fig. 57), better known in some sections aa 
 Kentucky Blue grass, is very common in most sections 
 of the country, especially on limestone lands, forming a 
 large part of the turf, wherever it flourishes, and being 
 universally esteemed as a pasture grass. It starts early, 
 but varies much in size and appearance, according to 
 the soil; growing in some places with the utmost luxuri- 
 ance, and forming the predominant grass ; in others, 
 yielding to the other species. If cut at the time of 
 flowering, or a few days after, it makes a good and 
 nutritive hay, though it is surpassed in nutritive quali- 
 ties by several of the other grasses. It starts slowly 
 after being cut, especially if not cut very early. But 
 its herbage is fine and uniform, and admirably adapted 
 to lawns, growing well in almost all soils, though it does 
 not endure very severe droughts. It withstands, how- 
 ever, the frosts of winter better than most other grasses. 
 
 In Kentucky, a section where it attains its high- 
 est perfection and luxuriance, ripening its seed about 
 the 10th of June, and in latitudes south of that, it some- 
 times continues green through the mild winters. It 
 requires three or four years to become well set, after 
 sowing, and it does not attain its highest yield as a pas- 
 ture grass till the sod is even older than that. It is 
 not, therefore, suited to alternate husbandry, where 
 land usually remains in grass but two or three years 
 before being ploughed up. In Kentucky it is sown 
 any time in winter when the snow is on the ground 
 three or four quarts of seed being used to the acre. 
 In spring the seeds germinate, when the sprouts are 
 exceedingly fine and delicate. Stock is not allowed on 
 it the first year. 
 
 The MEADOW FOXTAIL (Fig. 58) is also an excellent pas- 
 ture grass. It somewhat resembles Timothy, but is ear- 
 lier, has a softer spike, and thrives on all soils except the 
 
PASTURE GRASSES. 
 
 173 
 
 Fig. 58. Meadow Foxtail. Fig. 59. Orchard grasa. 
 
 dryest. Its growth is rapid, and it is greatly relished by 
 stock of all kinds. Its stalk and leaves are too few and 
 light for a field crop, and it shrinks too much in curing to 
 
174 ORCHARD GRASS. QUALITIES. 
 
 be valuable for hay. It flourishes best in a rich, moist, 
 and rather strong soil, sending up a luxuriant aftermath 
 when cut or grazed off, which is much more valuable, 
 both in quantity and nutritive value, than the first crop. 
 In all lands designed for permanent pasture, therefore, 
 it should form a considerable part of a mixture. It will 
 endure almost any amount of forcing, by liquid manures, 
 or irrigation. It requires three or four years, after 
 sowing, to gain a firm footing in the soil. The seed is 
 covered with the soft and woolly husks of the flower, 
 and is consequently light ; weighing but five pounds to 
 the bushel, and containing seventy-six thousand seeds to 
 the ounce. 
 
 The ORCHARD GRASS, or ROUGH COCKSFOOT (Fig. 59), for 
 pastures, stands preeminent. This is a native of this coun- 
 try, and was introduced into England, from Virginia, in 
 1764, since which time its cultivation has extended into 
 every country of Europe, where it is universally held 
 in very high estimation. The fact of its being very palata- 
 ble to stock of all kinds, its rapidity of growth, and the 
 luxuriance of its aftermath, with its power of enduring 
 the cropping of cattle, have given it a very high reputa- 
 tion, especially as a pasture grass. It blossoms earlier 
 than Timothy; when green is equally relished by milch 
 cows ; requires to be fed closer, to prevent its forming 
 tufts and growing up to seed, when it becomes hard and 
 wiry, and loses much of its nutritive quality. As it 
 blossoms about the same time, it forms an admirable 
 mixture with red clover, either for permanent pasture 
 or mowing. It resists drought, and is less exhausting 
 to the soil than either rye grass or Timothy. The 
 seed weighs twelve pounds to the bushel, and when 
 sown alone requires about two bushels to the acre. 
 
 The ROUGH-STALKED MEADOW GRASS (Fig. 60) is some- 
 what less common than June grass, but is considered as 
 
Y 
 
 ROUGH-STALKED MEADOW GRASS. 175 
 
 Fig. 60. Rough-stalked Meadow grass. Fig. 61. Rye grass. 
 
 equally valuable. It grows best on moist, sheltered mead- 
 ows, where it flowers in June and July. It is easily dis- 
 
176 FOWL MEADOW. 
 
 tinguished from June grass, by having a rough sheath, 
 while the latter has a smooth one, and by having a fibrous 
 root, while the root of June grass is creeping. It 
 possesses very considerable nutritive qualities, and 
 comes to perfection at a desirable time j is exceed- 
 ingly relished by cattle, horses, and sheap. For suitable 
 soils it should form a portion of a mixture of seeds, pro- 
 ducing, in mixture with other grasses which serve to 
 shelter it, a large yield of hay, far above the average of 
 grass usually grown on a similar soil. It should be cut 
 when the seed is formed. Seven pounds of seed to 
 the acre will produce a good sward. The grass loses 
 about seventy per cent, of its weight in drying. The 
 nutritive qualities of its aftermath exceed very consid- 
 erably those of the crop cut in the flower or in the 
 seed. 
 
 FOWL MEADOW GRASS is another indigenous species, 
 of great value for low and marshy grounds, where it 
 flourishes best ; and, if cut and properly cured, makes 
 a sweet and nutritious hay, which, from its fineness, is 
 eaten by cows without waste. According to Sinclair, 
 who experimented, with the aid of Sir Humphrey Davy, 
 to ascertain its comparative nutritive properties, it is 
 superior, in this respect, to either meadow foxtail, 
 orchard grass, or tall meadow oat grass ; but it is 
 probable that he somewhat overrates it. If allowed to 
 stand till nearly ripe, it falls down, but sends up innu- 
 merable flowering stems from the joints, so that it con- 
 tinues green and luxuriant till late in the season. It 
 thrives best in mixture with other grasses, and deserves 
 a prominent place in all mixtures for rich, moist pastures,, 
 and low mowing-lands. 
 
 RYE GRASS (Fig. 61) has a far higher reputation abroad 
 than in this country, and probably with reason ; for it is 
 better adapted to a wet and uncertain climate than to a 
 
ITALIAN RYE GRASS. REDTOP. 177 
 
 dry and hot one. It varies exceedingly, depending much 
 on soil and culture ; but, when cut in the blossom to 
 make into hay, it possesses very considerable nutritive 
 power. If allowed to get too ripe, it is hard and wiry, 
 and not relished by cows. The change from a juicy 
 and nutritious plant to woody fibre, possessing but 
 little soluble matter, is very rapid. Properly managed, 
 however, it is a tolerably good grass, though not to be 
 compared to Timothy, or orchard grass. 
 
 ITALIAN RYE GRASS (Fig. 62) has also been cultivated to 
 considerable extent in this country, but with less satisfac- 
 tory results than are obtained from it in Europe, where it 
 endures all climates, giving better crops, both in quan- 
 tity and quality, than the perennial rye grass. It is one 
 of the greatest gluttons of all the grasses, and luxu- 
 riates in frequent irrigation with liquid manure, though 
 it is said to stand the drought very well. The soils 
 best adapted to it are rich, moist, and fertile, of medium 
 tenacity; and it is admirably adapted to the purposes of 
 soiling, as it endures repeated cutting, rapidly sending 
 up luxuriant crops. For rich soils near the barn, used 
 for the growth of crops for soiling, therefore, it may be 
 confidently used as a profitable addition to our list of 
 cultivated grasses. 
 
 REDTOP (Fig. 63) is a grass familiar to every farmer in 
 the country. It is the Herd's grass of Pennsylvania, while 
 in New York and New England it is known by a great 
 variety of names, and assumes a great variety of forms, 
 according to the soil in which it grows. It is well 
 adapted to almost every soil, though it seems to prefer 
 a moist loam. It makes a profitable crop for spending, 
 in the form of hay, though its yield is less than that of 
 Timothy. It is well suited to our permanent pastures, 
 where it should be fed close, otherwise it becomes 
 wiry and innutritious, and cattle refuse it. It stands 
 
 12 
 
178 
 
 ITALIAN EYE GRASS. 
 
 Fig. 62. Italian Rye grass. Fig. 63. Redtop. 
 
 the climate of the country as well as any other grass, 
 and so forms a valuable part of any mixture for 
 
ENGLISH BENT. MEADOW FESCUE. 179 
 
 Fig. 64. English Bent. Fig. 65. Meadow Fescue. 
 
 pastures and permanent mowing-lands ; but it is prob- 
 ably rather overrated by us. 
 
180 TALL OAT GRASS. 
 
 ENGLISH BENT (Fig. 64), known also by a great variety 
 of other names, is also largely cultivated in some sec- 
 tions. It closely resembles redtop, but may be dis- 
 tinguished from it by the roughness of the sheaths 
 when the hand is drawn from above downwards. It 
 possesses much the same qualities as redtop. 
 
 MEADOW FESCUE (Fig. 65) is one of the most common of 
 the fescue grasses, and is said to be the Randall grass of 
 Virginia. It is an excellent pasture grass, forming a 
 very considerable portion of the turf of old pastures and 
 fields ; and is more extensively propagated and diffused 
 by the fact that it ripens its seeds before most other 
 grasses are cut, and sheds them to spring up and cover 
 the ground. Its long and tender leaves are much 
 relished by cattle. It is rarely sown in this country, 
 notwithstanding its great and acknowledged value as a 
 pasture grass. If sown at all, it should be in mixture 
 with other grasses, as orchard grass, rye grass, or June 
 grass. It is of much greater value at the time of 
 flowering than when the seed is ripe. 
 
 The TALL OAT GRASS (Fig. 66) is the Ray grass of 
 France. It furnishes a luxuriant supply of foliage, 
 is valuable either for hay or for pasture, and has been 
 especially recommended for soiling purposes, on ac- 
 count of its early and luxuriant growth. It is often 
 found on the borders of fields and hedges, woods and 
 pastures, and is sometimes very plenty in mowing-lands. 
 After being mown it shoots up a very thick aftermath, 
 and on this account, partly, is regarded as nearly equal 
 for excellence to the common foxtail. 
 
 It grows spontaneously on deep, sandy soils, when 
 once naturalized. It has been cultivated to a consider- 
 able extent in this country, and is esteemed by those 
 who know it mainly for its early, rapid, and late growth, 
 
TALL OAT. SWEET VERNAL, 
 
 181 
 
 Plg.W. Tall Oat grass. 
 
 Fig. 67. Sweet-scented Vernal. 
 
 making it very well calculated as a permanent pasture 
 grass. It will succeed on tenacious clover soils. 
 16 
 
182 HUNGARIAN GRASS. 
 
 The SWEET-SCENTED YERNAL GRASS (Fig. 67) is one of 
 the earliest in spring and one of the latest in autumn ; 
 and this habit of growth is one of its chief excellences, 
 as it is neither a nutritious grass nor very palatable to 
 stock of any kind, nor does it yield a very good crop. 
 It is very common all over New England and the 
 Middle States, coming into old worn-out fields and moist 
 pastures spontaneously, and along every roadside. It 
 derives its name from its sweetness of smell when par- 
 tially wilted, or crushed in the hand,, and it is this chiefly 
 that gives the delicious fragrance to all new-mown hay. 
 It is almost the only grass that possesses a strongly- 
 marked aromatic odor, which is imparted to other 
 grasses with which it is cured. Its seed weighs eight 
 pounds to the bushel. In mixtures for permanent pas- 
 tures it may be of some value. 
 
 HUNGARIAN GRASS, or Millet (Fig. 68), is an annual forage 
 plant, introduced into France in 1815, and more recently 
 into this country. It germinates readily and withstands 
 the drought remarkably, remaining green when other 
 grasses are parched and dried up. It has numerous 
 succulent leaves, which furnish an abundance of sweet 
 fodder, greatly relished by stock of all kinds. It 
 attains its greatest luxuriance on soils of medium con- 
 sistency and richness, but does very well on light and 
 dry plains. 
 
 RED CLOVER (Fig. 69) is an artificial grass of the legu- 
 minous family, and one of the most valuable of culti- 
 vated plants for feeding to dairy cows. It flourishes 
 best on tenacious soils and stiff loams. Its growth is 
 rapid, and a few months after sowing are sufficient to 
 supply an abundant sweet and nutritious food. In the 
 climate of New England clover should be sown in the 
 spring of the year, while most of the natural grasses do 
 far better sown in the fall. It is often sown with per 
 
CLOVER. HUNGARIAN GRASS. 
 
 183 
 
 Fig. 69. Bed Clover. Fig 68. Hungarian grass. 
 
 feet success on the late snows of March or April, and 
 soon finds its way down into the soil and takes a vigor- 
 
184 MIXTURE OF GRASS-SEEDS. 
 
 cms root. It is valuable not only as a forage plant, but 
 as shading the ground, and thereby increasing its 
 fertility. 
 
 The introduction of clover among the cultivated 
 plants of the farm has done more, perhaps, for modern 
 agriculture than that of any other single plant. It has 
 now come to be considered indispensable in all good 
 dairy districts. 
 
 Fig. 70. White Clover. 
 
 WHITE CLOVER (Fig. 70), often called Honeysuckle, is 
 also widely diffused over this country, to which it is 
 undoubtedly indigenous. As a mixture in all pasture 
 grasses it holds a very high rank, as it is exceedingly 
 sweet and nutritious, and relished by stock of all kinds. 
 It grows most luxuriantly in moist grounds and moist 
 seasons, but easily accommodates itself to a great 
 variety of circumstances. 
 
 With respect to the mixtures of grass-seeds most 
 profitable for the dairy farmer, no universal rule can 
 be given, as they depend very much upon the nature 
 of the soil and the locality. The most important point 
 to be observed, and one in which we, as a body, are 
 perhaps most deficient, is to use a large number of 
 species, with smaller quantities of each than those most 
 commonly used. This is nature's rule ; for, in examin- 
 
NATURE'S RULE. 185 
 
 ing the turf of a rich old pasture, we shall find a large 
 number of different species growing together, while, if 
 we examine the turf of a field sown with only one or 
 two different species, we find a far less number of plants 
 to the square foot, even after the sod is fairly set. No 
 improvement in grass culture is more important, it 
 seems to me. I have suggested, in another place, a 
 large number of mixtures adapted to the different 
 varieties of soil and circumstance, together with the 
 reasons for the mixture in many instances. (See A 
 Practical Treatise on Grasses and Forage Plants, com- 
 prising their Natural History, Comparative Nutritive 
 Value, Methods of Cultivating, Cutting, and Curing, and 
 the Management of Grass Lands, &c. 236 pp. 8vo., with 
 illustrations.) As an instance of what I should consider 
 an improvement on our ordinary mixtures for permanent 
 pastures, I would suggest the following as likely to 
 give satisfactory results, dependent, of course, to a con- 
 siderable extent, on the nature and preparation of the 
 soil: 
 
 Meadow Foxtail, flowering in May and June, .... 2 pounds 
 Orchard Grass, " " " " " .... 6 " 
 
 Sweet-scented Vernal, 
 Meadow Fescue, 
 Redtop, 
 June Grass, 
 Italian Rye Grass, 
 Perennial Rye Grass, 
 Timothy, 
 
 " April and May, . ... 1 " 
 
 " May and June, .... 2 " 
 
 " June and July, .... 2 " 
 
 " May and June, .... 4 " 
 
 " June, 4 " 
 
 " June, 6 " 
 
 " June and July, ... 3 lt 
 
 Rough-stalked Meadow Grass, flowering in June and July, 2 ' 
 
 Perennial Clover, flowering in June, 3 " 
 
 White Clover, " May to September, . . 5-40" 
 
 For mowing-lands the mixture would, of course, be 
 somewhat changed. The meadow foxtail and sweet- 
 scented vernal would be left out entirely, and some six 
 or eight pounds added to the Timothy and red clover. 
 16* 
 
186 WHEN TO CUT GRASS FOB COWS. 
 
 The proper time to lay down lands to grass in the lati- 
 tude of New England is August or September, and no 
 grain crop should be sown with the seed. 
 
 Stiff or clayey pastures should never be over- 
 stocked, but when fed pretty close the grasses are 
 far sweeter and more nutritious than when they are 
 allowed to grow up rank and coarse ; and if, by a want 
 of sufficient feeding, they get the start of the stock, and 
 grow into rank tufts, they should be cut and removed, 
 when a fresh grass will start up, similar to the after- 
 math of mowing-lands, which will be greedily eaten. 
 Grasses for curing into hay should be cut either at the 
 time of flowering or just before, especially if designed 
 for milch cows. They are then more succulent and 
 juicy, and, if properly cured, form the sweetest food. 
 
 Grass cut in the blossom will make more milk than if 
 allowed to stand later. Cut a little before the blossom- 
 ing, it will make more than when in the blossom; and 
 the cows prefer it, which is by no means an unimportant 
 consideration, since their tastes should always be con- 
 sulted. Grass cut somewhat green, and properly cured, 
 is next to fresh, green grass in palatable and nutritive 
 qualities. And so a sensible practical farmer writes 
 me : " The time of cutting grass depends very much 
 upon the use you wish to make of it. If for working 
 oxen and horses, I would let it stand till a little out of 
 the blossom ; but if to feed out to new milch cows in 
 the winter, I would prefer to cut it very green. It is 
 then worth for the making of milk in the winter almost 
 double that cut later." Every farmer knows the milk- 
 producing properties of rowen, which is generally cut 
 before it blossoms. 
 
 No operation on the farm is of greater importance 
 to the dairyman than the cutting of his grass and 
 the manner of curing hay, and in this respect the 
 
HAY OVER-CURED. CURING CLOVER. 187 
 
 practice over the country generally is susceptible of 
 very great improvement. The chief object is to pre- 
 serve the sweetness and succulence of grass in its 
 natural state, so far as it is possible ; and this object 
 cannot be gained by exposing it too long to the scorch- 
 ing suns and the drenching rains to which we are 
 liable in this climate. We generally try to make our 
 hay too much. 
 
 As to the best modes of curing clover, my own 
 experience and observation accord with that of several 
 practical farmers, who write me as follows : " My 
 method of curing clover is this : What is mown in the 
 morning I leave in the swath, to be turned over early 
 in the afternoon. At about four o'clock, or while it is 
 still warm, I put it into small cocks with a fork, and, if 
 the weather is favorable, it may be housed on the 
 fourth or fifth day, the cocks being turned over on the 
 morning of the day it is to be carted. By so doing all 
 the heads and leaves are saved, and these are worth 
 more than the stems. This has been my method for 
 the last ten years. For new milch cows in the winter 
 I think there is nothing better. It will make them give 
 as great a flow of milk as any hay, unless it be good 
 rowen." Another says : " When the weather bids fair 
 to be good, I mow it after the dew is off, and cock it 
 up after being wilted, using the fork instead of rolling 
 with the rake, and let it remain several days, when it is 
 fit to put into the barn." And another : " I mow my 
 clover in the forenoon, and towards night of the same 
 day I take forks and pitch it into cocks and let it stand 
 till it cures. The day I cart it, I turn the cocks over, 
 so as to air the lower part. I then put it into the mow 
 with all the leaves and heads on, and it is as nice and 
 green as green tea. I think it worth for milch cows 
 and sheep as much per ton as English hay." And still 
 
188 INDIAN-CORN FODDER. 
 
 another : " I have found no better hay for farm stock 
 than good clover, cut in season. For inilch cows it is 
 much better than Timothy. The rowen crop is better 
 than any other for calves." 
 
 INDIAN CORN makes an exceedingly valuable fodder, 
 both as a means of carrying a herd of milch cows 
 through our severe droughts of summer, and as an 
 article for soiling cows kept in the stall. No dairy 
 farmer will neglect to sow an extent in proportion to 
 the number of cows he keeps. The most common 
 practice is to sow in drills from two and a half to three 
 feet apart, on land well tilled and thoroughly manured, 
 making the drills from six to ten inches wide with the 
 plough, manuring in the furrow, dropping the corn about 
 two inches apart, and covering with the hoe. In this 
 mode of culture the cultivator may be used between 
 the rows when the corn is from six to twelve inches 
 high, and unless the ground is very weedy no other 
 after culture is generally needed. The first sowing 
 usually takes place about the 20th of May, and this is 
 succeeded by other sowings at intervals of a week or 
 ten days, till July, in order to have a succession of 
 green fodder. But, if it is designed to cut it up to cure 
 for winter use, an early sowing is generally preferred, 
 in order to be able to cure it in warm weather, in 
 August or early in September. Sown in this way, 
 about three or four bushels of corn are required for an 
 acre, since, if sown thickly, the fodder is better, the 
 stalks smaller, and the waste less. 
 
 The chief difficulty in curing corn cultivated for this 
 purpose, and after the methods spoken of, arises mainly 
 from the fact that it comes at a season when the 
 weather is often colder, the days shorter, and the dews 
 heavier, than when the curing of hay takes place. Nor 
 is the curing of corn cut up green so easy and simple 
 
STOCKING. MILLET CULTURE. 189 
 
 as that of drying the stalks of Indian corn cut above 
 the ear, as in our common practice of topping. The 
 plant is then riper, less juicy, and cures more readily. 
 
 The method sometimes adopted is to cut and tie 
 into small bundles, after it is somewhat wilted, and 
 stook upon the ground, where it is allowed to stand, 
 subject to all the changes of the weather, with only the 
 protection of the stook itself. The stooks consist of 
 bunches of stalks first bound in small bundles, and are 
 made sufficiently large to prevent the wind from blow- 
 ing them over. The arms are thrown around the tops 
 to bring them together as closely as possible, when the 
 tops are broken over or twisted together, or otherwise 
 fastened, in order to make the stook " shed the rain " as 
 well as possible. In this condition they stand out till 
 sufficiently dried to put into the barn. Corn fodder is 
 very excellent for young dairy stock. 
 
 COMMON MILLET (Panicum miliaceum) is another 
 very valuable crop for fodder in soiling, or to cure for 
 winter use, but especially to feed out during our usual 
 periods of drought. Many varieties of millet are culti- 
 vated in this country, the ground being prepared and 
 treated as for oats. If designed to cut for green 
 fodder, half a bushel of seed to the acre should be used; 
 if to ripen seed, twelve quarts, sown broad-cast, about 
 the last of May or early in June. A moist loam or 
 muck is the best adapted to millet ; but I have seen 
 very great crops grown on dry upland. It is very 
 palatable and nutritious for milch cows, both green and 
 when properly cured. The curing should be very 
 much like clover, care being taken not to over-dry it. 
 For fodder, either green or cured, it is cut before 
 ripening. In this state all cattle eat it as readily as 
 green corn, and a less extent will feed them. Millet is 
 worthy of a widely-extended cultivation, particularly on 
 
190 EYE. OATS. ROOT CROPS. 
 
 dairy farms. Indian millet (Sorghum vulgar e) is another 
 cultivated variety. 
 
 RYE, as a fodder plant, is chiefly valuable for its 
 early growth in spring. It is usually sown in Septem- 
 ber or October, from the middle to the end of Sep- 
 tember being, perhaps, the most desirable time, on 
 laid previously cultivated and in good condition. If 
 designed to ripen only, a bushel of seed is required to 
 the acre, evenly sown j but, if intended for early fodder 
 in spring, two or two and a half bushels per acre of 
 seed should be used. On warm land the rye can be cut 
 green the last of April or first of May ; and care should 
 be taken to cut early, as, if allowed to advance too 
 far towards maturity, the stalk becomes hard and un- 
 palatable to cows. 
 
 OATS are also sometimes used for soiling, or for feed- 
 ing green, to eke out a scanty supply of pasture feed ; 
 and for this purpose they are valuable. They should 
 be sown on well-tilled and well-manured land, about 
 four bushels to the acre, towards the last of April or 
 first of May. If the whole crop is to be used as green 
 fodder, five bushels of seed will not be too much on 
 strong, good soil. They will be sufficiently grown to 
 cut by the first of July, or in some sections earlier, 
 depending on location. 
 
 The CHINESE SUGAR-CANE also may deserve atten- 
 tion as a fodder plant. Experiments hitherto made 
 seem to show that when properly cultivated, and cut at 
 the right time, it is a palatable and nutritious plant, 
 while many of the failures have been the result of too 
 early cutting. For a fodder crop the drill culture is 
 preferable, both on account of the larger yield obtained 
 and to prevent it from becoming too hard and stalky. 
 
 THE POTATO (Solarium tuberosum) is the first of 
 the root crops to be mentioned. This produces a large 
 
CULTURE OF THE POTATO. 191 
 
 quantity of milk, though the quality is inferior. The 
 market value of this root is, at the present time, too 
 great to allow of feeding extensively with it, even in 
 milk-dairies, where it is most valuable as food for cows; 
 still, there are locations where it may be judicious to 
 cultivate this root for dairy feed, and in all circum- 
 stances there is a -certain portion of the crop of un- 
 marketable size, which will be of value fed to milch 
 cows or swine. It should be planted in April or May, 
 but in many sections in June, on good mellow soil, first 
 thoroughly ploughed and harrowed, then furrowed three 
 feet apart, and manured in the furrows with a mixture 
 of ashes, plaster of Paris, and salt. The seed may be 
 dropped in the furrows, one foot apart, after the drill 
 system, or in hills, two and a half or three feet apart, 
 to be covered with the plough by simply turning 
 the furrows back, after which the whole should be 
 rolled with the field roller, where it can be done. 
 
 If the land is not already in good heart from 
 continued cultivation, a few loads of barn-yard manure 
 may be spread, and ploughed under by the first 
 ploughing. Used in this way, it is far less liable to 
 cause the rot than when put in the hill. If a sufficient 
 quantity of wood-ashes is not at hand, sifted coal- 
 ashes will answer the purpose, and are said to be 
 valuable as a preventive of the rot. In this way one 
 man, two boys, and a horse, can plant from three to 
 four acres a day on mellow land. I have planted 
 two acres a day on the sod, the manure being first 
 spread on the grass, a furrow made by a yoke of oxen 
 and one man, another following after and dropping, a 
 foot apart, along the outer edge of the furrow on the 
 grass. By quick work, one hand can nearly keep up 
 with the plough in dropping. When arrived at the 
 end of the piece, a back furrow is turned up to the 
 
192 CULTURE OF THE CAEROT. 
 
 potatoes, and a good ploughman will cover nearly all 
 without difficulty. On the return-furrow the man or 
 boy who dropped follows after, covering up any that 
 may be left or displaced, and smoothing off the top 
 of the back-furrows where necessary. Potatoes thus 
 planted came out as fine as I ever saw any. 
 
 The cost of cultivation in this mode, it must be 
 evident, is but trifling compared with the slower 
 method of hand-planting. The plan will require a skil- 
 ful ploughman, a quick, active lad, and a good yoke 
 of oxen, and the extent of the work will depend 
 somewhat on the state of the turf. The nutritive 
 equivalent in potatoes for one hundred pounds of good 
 hay is 3.19 pounds ; that is, it will take 319 pounds of 
 potatoes to afford the same amount of nourishment 
 as one pound of hay. The great value of roots is as a 
 change or condiment, calculated to keep the animal in 
 a healthy condition. 
 
 THE CARROT (Daucus carota) is somewhat exten- 
 sively fed, and is a valuable root for milch cows. This, 
 like the potato, has been cultivated and improved from 
 a wild plant. Carrots require a deep, warm, mellow 
 soil, thoroughly cultivated, but clean and free from 
 weed-seed. The difference between a very good profit 
 and a loss on the crop depends much on the use of 
 land and manures perfectly free from foul seeds of 
 any kind. Ashes, guano, sea-weed, ground bone, ard 
 other similar substances, or thoroughly-rotted and 
 fermented compost, will answer the purpose. 
 
 After ploughing deep, and harrowing carefully, the 
 seed should be sown with a seed-sower, in drills about 
 eighteen inches apart, at the rate of four pounds to 
 the acre, about the middle or twentieth of May. The 
 difference between sowing the fifteenth of May and the 
 tenth of June in New England is said to be nearly one 
 
ECONOMIZE LABOR. HARVESTING. 193 
 
 third in the crop on an average of years. In weeding, a 
 little wheel-hoe is invaluable, as with it a large part of 
 the labor of cultivation is saved. A skilful hand can 
 run this hoe within half an inch of the young plants 
 without injury, and go over a large space in the course 
 of a day, if the land was properly prepared in the first 
 place. 
 
 The American farmer should always plan to economize 
 labor. That is the great item of expense on the farm. 
 I do not mean that he should try to shirk or avoid work, 
 but that he should make the least amount of work 
 accomplish the largest and most profitable results. 
 Labor-saving machinery on the farm is applied not to 
 reduce the number of hours' labor, or to make the 
 owner a man of leisure, who is, generally, the unhap- 
 piest man in the world, but to enable him to accom- 
 plish the greatest results 'in the same time that he 
 would be compelled to labor to obtain smaller ones. 
 
 Carrots will continue to grow and increase in size 
 late into the fall. When ready to dig, plough around 
 as near to the outside rows as possible, turning the fur- 
 row away from the row. Then take out the carrots, 
 pulling off the tops, and throw the carrots and tops 
 into separate heaps on the ploughed furrows. In this 
 way a man and two boys can harvest and put into the 
 cellar over a hundred bushels a day. 
 
 The TURNIP (Brassica rapa) and the Swedish tur- 
 nip or ruta baga (Brassica campestris) are also largely 
 cultivated as a field crop to feed to stock ; and for this 
 purpose numberless varieties are used, furnishing a 
 great amount of succulent and nutritious food, late into 
 winter, and, if well kept, late into spring. The chief 
 objection to the turnip is that it taints the milk. This 
 may be remedied, to a considerable extent, rf not wholly, 
 by the use of salt, or salt hay, and by feeding at the 
 17 13 
 
194 CULTURE OF TURNIPS. 
 
 time of milking, or immediately after, or by steaming 
 before feeding, or putting a small quantity of the solu- 
 tion of nitre into the pail, and milking upon it. 
 
 Turnips may be sown any time in June, in rich land, 
 well mellowed by cultivation. Yery large crops are often 
 obtained sown as late as the middle of July, or first of 
 August, on an inverted sod. The Michigan or double- 
 mould-board plough leaves the land light, and in admira- 
 ble condition to harrow, and drill in turnips. A success- 
 ful root-grower last year cut two tons of hay to tho 
 acre, on the 23d of June, and after it was removed from 
 the land spread eight cords of rotten kelp to the acre, 
 and ploughed in ; after which about three cords of fine 
 old compost manure were used to the acre, which was 
 sown with ruta baga seed, in drills, three feet apart, 
 plants thinned to eight or ten inches in the drill. No 
 after cultivation was required. On the 15th of Novem- 
 ber he harvested three hundred and seventy bushels of 
 splendid roots to the acre, carefully measured off. 
 
 The nutritive equivalent of Swedish turnips as com- 
 pared with good meadow hay is 676, taking hay as a 
 standard at 100 ; that is, it would require 6.76 Ibs. of 
 turnips to furnish the same nutriment as one pound of 
 good hay; but, fed in connection with other food, as 
 hay, for instance, perhaps five pounds of turnips would 
 be about equal to one pound of hay. 
 
 The English or round turnip is usually sown broad- 
 cast after some other crop, and large and valuable re- 
 turns are often obtained. The Swede is sown in drills. 
 Both these varieties are used for the production of milk. 
 
 The chief objection to the turnip crop is that it 
 leaves many kinds of soil unfit for a succession of some 
 other crops, like Indian corn, for instance. In some 
 sections no amount of manuring appears to make corn 
 do well after turnips or ruta bagas. 
 
MANGOLDS. PARSNIPS. 195 
 
 The MANGOLD WURZEL, a variety of the Beta vuL 
 garis, is often cultivated with great success in this 
 country, and fed to cows with advantage, furnishing a 
 succulent and nutritive food in winter and spring. The 
 crop is somewhat uncertain. When it does well an 
 enormous yield is often obtained ; but it often proves a 
 failure, and is not, on the whole, quite as reliable as the 
 ruta baga, though a more valuable crop when the yield 
 is good. It is cultivated like the common beet, in moist, 
 rich soils, three pounds of seed to the acre. The leaves 
 may be stripped off, towards fall, and fed out, without 
 injury to the growth of the root. Both mangolds and 
 turnips should be cut with a root-cutter, before being 
 fed out. 
 
 The PARSNIP (Pastinaca sativa) is a very sweet and 
 nutritive article of fodder, and adds richness and flavor 
 to the milk. It is worthy of extended culture in all 
 parts of this country where dairy husbandry is pur- 
 sued. It is a biennial, easily raised on deep, rich, well- 
 cultivated and well-manured soils, often yielding enor- 
 mous crops, and possessing the advantage of withstand- 
 ing the severest winters. As an article of spring feed- 
 ing, therefore, it is exceedingly valuable. Sown in 
 April or May, it attains a large growth before winter. 
 Then, if desirable, a part of the crop may be harvested 
 for winter use, and the remainder left in the ground till 
 the frost is out, in March or April, when they can be 
 dug as wanted, and are exceedingly relished by milch 
 cows, and stock of all kinds. They make an admirable 
 feed at the time of milking, and produce the richest 
 cream, and the yellowest and finest-flavored butter, of 
 any root with which I am acquainted. The good dairy 
 farmers on the island of Jersey often feed to their 
 cows from thirty to thirty-five pounds of parsnips a 
 day, in addition to hay or grass. 
 
196 THE PARSNIP. KOHL RABI. 
 
 Both practical experiment and scientific analysis 
 prove this root to be eminently adapted to dairy stock, 
 where the richness of milk or fine-flavored butter is any 
 object. For mere milk-dairies, it is not quite so valua- 
 ble, probably, as the Swedish turnip. The culture is 
 similar to that of carrots, a rich, mellow, and deep 
 loam boing best; while it has a great advantage over the 
 carrot in being more hardy, and rather less liable to 
 injury from insects, and more nutritive. For feeding 
 and fattening stock it is eminently adapted. 
 
 To be sure of a crop, fresh seed must be had, as it 
 cannot be depended on more than one year. For this 
 reason, the largest and straightest roots should be 
 allowed to stand for seed, which, as soon as nearly ripe, 
 should be taken off and spread out to dry, and carefully 
 kept for use. For field culture the hollow-crowned 
 parsnip is the best and most profitable ; but on thin, 
 shallow soils the turnip-rooted variety should be used. 
 Parsnips may be harvested like carrots, by ploughing 
 along the rows. Let butter or cheese dairymen give 
 this crop a fair and full trial, and watch its effect on the 
 quality of the milk and butter. 
 
 The KOHL RABI (Brassica oleracea, var. caulorapa) is 
 also cultivated to a considerable extent in this country, 
 to feed to stock. It is supposed to be a hybrid between 
 the cabbage and the turnip, and is often called the cab- 
 bage-turnip, having the root of the former, with a tur- 
 nip-like or bulbous stem. The special reason for its 
 more extensive cultivation among us is its wonderful 
 indifference to droughts, in which it seems to flourish 
 best, and to bring forth the most luxuriant crops. It 
 also withstands the frosts remarkably, being a hardy 
 plant. It yields a somewhat richer quality of milk than 
 the ordinary turnip, and the crop is generally admitted 
 to be as abundant and profitable. I have seen very 
 
LINSEED AND COTTON-SEED MEAL. 197 
 
 large crops of it produced by the ordinary turnip or 
 cabbage cultivation. As in cabbage culture, it is best 
 to sow the seed in March or April, in a warm and well- 
 enriched seed-bed; from which it is transplanted in 
 May, and set out after the manner of cabbages in gar- 
 den culture. It bears transplanting better than most 
 other roots. Insects injure it less than the turnip, dry 
 weather favors it, and it keeps well through the winter. 
 For these reasons, it must be regarded as a valuable 
 addition to our list of forage plants adapted to dairy 
 farming. It grows well on stronger soils than the 
 turnip. 
 
 LINSEED MEAL is the ground cake of flax-seed, after 
 the oil is pressed out. It is very rich in fat-forming 
 principles, and given to milch cows it increases the 
 quality of butter, and keeps them in condition. Four 
 or five pounds a day are sufficient for cows in milk, and 
 this amount will effect a great saving in the cost of 
 other food, and at the same time make a very rich 
 milk. It is extensively manufactured in this country, 
 and largely exported, but is worthy of more general use 
 here. It must not be fed in too large quantities to 
 milch cows, for it would be liable to give too great a 
 tendency to fat, and thus affect the quantity of milk. 
 
 RAPE-CAKE possesses much the same qualities. It is 
 the residuum after pressing the oil from rape-seed. 
 
 COTTON-SEED MEAL is an article of comparatively 
 recent introduction. It is obtained by pressing thsj 
 seed of the cotton-plant, which extracts the oil, when 
 the cake is crushed or ground into meal, which has been 
 found to be a very valuable article for feeding stock 
 An analysis has been given on a preceding page, which 
 shows it to be equal or superior to linseed meal. Prac 
 tical experiments are needed to establish it. It is pre 
 
198 MANURES ON THE FARM. 
 
 pared chiefly in Providence, R. I., and is for sale in the 
 market at a very reasonable price. 
 
 The MANURES used in this country in the culture 
 of the plants mentioned above are mostly such as are 
 made on the farm, consisting chiefly of barn-yard com- 
 posts of various kinds, with often a large admixture of 
 peat-mud. There are few farms that do not contain 
 substances which, if properly husbanded, would add 
 very greatly to the amount of manure ordinarily made. 
 The best of the concentrated manures, which it is some- 
 times necessary to use, for want of time and labor to 
 prepare enough on the farm, is, unquestionably, Peru- 
 vian guano. The results of this, when properly ap- 
 plied, are well known and reliable, which can hardly be 
 said of any other artificial manure oifered for the farm- 
 er's notice. The chief objection to depending on man- 
 ures made off the farm is, in the first place, their great 
 expense ; and in the second, which is equally important, 
 the fact that, though they may be made valuable, and 
 produce at one time the best results, a want of care in 
 the manufacture, or designed fraud, may make them 
 almost worthless, with the impossibility of detecting 
 the imposition, without a chemical analysis, till it be- 
 comes too late, and the crop is lost. 
 
 It is, therefore, safest to rely mainly upon the home 
 manufacture of manure. The extra expense of soiling 
 cattle, saving and applying the liquid manure, and thus 
 bringing the land to a higher state of cultivation, 
 when it will be capable of keeping more stock, and of 
 furnishing more manure, would offer a surer road to suc- 
 cess than a constant outlay for concentrated fertilizers. 
 
 The various articles used for top-dressing grass lands, 
 and the management of grass arid pasture lands, have been 
 treated of in detail in the work already alluded to, on 
 the CULTURE OF GRASSES AND FORAGE PLANTS. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 MILK. 
 
 MILK, as the first and natural food of man, has been 
 used from the remotest antiquity of the human race. 
 It is produced by the females of that class of ani- 
 mals known as the mammalia, and was designed by 
 nature as the noui ishment of their young ; but the 
 richest and most abundant secretions in common use 
 are those of the cow, the camel, the mare, and the goat. 
 The use of camel's milk is confined chiefly to Africa and 
 to China, that of mares to Tartary and Siberia, and that 
 of goats to Italy and Spain. The milk of the cow is 
 universally esteemed. 
 
 Milk is an opaque fluid, generally white in color, 
 having a sweet and agreeable taste, and is composed of 
 a fatty substance, which forms butter, a caseous sub- 
 stance, which forms cheese, and a watery residuum, 
 known as serum, or whey, in cheese-making. The 
 fatty or butyraceous matter in pure milk varies usually 
 from two and a half to six and a half per cent. ; the 
 caseous or cheesy matter, from three to ten per cent. ; 
 and the serous matter, or whey, from eighty to ninety 
 per cent. 
 
 To the naked eye milk appears to be of the same 
 character and consistence throughout; but under the 
 microscope a myriad of little globules of varied forms, 
 but mostly round or ovoid, and of very unequal sizes, 
 
200 COMPOSITION OF MILK. 
 
 appear to float in the watery matter. On more minute 
 examination, these butter-globules are seen to be 
 enclosed in a thin film of caseous matter. They are so 
 minute that they filter through the finest paper. Milk 
 readily assimilates with water and other sweet and 
 unfermented liquids, though it weighs four per cent, 
 more than water. Cold condenses, heat liquefies it. 
 
 The elements of which it is composed, not being 
 similar in character or specific gravity, undergo rapid 
 changes when at rest. The oily particles, being lighter 
 than the rest, soon begin to separate from them, and 
 rise to the surface in the form of a yellowish semi-liquid 
 cream, while the greater specific gravity of the serous 
 matter, or whey, carries it to the bottom. 
 
 A high temperature very soon develops acidity, and 
 hastens the separation of the cheesy matter, or curd, 
 from the whey. And so the three principal elements 
 are easily distinguished. 
 
 But the oily or butyraceous matter, in rising to the 
 surface, brings up along with it many cheesy particles, 
 which mechanically adhere to it, and give it more or 
 less of a white instead of a yellow color ; and many 
 watery or serous particles, which make it thinner, or 
 more liquid, than it otherwise would be. If it rose up 
 free from the adhesion of the other elements, it would 
 appear in the form of pure butter, and would not need 
 to undergo the process of churning to separate it from 
 other substances. The time may come when some 
 means will be devised, either mechanical or chemical, 
 to separate the butter particles from the rest instan- 
 taneously and completely, and thus avoid the often long 
 and tedious process of churning. 
 
 The coagulation, or collecting together of the cheesy 
 particles, by which the curd becomes separated from 
 the whey, sometimes takes place so rapidly, from the 
 
CAUGHT IN THE CURD. FERMENTATION. 201 
 
 effect of great heat, or sudden changes in the atmos- 
 phere, that there is not time for the butter particles to 
 rise to the surface, and they remain mixed up with the 
 curd. 
 
 Nor does the serous or watery matter remain dis- 
 tinct or free from the mixture of particles of the cheesy 
 and buttery matters. It also holds in suspension some 
 alkaline salts and sugar of milk, to the extent of from 
 three to four per cent, of its weight. 
 
 We have, then, 
 
 Milk. 1 fr i f Buttery and cheesy residuum. 
 
 Iskimmed milk. &r of milk. 
 
 It may be stated, in other words, that milk is com- 
 posed chiefly of caseine, or curd, which gives it its 
 strength, and from which cheese is made ; a butyra- 
 ceous or oily substance, which gives it its richness ; a 
 sugar of milk, to which it owes its sweetness, and a 
 watery substance, which makes it refreshing as a beve- 
 rage ; together with traces of alkaline salts, from whence 
 are derived its flavor and medicinal properties ; and 
 that these constituents appear in proportions which 
 vary in different specimens, according to the breed 
 of the animal, the food, the length of time after parturi- 
 tion, etc. 
 
 Milk becomes sour, on standing exposed to a warm 
 atmosphere, by the change of its sugar of milk into an 
 acid known as lactic acid ; and it is owing to this sugar, 
 and the chemical changes to which it gives rise, that milk 
 is susceptible of undergoing all degrees of fermenta- 
 tion, and of being made into a fermented and palatable 
 but intoxicating liquor, which, by distillation, produces 
 pure alcohol. This liquor is extensively used in some 
 
202 MILK-WINE. THE UDDER. 
 
 countries. The arrack of the Arabs is sometimes made 
 from camel's milk. 
 
 The Tartars make most of their spirituous liquors 
 from milk ; and for this purpose they prefer mare's milk, 
 on account of its larger percentage of sugar, which 
 causes a greater and more active fermentation. The 
 liquor made from it is termed milk-wine, or khoumese. 
 It resembles beer, and has intoxicating qualities. The 
 process of manufacture is very simple. The milk, being 
 allowed first to turn sour, is then heated to the proper 
 temperature, when it begins to ferment ; and in a day in 
 summer, or two or three days in winter, the process is 
 completed, and the liquor may be kept several weeks 
 without losing its good qualities. 
 
 The admirable though complicated organization of 
 the udder and teats of the cow has already been 
 explained, in speaking of the manner of milking. But 
 it may be said, in general, that the number of stomachs 
 or powerful digestive organs of the ruminants is won- 
 derfully adapted to promote the largest secretions of 
 every kind. 
 
 The udder of the cow, the more immediate and 
 important receptacle of milk, and in which other milk- 
 vessels terminate, is divided into two sections, and each 
 of these sections is subdivided into two others, mak- 
 ing four divisions, each constituting in itself, to some 
 extent, an organ of secretion. But it is well known 
 that, as a general thing, the lateral section, comprising 
 the two hind teats, usually secretes larger quantities 
 of milk than the front section, and that its development, 
 both external and internal, is usually the greatest. 
 
 Milk is exceedingly sensitive to numerous influences, 
 many of which are not well understood. It is probably 
 true that the milk of each of the divisions of the udder 
 differs to some extent from that of the others in the 
 
FEEDING. WINTER MILK. 203 
 
 same animal ; and it is well known that the milk of dif- 
 ferent cows, fed on the same food, has marked differ- 
 ences in quality and composition. But food, no doubt, 
 has a more powerful and immediate effect than any- 
 thing else, as we should naturally suppose from the fact 
 that it goes directly to supply all the secretions of the 
 body. Feeding exclusively on dry food, for instance, 
 produces a thicker, more buttery and cheesy milk, 
 though less abundant in quantity, than feeding on moist 
 and succulent food. The former will be more nutritive 
 than the latter. 
 
 Cows in winter will usually give a milk much richer 
 in butter and less cheesy than in summer, for the 
 same reason ; while in summer their milk is richer in 
 cheese and less buttery than in winter. As already 
 intimated, the frequency of milking has its effect on the 
 quality. Milking but once a day would give a more 
 condensed and buttery milk than milking twice or 
 three times. The separation of the different constitu- 
 ents of milk begins, undoubtedly, before it leaves the 
 udder ; and hence we find that the milk first drawn from 
 the cow at a milking is far more watery than that 
 drawn later, the last drawn, commonly called the strip- 
 pings, being the richest of all, and containing from six 
 to twelve times as much butter as the first. 
 
 Many other influences affect the milk of cows, both in 
 quantity and quality, as the length of time after calving, 
 the age and health of the cow, the season of the year, 
 etc. Milk is whiter in color in winter than in summer, 
 even when the feeding is precisely the same. At 
 certain seasons the milk of the same cow is bluer than 
 at others. This is often observable in dog-days. 
 
 The specific gravity of milk is greater than that of 
 water, that of the latter being one thousand, and that 
 of the former one thousand and thirty-one on an average, 
 
204 PERCENTAGE OF CREAM. 
 
 though it varies greatly as it comes from different cows, 
 and even at different times from the same cow. A feed- 
 ing of salt given to the cow will, in a few hours, cause 
 the specific gravity of her milk to vary from one to 
 three per cent. 
 
 Milk will ordinarily produce from ten to fifteen per 
 cent, of its own volume in cream ; or, on an average, not 
 far from twelve and a half per cent. Eight quarts of 
 milk will, therefore, make about one quart of cream. 
 But the milk of cows that are fed so as to produce the 
 richest milk and butter will often very far exceed this, 
 sometimes giving over twenty per cent, of cream, and 
 in very rare instances twenty-five or twenty-six per 
 cent. The product of milk in cream is more regular 
 than the product of cream in butter. A very rich milk 
 is lighter than milk of a poor quality, for the reason 
 that cream is lighter than skim-milk. 
 
 Of the different constituents of milk, caseine is that 
 which most resembles animal matter, and hence the 
 intrinsic value of cheese as a nutritive article of food. 
 Hence, also, the nutritive qualities of skimmed milk, 
 or milk from which the cream only has been removed, 
 while the milk is still sweet. The oily or fatty parts 
 of milk furnish heat to the animal system ; but this is 
 easily supplied by other substances. 
 
 From the peculiar nature of milk, and its extreme 
 sensitiveness to external influences, the importance of 
 the utmost care in its management must be apparent : 
 and this care must begin from the moment when it 
 leaves the udder, especially if it is to be made into 
 butter. In this case it would be better, if it were con- 
 venient, to keep the different kinds of milk of the same 
 milking by itself that which comes first from the 
 udder, and that which is drawn last ; and if the first third 
 could be set by itself, and the second and the third parts 
 
DIFFERENT QUALITIES AS THEY RISE. 205 
 
 by themselves, the time required to raise the cream of 
 each part would doubtless be considerably less than it 
 is where the different elements of the milk are so inti- 
 mately mixed together in the process of milking, after 
 being once partially separated, as they are before they 
 leave the udder. 
 
 After milking, as little time as possible should elapse 
 before the milk is brought to rest in the pan. The 
 remarks of Dr. Anderson on the treatment of milk are 
 pertinent in this connection. " If milk," says he, " be 
 put into a dish and allowed to stand until it throws up 
 cream, the portion of cream rising first to the surface 
 is richer in quality and equal in quantity to that which 
 rises in a second equal space of time ; and the cream 
 which rises in a second interval of time is greater in 
 quantity and richer in quality than that which rises in a 
 third equal space of time. That of the third is greater 
 than that of the fourth, and so of the rest; the cream 
 that rises continuing progressively to decrease in 
 quantity and quality, so long as any rises to the surface. 
 
 " Thick milk always throws up a much smaller pro- 
 portion of the cream which it actually contains than 
 milk that is thinner, but the cream is of a richer qual- 
 ity ; and if water be added to that thick milk, it will 
 afford a considerably greater quantity of cream, and 
 consequently more butter, than it would have done if 
 allowed to remain pure ; but its quality at the same time 
 is greatly deteriorated. 
 
 " Milk which is put into a bucket or other proper 
 vessel, and carried in it to a considerable distance, so as 
 to be much agitated and in part cooled before it be put 
 into the milk-pans to settle for cream, never throws up 
 so much or so rich a cream as if the same milk had been 
 put into the milk-pans, without agitation, directly after it 
 was milked." 
 
 18 
 
206 TEMPERATURE OF THE BEST DAIRIES. 
 
 * 
 
 Milk as it comes from the cow is about blood-heat, 01 
 98 Fah. It should be cooled off as little as possible 
 before coming to rest. With this object in view, the 
 pails may be rinsed with hot water before milking, and 
 the distance from the place of milking to the milk-room 
 should be as short as possible ; but, even with all these 
 precautions, the fall in temperature will be considerable. 
 
 From what has already been said with regard to the 
 manner in which the cream or oily particles of the milk 
 rise to the surface, and the difficulty of rising through a 
 great space, on account of their intimate entanglement 
 with the cheesy and other matters, the importance of 
 using shallow pans must be sufficiently obvious. 
 
 To facilitate and hasten the rising of the butter 
 or oily particles, the importance of keeping the milk- 
 room at a uniform and pretty high temperature will 
 be equally obvious. The greatest density of milk is 
 at or near the temperature of 41 Fah. ; and at this point 
 the butter particles will, of course, rise with the great- 
 est difficulty and slowness, and bring up a far greater 
 amount of cheese particles than under more favorable 
 circumstances. These caseous and watery matters, as 
 has been already stated, cause the cream or the butter 
 to look white, and to ferment and become rancid. To 
 avoid this, the temperature is generally kept, in the best 
 butter-dairies, as high as from 58 to 62. Some recom- 
 mend keeping the milk at over 70, and from that to 80, 
 at which temperature the cream, they say, rises very rap- 
 idly, especially if the depth through which it has to rise 
 is but slight. But that, in the opinion of most practical 
 dairymen, is too high. 
 
 To obtain the greatest amount of cream from a given 
 quantity of milk, the depth in the pan should, it seems 
 to me, never exceed two inches. A high temperature 
 and shallow depth, as they liquefy the milk and facilitate 
 
MOIST CLIMATES. CLEANLINESS. 207 
 
 the rising of the particles, tend to secure a cream free 
 from the cheesy matter, and such cream will make a 
 quality of butter both more delicate to the taste, and 
 less likely to become rancid, than any other. 
 
 It has already been intimated, in another connection, 
 that neither the largest quantity nor the best quality 
 of milk is given by the cow till after she has had two 
 or three calves, or has arrived at the age of five or six 
 years. It may also be said, what cannot fail to have 
 attracted the attention of observing dairymen, that in 
 very dry seasons the quantity of milk yielded will gen- 
 erally be less, though the quality will be richer, than in 
 moist and mild seasons. 
 
 Hence it may be inferred that moist climates are 
 much more favorable to the production of milk than dry 
 ones ; and this also has been frequently observed and 
 admitted to be a well-known fact. From these facts it 
 may be stated that dry and warm weather increases 
 the quantity of butter, but it is also true that cooler 
 weather produces a greater amount of cheese. A state 
 of pregnancy, it is obvious, must reduce the quality of 
 the milk, and cause it to yield less cream than before. 
 
 In the treatment of milk the utmost cleanliness is es- 
 pecially requisite. The pails, the strainers, the pans, the 
 milk-room, and, in short, everything connected with the 
 dairy, must be kept neat and clean to an extent which 
 few but the very best dairy-women can appreciate. The 
 smallest portion of old milk left to sour in the strainers 
 or pans will be sure to taint them, and impart their bad 
 flavor to the new milk put into them. Every one is 
 familiar with the fact that an exceedingly small quantity 
 of yeast causes an active fermentation. The process is 
 a chemical one, and another familiar instance of it is 
 in the distillation of liquors and the brewing of beer, 
 where f he malt creates a very active fermentation. la 
 
208 ADULTERATIONS. SWILL MILK. 
 
 a similar manner the smallest particle of sour milk will 
 taint a larg % e quantity of sweet. 
 
 The milk-room should be removed from dampness, 
 and all gases which might be injurious to the milk by 
 infecting the atmosphere. If the state of the atmos- 
 phere and the temperature, as has been stated, affect it, 
 all contact with foreign substances to which it is liable 
 in careless and slovenly milking, and all air rendered 
 impure by vegetables and innumerable other things 
 kept in a house-cellar, will be much more liable to taint 
 and injure it. Milk appears to absorb odors from ob- 
 jects near it, to such an extent that a piece of catnip 
 lying near the pan has been known to impart its flavor 
 to it. 
 
 Milk, as sold in most large cities, is often adulterated 
 to a great extent, but most frequently with water. Not 
 unfrequently, too, a part of the cream is first taken off, 
 and water afterwards added ; in which case the use of 
 burnt sugar is very common for coloring the milk, the 
 blueness of which would otherwise lead to detection. 
 The adulteration of pure milk from the healthy cow by 
 water, though dishonest, and objectionable in the high- 
 est degree, is far less iniquitous in its consequences 
 than the nefarious traffic in " swill-milk," or milk pro- 
 duced from cows fed entirely on " still-slops," from 
 which they soon become diseased, after which the milk 
 contains a subtle poison, which is as difficult of detec- 
 tion by any known process of chemistry as the miasma 
 of an atmosphere tainted with yellow fever or the chol- 
 era. The simple fact is sufficiently palpable, that no 
 pure and healthy milk can be produced by an unhealthy 
 and diseased animal ; and that no animal can long remain 
 healthy that is fed on an unnatural food, and treated in 
 the manner too common around the distilleries of many 
 large cities. 
 
THE SPECIFIC-GRAVITY TEST. 209 
 
 It is evident, from the well-known influence which 
 " still-slops " and other exceedingly succulent food have 
 in increasing the amount of water in the milk, that adul-. 
 teration may be effected by means of the food, as well 
 as by addition of water to the milk itself. It is evident, 
 too, on a moment's reflection, that the specific gravity 
 of pure milk must vary exceedingly, as it comes from 
 different cows, or from the same cow at different times. 
 This variation reached to the extent of twenty-three 
 degrees in the milk of forty-two different cows, or from 
 one thousand and eight to one thousand and thirty-one ; 
 but so great a variation is very rare, and not to be 
 expected. 
 
 No reliable conclusion, as to whether a particular 
 specimen of milk has been adulterated or not, can there- 
 fore be drawn from the differences in specific gravity 
 alone. A radical difficulty attending this test arises 
 from the fact that the specific gravity both of water and 
 cream is less than that of pure milk. If, therefore, the 
 hydrometer sinks deeper into the fluid than would be 
 expected in ordinary pure milk, how is it 
 -~io P oss ibl e > unless the variation is very large, to 
 tell whether it is due to the richness of the 
 milk in cream, or to the water? I have, 
 for instance, two instruments, each labelled 
 "Lactometer," but both of which are simple 
 hydrometers (Fig. 71), or specific gravity 
 testers, one of which is graduated with the 
 water-mark and that of pure milk 20 ; the 
 water-mark of the other being 0, like the 
 first, and that of pure milk 100. Both are 
 the same in principle, the only difference 
 being in the graduation. On the former, 
 graduated for pure milk at 20, it is difficult 
 to tell with accuracy the small variations in 
 
 Fig. 71. Ig* 14 
 
210 VARIATION IN SPECIFIC GRAVITY. 
 
 the percentage of water or cream, the divisions on the 
 scale are so minute, while the latter marks them so 
 that they can be read off with greater ease and pre- 
 cision. 
 
 For the purpose of showing the difference in the spe- 
 cific gravity in different specimens of pure milk, taken 
 from the cows in the morning, and allowed to cool down 
 to about 60, I used the latter instrument with the fol- 
 lowing results : The first pint drawn from a native cow 
 stood at 101, the scale being graduated at 100 for pure 
 milk. The last pint of the same milking, being the strip- 
 pings of the same cow, stood at 86. The mixture of the 
 two pints stood at about 93. The milk of a pure-bred 
 Jersey stood at 95, that of an Ayrshire at 100, that 
 of a Hereford at 106, that of a Devon at 111, while a 
 thin cream stood at 66. All these specimens of milk 
 were pure, and milked at the same time in the morning, 
 carefully labelled in separate vessels, and set upon the 
 same shelf to cool off; and yet the variations of specific 
 gravity amounted to 25, or, taking the average quality 
 of the native cows' milk at 93, the variations amounted 
 to 17_ 10 . 
 
 But, knowing the specific gravity, at the outset, of 
 any specimen of milk, the hydrometer would show the 
 amount of water added. This cheap and simple instru- 
 ment is therefore of frequent service. 
 
 The lactometer is a very different instrument, and 
 measures the comparative richness of different speci- 
 mens of milk. It is of very great service both in the 
 butter and cheese dairy, for testing the comparative 
 value of different cows for the purposes for which they 
 are kept. This instrument is very simple and cheap 
 and the practical dairyman can tell by it what cows he 
 can best part with without detriment to his business. 
 
THE LACTOMETER. 
 
 211 
 
 No cow should be admitted to a herd kept for butter- 
 making without knowing her qualities in this respect. 
 Many would find, on examination, that some of their 
 cows, though giving a good quantity, were compara- 
 tively worthless to them. Such was the experience of 
 John Holbert, of Chemung, New York, who, in his 
 statement to the state agricultural society, says: "I 
 find, by churning the milk of each cow separately, that 
 one of my best cows will make as much butter as three 
 of my poorest, giving the same quantity of milk. I have 
 kept a dairy for twenty years, but I never until the 
 past season knew that there was so much difference in 
 cows." 
 
 Fig. 72. Lactometer. 
 
 The simplest form of the lactometer is a series of 
 graduated glass tubes (Fig. 72), or vials, of equal diam- 
 eter; generally a third of an inch inside, and about 
 eleven inches long. The tubes are filled to an equal 
 height, each one with the milk of a different cow, and 
 allowed to stand for the cream to rise. The difference 
 in thickness of the column of cream will be very per- 
 ceptible, and it will be greater than most people imag- 
 ine. The effect of different kinds of food for the pro- 
 duction of butter may be studied in the same way. 
 
212 MODES OF PRESERVING MILK. 
 
 This form of the lactometer was invented by Sir Joseph 
 Banks. 
 
 Yarious means are used for the preservation of milk. 
 One of these is by concentrating it by boiling. Where 
 this is followed, as it is by some dairymen, as a regular 
 business, the milk is poured, as it comes from the dairy, 
 into long, shallow, copper pans, and heated to a temper- 
 ature of a hundred and ten degrees, Fahrenheit. A lit- 
 tle sugar is then mixed in, and the whole body of milk 
 is kept in motion by stirring for some three or four 
 hours. The water is evaporated, leaving the milk about 
 one fourth of its original bulk. It is now put into tin 
 cans, the covers of which are soldered on, when the 
 cans are lowered into boiling water. After remaining 
 a while, they are taken out and hermetically sealed, in 
 which condition the milk will keep for months. Con- 
 centrated milk may thus be taken to sea or elsewhere. 
 Another form is that of solidified milk, in which state it 
 is easily and perfectly soluble in water ; and when so 
 dissolved with a proper proportion of water, it assumes 
 its original form of milk, and may be made into butter. 
 A statement by Dr. Doremus, in the New York Medical 
 Journal, explains the process, as follows : 
 
 To one hundred and twelve pounds of milk twenty 
 eight pounds of Stuart's white sugar were added, and a 
 trivial portion of bicarbonate of soda, a teaspoonful, 
 merely enough to insure the neutralizing of any acid- 
 ity, which, in the summer season, is exhibited even a 
 few minutes after milking, although inappreciable to 
 the organs of taste. The sweet milk was poured into 
 evaporating pans of enamelled iron, imbedded in warm 
 water heated by steam. A thermometer was immersed 
 in each of these water-baths, that, by frequent inspec- 
 tion, the temperature might not rise above the point 
 which years of experience have shown advisable. To 
 
SOLIDIFIED MILK. 213 
 
 facilitate the evaporation, by means of blowers and 
 other ingenious apparatus a current of air is established 
 between the covers of the pans and the solidifying 
 milk. Connected with the steam-engine is an arrange- 
 ment of stirrers, for agitating the milk slightly, while 
 evaporating, and so gently as not to churn it. In about 
 three hours the milk and sugar assumed a pasty con- 
 sistency, and delighted the palates of all present. By 
 constant manipulation and warming, it was reduced to 
 a rich, creamy-looking powder, then exposed to the air 
 to cool, weighed into parcels of a pound each, and by a 
 press, with the force of a ton or two, made to assume 
 the compact form of a tablet (the size of a small brick), 
 in which shape, covered with tin-foil, it is presented to 
 the public. 
 
 " Some of the solidified milk which had been grated 
 and dissolved in water the previous evening was found 
 covered with a rich cream ; this, skimmed off, was soon 
 converted into excellent butter. Another solution was 
 speedily converted into wine-whey by a treatment pre- 
 cisely similar to that employed in using ordinary milk. 
 It fully equalled the expectations of all ; so that solidi- 
 fied milk will hereafter rank among the necessary 
 appendages to the sick room. In fine, this article makes 
 paps, custards, puddings, and cakes, equal to the best 
 milk ; and one may be sure it is an unadulterated article, 
 obtained from well-pastured cattle, and not the produce 
 of distillery slops ; neither can it be watered. For our 
 steamships, our packets, for those travelling by land or 
 by sea, for hotel purposes, or use in private families, 
 for young or old, we recommend it cordially as a sub- 
 stitute for fresh milk." 
 
 A pound of this solidified milk, it is said, will make 
 five pints when dissolved in water. 
 
 Another favorite form in which milk is used is that 
 
214: HOW TO MAKE ICE-CREAM. 
 
 known as ice-cream, a cheap and healthy luxury during 
 the summer months. It is frozen in a simple machine 
 made for the purpose, in the best form of which the 
 time of the operation is from six to ten minutes. The 
 richest quality of ice-cream is made from cream, in the 
 following manner: To one quart of cream use the 
 yolks of three eggs. Put the cream over the fire till it 
 boils, during which time the eggs are beaten up with 
 half a pound of white sugar, powdered fine ; and when 
 the cream boils stir it upon the eggs and sugar, then let 
 it stand till quite cold, then add the juice of three or 
 four lemons. It is then ready to put into the freezer. 
 The heat of the cream partially cooks the eggs, and the 
 stirring must be continued to prevent their cooking too 
 much. 
 
 A somewhat simpler receipt, given by the confec- 
 tioners, is the following : To half a pound of powdered 
 sugar add the juice of three lemons. Mix the sugar and 
 lemon together, and then add one quart of cream. This 
 is less rich and delicate than the preceding, but is quite 
 rich enough for common use, and some trouble is saved. 
 
 The following receipt makes a very good ice-cream. 
 
 Two quarts of good rich milk ; four fresh eggs ; 
 three quarters of a pound of white sugar ; six teaspoons 
 of Bermuda arrow-root. Eub the arrow-root smooth 
 in a little cold milk, beat the eggs and sugar together, 
 bring the milk to the boiling point, then stir in the 
 arrow-root ; remove it then from the fire, and immedi- 
 ately add the eggs and sugar, stirring briskly, to keep 
 the eggs from cooking, then set aside to cool. If 
 flavored with extracts, let it be done just before putting 
 it in the freezer. If the vanilla bean is used, it must be 
 boiled in the milk. The preparation must be thoroughly 
 cooled before the freezing is proceeded with. 
 
 The ice-cream by this receipt may be produced at a 
 
MILK OF SPAYED COWS. 215 
 
 cost not exceeding twenty-five cents a quart, calling the 
 milk five cents a quart, and the eggs a cent apiece, and 
 including the cost of labor. It is quite equal to that 
 commonly furnished by the confectioners at seventy- 
 five cents a quart. The arrow-root may be dispensed 
 with. The freezer is a cheap and simple machine. 
 
 After the cream has frozen in the machine, it should 
 stand an hour or two to harden before it is used. 
 
 To secure a more uniform flow and a richer quality 
 of milk, cows are sometimes spayed, or castrated. The 
 milk of spayed cows is pretty uniform in quantity, 
 and this quantity will be, on an average, a little more 
 than before the operation was performed. But few 
 instances have come under my observation, and those 
 few have resulted satisfactorily, the quality of the milk 
 having been greatly improved, the yield becoming 
 regular for some years, and varying only by the differ- 
 ence in the succulence of the food. The proper time 
 for spaying is about five or six weeks after calving, or 
 at the time when the largest quantity of milk is given. 
 There seem to be some advantages in spaying for milk 
 and butter dairies, where the raising of stock is not 
 attended to. The cows are more quiet, never being 
 liable to returns of seasons of heat, which always more 
 or less affect the milk both in quantity and quality. 
 They give milk nearly uniform in these respects, for 
 several years, provided the food is uniformly succulent 
 and nutritious. Their milk is influenced like that of 
 other cows, though to less extent, by the quality and 
 quantity of food ; so that in winter, unless the animal is 
 properly attended to, the yield will decrease somewhat, 
 but will rise again as good feed returns. This uniform- 
 ity for the milk-dairy is of immense advantage. Besides, 
 the cow, when old, and inclined to dry up, takes on fat 
 
216 
 
 ANALYSES OF MILK. 
 
 with greater rapidity, and produces a juicy and tender 
 beef, superior, at the same age, to that of the ox. The 
 operation of spaying is simple, and may be performed 
 by any veterinary surgeon, without much risk of 
 injury. 
 
 The milk of the cow has often been analyzed. It was 
 found" by Haidlen to consist of 
 
 Water, 873. 
 
 Batter, ...... 30. 
 
 Caseine, 48.2 
 
 Sugar of milk, ... 43.9 
 Phosphate oflime, . . 2.31 
 
 42 
 
 Iron, 47 
 
 Chloride of Potassium, . . 1.44 
 Sodium and Soda, ... .66 
 
 looo. 
 
 But its composition, as already intimated, varies 
 exceedingly with the food of the animal, and is 
 influenced by an infinite variety of circumstances. 
 
 Skim-milk is much more watery than whole milk. It 
 was found by one analysis to contain about 97 per cent, 
 of water arid 3 per cent, of caseine. 
 
 Swill-milk, or milk from cows fed on " still-slops," in 
 New York, was found by analysis to contain less than 
 1.5 per cent, of butter, some specimens having even 
 less than one per cent. 
 
 The colostrum, or milk of the cow just after calving, 
 contains a large proportion of cheesy matter. Its 
 amount of caseine was found by careful analysis to be 
 15.1 per cent., of butter 2.6, mucous matter 2, and 
 water 80.3, there being only a trace of sugar of milk. 
 
 The measures for milk in common use in this country 
 are those used for wine and beer. The wine quart is 
 about one fifth less than the beer quart, and is that 
 most commonly used in England. It is to be regretted 
 that no uniform standard has been adopted throughout 
 the country. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 BUTTER AND THE BUTTER-DAIRY. 
 
 " Slow rolls the churn its load of clogging cream 
 At once foregoes its quality and name. 
 From knotty particles first floating wide, 
 Congealing butter 's dashed from side to side." 
 
 BUTTER, as we have seen, is the oily or fatty con- 
 stituent of all good milk, mechanically united or held in 
 suspension by the solution of caseine or cheesy matter 
 in water. It is already formed in the udder of the cow, 
 and the operations required after it leaves the udder, to 
 produce it, effect merely the separation, more or less 
 complete, of the butter from the cheese and the whey. 
 
 This being the case, it is natural to suppose that 
 butter was known at an early date. The wandering 
 tribes, accustomed to take on their journeys a supply 
 of milk in skins, would find it formed by the agitation 
 of travelling, and thus would be suggested the first 
 rude and simple process of churning. 
 
 But it is not probable that the Jews possessed a 
 knowledge of it ; and it is pretty well settled, at the 
 present time, that the passages in our English version 
 of the Old Testament in which it is used are errone- 
 ously translated, and that wherever the word butter 
 occurs the word milk, or sour, thick milk, or cream, 
 should be substituted. And so in Isaiah, " Milk and 
 honey shall he eat," instead of " butter ; " and in Job 
 (29 : 6), '< When I washed my feet in milk," instead of 
 19 
 
218 HISTORY. CREAM THAT RISES FIRST. 
 
 "butter." And the expression in Prov. (30: 33), 
 ''' Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth butter," 
 would be better translated, according to the best 
 critics, "the pressing of the milker bringeth forth 
 milk,'' or the " pressing of milk bringeth forth cheese." 
 
 In the oldest Greek writers milk and cheese are 
 spoken of, but there is no evidence that butter was 
 known to them. The Greeks obtained their knowledge 
 of it from the Scythians or the Thracians, and the 
 Romans obtained theirs from the Germans. 
 
 In the time of Christ it was used chiefly as an oint- 
 ment in the baths, arid as a medicine. In warm lati- 
 tudes, as in the southern part of Europe, even at the 
 present day, its use is comparatively limited, the deli- 
 cious oil of the olive supplying its place. 
 
 I have already stated that all good milk of the cow 
 contained butter enclosed in little round globules held 
 in suspension, or floating in the other substances. As 
 soon as the milk comes to rest after leaving the udder, 
 these round particles, being lighter than the mass of 
 cheesy and watery materials by which they are sur- 
 rounded, begin to rise and work their way to the sur- 
 face. The largest globules, being comparatively the 
 lightest, rise first, and form the first layer of cream, 
 which is the best, since it is less filled with caseine. 
 The next smaller, rising a little slower, are more 
 entangled with other substances, and bring more of 
 them to the surface ; and the smallest rise the slowest 
 and the last, and come up loaded with foreign sub- 
 stances, and produce an inferior quality of cream and 
 butter. The most delicate cream, as well as the sweet- 
 est and most fragrant butter, is that obtained by a first 
 skimming, only a few hours after the milk is set. Of 
 three skimmings, at six, twelve, and eighteen hours 
 after the milk is strained into the pan, that first obtained 
 
MILK AND WATER. 219 
 
 will make more and richer butter than the second, and 
 that next obtained richer than the third, and so on. 
 
 The last quart of milk drawn at a milking, for reasons 
 already stated, will make a more delicious and savory 
 butter than the first ; and if the last quart or two of a 
 milking is set by itself, and the first cream that rises 
 taken from it after standing only five or six hours, it 
 will produce the richest and highest-flavored butter the 
 cow is capable of giving, under like circumstances as to 
 season and feed. 
 
 The separation of the butter particles from the others 
 is slower and more difficult in proportion to the thick- 
 ness and richness of the milk. Hence in winter, on dry 
 feeding, the milk being richer and more buttery, the 
 cream or particles of butter are slower and longer in 
 rising. But, as heat liquefies milk, the difficulty is over- 
 come in part by elevating the temperature. The same 
 effect is produced by mixing a little water into the milk 
 when it is set. It aids the separation, and consequently 
 more cream will rise in the same space of time, from 
 the same amount of rich milk, with a little water in it, 
 than without. Water slightly warm, if in cold weather, 
 will produce the most perceptible effect. The quantity 
 of butter will be greater from milk treated in this way; 
 the quality, slightly deteriorated. 
 
 It must be apparent, from what has been said, that 
 butter may be produced by agitating the whole body 
 of the milk, and thus breaking up the filmy coatings of 
 the globules, as well as by letting it stand for the cream 
 to rise. This course is preferred by many practical 
 dairymen, and is the general practice in some of the 
 countries most celebrated for superior butter. 
 
 The general treatment of milk and the management 
 of cream have been already alluded to in a former chap- 
 ter. It has been seen that the first requisites to sue- 
 
220 CLEANLINESS. GOOD BUTTER. 
 
 cessful dairy husbandry are good cows, and abundant 
 and good feeding, adapted to the special object of the 
 dairy, whether it be milk, butter, or cheese ; and that, 
 with both these conditions, an absolute cleanliness in 
 every process, from the milking of the cow to bringirg 
 the butter upon the table, is indispensably necessary. 
 
 Cleanliness may, indeed, with propriety be regarded 
 as the chief requisite in the manufacture of good but- 
 ter ; for the least suspicion of a want of it turns the 
 appetite at once, while both milk and cream are so ex- 
 ceedingly sensitive to the slightest taint in the air, in 
 everything with which they come in contact, as to 
 impart the unmistakable evidence of any negligence, 
 in the taste and flavor of the butter. 
 
 It is safe to say, therefore, that good butter depends 
 more upon the manufacture than upon any other one 
 thing, and perhaps than all others put together. So im- 
 portant is this point, that a judicious writer remarks that 
 " in every district where good butter is made it is univer- 
 sally attributed to the richness of the pastures, though 
 it is a well-known fact that, take a skilful dairymaid 
 from that district into another, where good butter is not 
 usually made, and where, of course, the pastures are 
 deemed very unfavorable, she will make butter as good 
 as she used to do. And bring one from this last district 
 into the other, and she will find that she cannot make 
 better butter there than she did before, unless she takes 
 lessons from the servants, or others whom she finds 
 there ; " and a French writer very justly observes that 
 " the particular nature of Bretagne butter, whose color, 
 flavor, and consistence, are so much prized, depends 
 neither on the pasture nor on the particular species of 
 cow, but on the mode of making ; " and this will hold, 
 to a considerable extent, in every country where but- 
 ter is made. 
 
THE DAIRY-ROOM. 221 
 
 Many things, indeed, concur to produce the best re- 
 suits, and it would be useless to underrate the import- 
 ance of any ; but, with the best of cows to impart the 
 proper color and consistency to butter, the sweetest 
 feed and the purest water to secure a delicate flavor, 
 the utmost care must still be bestowed by the dairymaid 
 upon every process of manufacture, or else the best of 
 milk and cream will be spoiled, or produce an article 
 which will bring only a low price in the market, when, 
 with greater skill, it might have obtained the highest. 
 
 From what has been said of the care requisite to pre- 
 serve the milk from taint, it may be inferred that atten- 
 tion to the milk and dairy room is of no small importance. 
 In very large butter-dairies, a building is devoted ex- 
 clusively to this department. This should be at a short 
 distance from the yard, or place of milking, but no 
 further than is necessary to be removed from all impur- 
 ities in the air arising from it, and from all low, damp 
 places, subject to disagreeable exhalations. This is of 
 the utmost importance. It should be well ventilated, 
 and kept constantly clean and sweet, by the use of pure 
 water ; and especially, if milk is spilled, it should bo 
 washed up immediately, with fresh water. No matter if 
 it is but a single drop ; if allowed to soak into the floor 
 and sour, it cannot easily be removed, and it is sufficient 
 to taint the air and the milk in the room, though it may 
 not be perceptible to the senses. 
 
 In smaller dairies, economy dictates the use of a room 
 in the house ; and this, in warm climates, should be on 
 the north side, and used exclusively for this purpose. 
 I have known many to use a room in the cellar as a 
 milk-room ; but very few cellars are at all suitable. 
 Most are filled with a great variety of articles which 
 never fail to infect the air. 
 
 But, if a house-cellar is so built as to make it a suita- 
 19* 
 
222 PURE AIR. THE MILK-STAND. 
 
 ble place to set the milk, as where a large dry and airy 
 room, sufficiently isolated from the rest, can be used, a 
 greater uniformity of temperature can usually be se- 
 cured than on the floor above. The room, in this case, 
 should have a gravel or loamy bottom, uncemented, but 
 dry and porous. The soil is a powerful absorbent of 
 the noxious gases which are apt to infect the atmos- 
 phere near the bottom of the cellar. 
 
 Milk should never be set on the bottom of a cellar, if 
 the object is to raise the cream. The cream will rise in 
 time, but rarely or never so quickly or so completely as 
 on shelves from five to eight feet from the bottom, 
 around which a free circulation of pure air can be had 
 from the latticed windows. It is, perhaps, safe to say 
 that as great an amount of better cream will rise from 
 the same milk in twelve hours on suitable shelves, six 
 
 Fig. 73. Milk-stand. 
 
 feet from the bottom, as would be obtained directly on 
 the bottom of the same cellar in twenty-four hours. 
 
THE PANS. THE SKIMMER. 223 
 
 One of the most convenient forms for shelves in a 
 dairy-room designed for butter-making is represented 
 in Fig. 73, made of light and seasoned wood, in an oc- 
 tagonal form, and capable of holding one hundred and 
 seventy-six pans of the ordinary form and size. It is so 
 simple and easily constructed, and so economizes space, 
 that it may readily be adapted to other and smaller 
 rooms for a similar purpose. If the dairy-house is near 
 a spring of pure and running water, a small stream can 
 be led in by one channel and taken out by another, and 
 thus keep a constant circulation under the milk-stand, 
 which may be so constructed as to turn easily on the 
 central post, so as often to save many footsteps. 
 
 The pans designed for milk are generally made of tin. 
 That is found, after long experience, to be, on the whole, 
 the best and most economical, and subject to fewer 
 objections than most other materials. Glazed earthen 
 ware is often used, the chief objection to it being its 
 liability to break, and its weight. It is easily kept 
 clean, however, and is next in value to tin, if not, indeed, 
 equal to it. A tin skimmer is commonly used, some- 
 what in the form of the bowl of a spoon, and pierced 
 with holes, to remove the cream. In some sections of 
 the country, a large white clam-shell is very commonly 
 used instead of a skimmer made for the purpose, the 
 chief objection to it being that the cream is not quite 
 so carefully separated from the milk. 
 
 A mode of avoiding the necessity of skimming has 
 long been used to some extent in England, by which 
 the milk is drawn off through a hole in the bottom of 
 the pan. This plan is recommended by Unwerth, a 
 German agriculturist, who proposes a pan represented 
 in Fig. 74, made of block tin, oblong in shape, and hav- 
 ing the inside corners carefully rounded. The pan is 
 only two inches in depth, and is made large enough to 
 
224 
 
 THE SHALLOW DEPTH IN THE PAN. 
 
 hold six or eight quarts of milk at the depth of one 
 and a half inches. This shallowness greatly facilitates 
 
 b 
 
 Fig. 74. Milk-pan. 
 
 the rapid separation of the cream, especially at a tem- 
 perature somewhat elevated. A. strainer is shown in 
 Pig. 75, pierced with holes, the centre half an inch 
 lower than the rim, to which hooks are fixed to hold 
 it to the top of the pan. On this a coarse linen cloth 
 
 Fig. 75. 
 
 is laid, the milk being strained through both the cloth 
 and the strainer, thus serving to separate all foreign 
 substances in a thorough manner. 
 
 In the bottom of the milk-pan, near one end, is an 
 opening, a, through which the milk is drawn, after the 
 cream is all risen or separated from it, by raising a 
 brass pin, &. The opening is lined with brass, and is 
 three fourths of an inch in diameter. Fig. 76 represents 
 the tin cylinder magnified. This is pierced, to the 
 height of an inch, with many small holes, diminishing in 
 size towards the top. The cream is all risen in twenty- 
 
CHURNING BY HOARSE POWER. 225 
 
 four hours. The pin is then drawn from the cylinder, 
 and the milk flows out, leaving the thick cream, which 
 is prevented from flowing out by the smallness of the 
 holes in the cylinder. 
 
 With the form of pans in most common use in this 
 country, which are circular, three or four inches deep, 
 this shallow depth of milk causes a little more trouble 
 in skimming ; but, if the principle is correct, the form 
 and depth of the pan will be easily adapted to it. 
 
 After the cream is removed, it is put into stone or 
 earthen jars, and kept in a cool place till a sufficient 
 quantity is accumulated to make it convenient to churn. 
 If a sufficient number of cows is kept, it is far better 
 to churn every day ; but in ordinary circumstances 
 that may be oftener than is practicable. The more 
 frequently the better ; and the advantages of frequent 
 churning are so great that cream should never be kept 
 longer than three or four days, where it is possible to 
 churn so often. 
 
 The mode of churning in one of the many good 
 dairies in Pennsylvania, that of Mr. J. Comfort, of 
 Montgomery county, is as follows : He uses a large 
 barrel-shaped churn, of the size of about two hogsheads, 
 hung on journals supported by a framework in an adjoin- 
 ing building. It is worked by machinery in a rotatory 
 motion, by a horse travelling around in a circle. The 
 churning commerrjes about four o'clock in the morn- 
 ing in summer, the cream being poured into the churn 
 and the horse started. When the butter has come, a 
 part of the butter-milk is removed by a vent-hole in the 
 churn. Then, without beating the mass together, as is 
 usual, a portion of the butter and its butter-milk is taken 
 out by the spatula and placed in the bottom of a tub 
 covered with fine salt, and spread out equally to a 
 proper depth ; then the surface of this butter is cov- 
 
 15 
 
226 FORMS OF THE CHURN. 
 
 ered with salt, and another portion of butter and 
 butter-milk taken from the churn and spread over the 
 salted surface in the same manner, and salted as before, 
 thus making a succession of layers, till the tub is full. 
 The whole is then covered with a white cloth, and 
 allowed to stand a while. A part of this butter, say 
 eight or ten pounds, is then taken from the tub and laid 
 on a marble table (Fig. 80), grooved around the edges, 
 arid slightly inclined, with a place in the groove for the 
 butter-milk and whey to escape. It is then worked by 
 a butter-worker or brake, turning on a swivel-joint, 
 which perfectly arid completely removes the butter-milk, 
 and flattens out the butter into a thin mass ; then the 
 surface is wiped by a cloth laid over it, and the working 
 and wiping repeated till the cloth adheres to the butter, 
 which indicates that the butter is dry 
 enough, when it is separated into pound 
 lumps, weighed and stamped, ready for 
 market. The rest of the butter in the 
 tub is treated in the same way. 
 
 It will be seen that this method 
 avoids the ordinary washing with water, 
 not a drop of water being used, from 
 beginning to the end. It avoids also 
 the working by hand, which in warm 
 weather has a tendency to soften the 
 butter. In the space of about an hour 
 a hundred pounds are thus made, and its 
 beautiful color and fragrance preserved. 
 If it happens to come from the churn 
 soft, it hardens by standing a little 
 longer in the brine. 
 
 The most common form of the churn 
 in small dairies is the upright or dash- 
 Fg. 77. churn, Pig. 77 ; but many other forms 
 
MODE OF CHURNING. 
 
 227 
 
 are in extensive use, each possessing, doubtless, more 
 or less merit peculiar to itself. The cylinder churn, 
 
 Fig. 78, is very simply 
 constructed, and capable of 
 being easily cleaned. Some 
 prefer the thermometer 
 churn, Fig. 79, having an 
 attachment for indicating 
 the temperature of the 
 cream. 
 
 As already stated, there 
 are two modes of practice 
 Fig - 78> with regard to the pro- 
 
 cess of churning, each of which has its advantages. 
 The milk itself may be churned, or it may be set in 
 the milk-room for the cream to rise, which is to be 
 
 Fig. 79. 
 
 churned by itself. The former is the practice of a 
 successful dairyman of New York, who, in his state- 
 ment, says : " I take care to have my cellar thoroughly 
 cleansed and whitewashed early every spring. I keep 
 
228 CHURNING MILK. SQUARE BOX CHURN. 
 
 milk in one cellar, and butter in another. Too much 
 care cannot be taken by dairymen to observe the time 
 of churning. I usually churn from one hour to one 
 hour and a half, putting from one to two pails of cold 
 water in each churn. When the butter has come, I 
 take it out, wash it through one water, set it in the 
 cellar and salt it, then work it from three to five 
 times before packing. Butter should not be made quite 
 salt enough until the last working. Then add a little 
 salt, which makes a brine that keeps the butter sweet. 
 One ounce of salt to a pound of butter is about the 
 quantity I use. I pack the first day, if the weather is 
 cool ; if warm, the second. If the milk is too warm 
 when churned, the quantity of butter will be less, and 
 the quality and flavor not so good as when it is at a 
 a proper temperature, which, for churning milk, is from 
 60 to 65." 
 
 But, whichever course it is thought best to adopt, 
 whether the milk or cream is churned, it is the concus- 
 sion, rather than the motion, which serves to bring the 
 butter. This may be produced in the simple square box 
 as well as by the dasher churn ; and it is the opinion of 
 a scientific gentleman with whom I have conversed on 
 the subject, that the perfect square is the best form of 
 the churn ever invented. The cream or milk in this 
 churn has a peculiar compound motion, and the concus- 
 sion on the corners and right-angled sides is very great, 
 and causes the butter to come as rapidly as it is judi 
 cious to have it. This churn consists of a simple square 
 box, which any one who can handle a saw and plane can 
 make, hung on axles turned by a crank somewhat like 
 the barrel churn. No dasher is required. If any one 
 is inclined to doubt the superiority of this form over all 
 others, he can easily try it and satisfy himself. It costs 
 but little. 
 
CHURNING THE CREAM. 229 
 
 In some sections the milk is churned soon after milk- 
 ing ; in others, the night's and morning's milk are mixed 
 together, and churned at noon ; in others, the cream is 
 allowed to rise, when the milk is curdled, and cream, 
 curd, and whey, are all churned together. 
 
 A successful instance of churning only the cream 
 is found in the statement of Mr. Lincoln, who received 
 the first dairy premium of the Massachusetts Society for 
 the Promotion of Agriculture. He says : " The cream, 
 as it is skimmed, is poured into stone pots, which in 
 warm weather are kept in a refrigerator, and during the 
 winter stand in the milk-room. The times of churning 
 depend upon the quantity of cream. 
 
 " The time usually occupied in churning is from fifty 
 minutes upwards. This is deemed a matter of import- 
 ance. We consider it much better to bring the cream 
 to the degree of temperature necessary to the forma- 
 tion of butter by a steady, moderate agitation, than to 
 use artificial heat to take it to that point before com- 
 mencing to churn. By such moderate, long-continued 
 agitations, we think the butter has a firmer, more waxy 
 consistence than it can have by more rapid churning. 
 The churn used is ' Gait's.' Numerous trials have been 
 made with many of the other kinds of churns in com- 
 parison with this, and the result has been uniformly 
 favorable to this patent. 
 
 " When the butter has come, the butter-milk is drawn 
 off, and the butter, after being thoroughly worked, is 
 salted with from one half to three fourths ounces of 
 salt to the pound. It is now set away for twenty-four 
 Lours, when it is again worked over thoroughly, and 
 made into pound lumps with wooden ' spatters/ After 
 standing another twenty-four hours, it is sent into 
 market. In l working ' butter we use a table over 
 which a fluted roller is made to pass (Fig. 80), rolling 
 20 
 
230 PHILADELPHIA BUTTER. 
 
 out the butter into a thin sheet, and completely and 
 entirely depriving it of butter-milk. 
 
 " From many years' experience, the observation is 
 warranted, that by no other process of manufacture 
 can the butter-milk be so completely extracted. I am 
 aware of the truth of the objection made that the 
 shrinkage occasioned by its use is too great : yet there 
 is, in fact, a difference in the worth of the butter made 
 upon it, over that manufactured in the ordinary way, 
 quite equal to the loss in weight occasioned by it." 
 
 The high reputation of Philadelphia butter being so 
 well known, I was desirous of ascertaining the opinions 
 of practical men as to what this was due, whether to 
 any peculiar richness of the pasturage, or to the careful 
 mode of manufacture. In reply to my inquiries, I have 
 received satisfactory statements from several sources, 
 and among them the following communication from one 
 of the most successful of the butter-makers who supply 
 that market. " The high reputation of Philadelphia but- 
 ter," he says, "is owing to the manner of its manufacture, 
 though I would not say that the sweet-scented vernal 
 and other natural grasses do not add to the fine quality 
 of well-made butter. 
 
 " In proof of what I say, I would refer to the experi- 
 ence of my brother, who is the owner of two farms. 
 His tenant, an excellent butter-maker, lived on one 
 farm, and made a very fine article, which brought the 
 highest prices. He moved to the other farm, where 
 the former tenant had never made good butter, and had 
 ascribed his want of success to the spring-house. On 
 this farm he succeeded in establishing a higher repu- 
 tation than he ever had before. The tenant who fol- 
 lowed him on the first farm never succeeded in gaining 
 a reputation for good butter, his inability arising* from 
 his ignorance of the proper mode of manufacture, and 
 
MODE OF MAKING. 231 
 
 his unwillingness to improve by the experience of 
 others. 
 
 " Only a part of the information as to the best mode 
 of manufacture can be given, so much depends on the 
 judgment and experience of the operator. The first 
 thing required is to provide a suitable place. This 
 should be, for the summer months, a well-ventilated 
 house, over a good spring of water. The second 
 requisite will be proper vessels to hold the milk and 
 cream, and for churning. A table is needed which shall 
 not be used for any other purpose than for working and 
 printing the butter on. I have always used a lever in 
 connection with the table (Fig. 80). A large sponge, 
 with a linen cloth to cover it, with which the milk can be 
 removed from the butter, is another important article ; 
 and then a skimmer, either of wood or tin, or both, as 
 may be necessary in the different states of the milk ; a 
 thermometer, and a boiler convenient for heating water 
 for cleansing the vessels. No person can expect to 
 make good butter without the greatest attention to the 
 cleanliness of the vessels used for the milk and cream, 
 and care in exposing them to the sun and air. 
 
 " After the milk has been brought from the yard or 
 stable, strain it immediately into the pans, in which has 
 been put a little sour milk from which the cream has 
 been removed, the quantity varying from a tablespoon- 
 ful to half a common teacupful, according to the state 
 of the weather. In very warm weather the smallei 
 quantity is sufficient. But the rule for warm weather 
 will not always hold good ; for, from the electrical state 
 of the atmosphere, the milk may sour either too slow or 
 too fast. 
 
 " The pans containing the milk should then be set into 
 the water, if the weather be hot: and here is a point where 
 the operator should exercise his or her judgment j for 
 
232 USE OP THE SPONGE. 
 
 even in warm weather it may be necessary to draw off 
 the water from the milk, if the spring be cold. The milk 
 should remain there, under no circumstances, longer 
 than the fourth meal, or forty-eight hours ; but thirty- 
 six hours is much to be preferred, if the milk has 
 become thick, or the cream sufficiently raised, when it 
 should be taken off carefully, so as not to take any 
 sour milk with it, and put in the cream-pot. When the 
 cream-pot is full, sprinkle a small handful of fine salt 
 over the top of the cream, and let it remain. Our 
 custom has been, when making butter but once a week, 
 to pour the cream into a clean vessel at the end of 
 three days, keeping back any milk that might have been 
 taken up with the cream, which is found at the bottom 
 of the jar. 
 
 "I would mention that it is essential, in making a fine 
 article, to keep the cream clear of milk. The next ope- 
 ration will be preparatory to churning, by straining the 
 cream, and reducing the temperature of the churn by 
 the use of the cold spring-water. The operation of 
 churning should neither be protracted nor hastened too 
 much. After the butter has made its appearance of the 
 size of a small pea, draw off the milk, and throw in a 
 small amount of cold water, and gather it. After the 
 butter has been taken from the churn, it is placed upon 
 the table, worked over by the lever, and salted ; then 
 worked again with the lever, in connection with the 
 sponge and cloth, a pan of cold water being at hand, 
 with a piece of ice in it in summer, into which you 
 throw the cloth and sponge frequently, and wring out 
 dry before again using it. These, as well as every 
 other article which will come into contact with the 
 butter, must be scalded, and afterward, as well as the 
 hands, placed in cold water. I would here add that the 
 use ^f the sponge is one of the important points in mak- 
 
THE WINTER DAIRY. 233 
 
 ing butter to keep well ; for by it you can remove 
 almost every particle of butter-milk, which is the great 
 agent in the destruction of its sweetness and solidity. 
 For the winter dairy a room in which is placed a stove 
 should be provided, which can be made warm, and also 
 well ventilated. I prefer the use of coal, on account of 
 keeping the fire through the night. My dairy-room is 
 adjoining the spring-house, and connects with it, which 
 I consider important. This room should be used for 
 no other purpose, as cream and butter are the greatest 
 absorbents of effluvia with which I am acquainted. . I 
 have known good butter to be spoiled by being placed 
 over night in a close closet. 
 
 " The thermometer should always accompany the 
 winter dairy. There is one thing very important in 
 the winter dairy, which, perhaps, I should have placed 
 first, and that is the food of the cows; for, without 
 something else than hay, you will not make very fine 
 butter. Mill-feed and corn-meal I consider about the 
 best for yield and quality, although there are many 
 other articles of food which will be useful, and con- 
 tribute to the appetite and health of the cattle. 
 
 " The process for the winter dairy is similar to that 
 of the summer, with the exception of the regulation as 
 to the temperature of room, etc., which is as follows : 
 
 " Particular care should be taken not to let the milk 
 get cold before placing it in the dairy-room; for, should 
 it be completely chilled, the cream will not rise well. 
 Add about a gill of warm water to the sour milk for 
 each pan, before straining into it, which will greatly 
 facilitate the rising of the cream. Keep the tempera- 
 ture of the room as near fifty-eight degrees, Fahrenheit, 
 as possible, and guard against the air being dry by 
 having a small vessel of water upon the stove, or else 
 a dry coat will form on the surface of the crearn. The 
 20* 
 
234 THE GREAT SECRET. 
 
 cream should be kept in a colder place than the dairy- 
 room until the night before churning, when it might be 
 placed in the warm room, so that its temperature shall 
 be about 58. 
 
 "The churn may be prepared by scalding it, and then 
 reduced to the same temperature as the cream by cold 
 water, using the thermometer as a test. 
 
 " This regulation of temperature is of the greatest 
 importance : for, should it be too low, you will be a 
 long time churning, and have poor, tasteless butter ; if 
 too high, the butter will be soft and white." 
 
 What is especially noticeable in the above statement 
 is the use of the sponge, and the thorough and complete 
 removal of all the butter-milk. Here is probably the 
 secret of success, after all. I have given the statement 
 in full, notwithstanding its length, on account of the 
 well-known excellence of the butter produced by the 
 process, as well as for the suggestions with regard to 
 the dairy-rooms, and not because I can recommend all 
 its details for the imitation of others. The use of sour 
 milk in the pans is based, I suppose, on the idea that 
 the cream does not begin to rise till acidity commences 
 in the milk, an idea which was once pretty generally 
 entertained ; but the process of souring undoubtedly 
 commences, though imperceptible to the senses, very 
 soon after the milk comes to rest in the pan. At any 
 rate, there is no doubt that the separation of the butter 
 from the other substances commences at once, and 
 without the addition of any foreign substance to the 
 milk. 
 
 Nor do I believe there is any necessity for the milk 
 to stand over twenty-four hours in any case ; for I have 
 no doubt that all the best of the cream rises within the 
 first twelve hours, under favorable circumstances, and 
 I am inclined to think that whatever is added to the 
 
THE TIME TO RISE. 235 
 
 quantity of cream after twenty-four hours, detracts 
 from the quality of the butter to an extent which more 
 than counterbalances the whole of the quantity. 
 
 Many good dairy-women make an exceedingly fine 
 article, in spite of the defects of some parts of the pro- 
 cess of manufacture. This does not show that they 
 would not make still better butter if they remedied 
 these defects. 
 
 The more we can retard the development of acidity 
 in the milk, within certain limits, the more cream may 
 we expect to get; and hence some use artificial means 
 for this purpose, mixing in the milk a little crystallized 
 soda, dissolved in twice its volume of water, which 
 corrects the acidity as soon as it forms. It is a perfectly 
 harmless addition, and increases the product of the 
 butter, and improves its quality. But under ordinarily 
 favorable circumstances, from twelve to eighteen hours 
 will be sufficient to raise all the cream in summer, and 
 from twenty to thirty hours in winter. 
 
 Fig. 80. Butter-worker. 
 
 The butter-worker, Fig. 80, with its marble top, 
 used by the writer of the statement above, is an im- 
 
236 CREAM IN A WELL. 
 
 portant addition to the implements of the dairy. It 
 
 effects the complete 
 removal of the but^er- 
 milk, without the ne- 
 cessity of bringing the 
 hands in contact with 
 it. Anotherform of the 
 Fig 81< lever butter-worker is 
 
 seen in Fig. 81. 
 
 To keep the cream properly after it is- placed away 
 in pots or jars, it should stand in a cool place, and 
 whenever additions of fresh cream are made, they 
 should be stirred in. Many keep the cream, as well as 
 the butter, in the well, in hot weather. This is the 
 practice of Mr. Horsfall, whose experiments have been 
 alluded to. Finding his butter inclined to be soft, he 
 lowered a thermometer twenty-eight feet into the well, 
 and found it indicated 43, the temperature of the sur- 
 face being 70. He then let down the butter, and found 
 it somewhat improved ; and soon after began to lower 
 down the cream, by means of a movable windlass and a 
 rope, the cream-jar being placed in a basket hung on 
 the rope. The cream was let down on the evening 
 previous to churning, and drawn up in the morning and 
 immediately churned. The time of churning the cream 
 at this temperature would be as long as in winter, and 
 the butter was found to have the same consistency. 
 
 The same object is effected in this country by the use 
 of ice in many sections ; but, if the butter remains too 
 long on ice, or in an ice-house, it is apt to become 
 bleached, and lose its natural and delicate straw-color. 
 
 The time of churning is by no means an unimportant 
 matter. Various contrivances have been made to short- 
 en this operation ; but the opinions of the best and 
 most successful dairymen concur that it cannot be too 
 
MODE OF PACKING. 237 
 
 much hastened without injuring the fine quality and 
 consistency of the butter. The time required depends 
 much on the temperature of the cream; and this can be 
 regulated at convenience, as indicated above. 
 
 The temperature of the dairy-room should be as 
 uniform as possible. The practice of the best and most 
 successful dairymen differs in respect to the degree to 
 which it should be kept ; but the range is from 52 to 
 62 Fahr., and I am inclined to think from 58 to 60 the 
 best. At 60, with a current of fresh, pure air passing 
 over it, the cream will rise very rapidly and abundantly. 
 
 The greatest density of milk is at about 41, and 
 cream rises with great difficulty and slowness as the 
 temperature falls below 50 towards that point. 
 
 A practical butter dealer of New York gives the fol- 
 lowing as the best mode of packing butter, or putting 
 it up for a distant market. The greatest care, he says, 
 should be taken to free the butter entirely from milk, 
 by working it and washing it after churning at a tem- 
 perature so low as to prevent it from losing its granular 
 character and becoming greasy. The character of the 
 product depends in a great measure on the temperature 
 of churning and working, which should be between 
 sixty and seventy degrees Fahr. If free from milk, 
 eight ounces of Ashton salt is sufficient for ten pounds. 
 Western salt should never be used, as it injures the 
 flavor. While packing, the contents of the firkin should 
 be kept from the air by being covered with saturated 
 brine. No undissolved salt should be put in the bottom 
 of the firkin. 
 
 Goshen butter is reputed best, though much is put up 
 in imitation of it, and sold at the same price. Great 
 care should be taken to have the firkins neat and clean. 
 They should be of white oak, with hickory hoops, and 
 should hold about eighty pounds. Wood excludes air 
 
238 FIRKIXS. LUMP BUTTER. 
 
 better than stone, and consequently keeps butter bet- 
 ter. Tubs are better than pots. 
 
 Western butter comes in coarse, ugly packages; even 
 flour and pork barrels are sometimes used. Much of it 
 must be worked over and re-packed here before it will 
 sell. It generally contains a good deal of milk, and if 
 not re-worked soon becomes rancid. Improper pack- 
 ing, in kegs too large and soiled on the outside, makes at 
 least three cents a pound difference. Whatever the 
 size of the firkin, it must be perfectly tight and quite 
 full of butter, so that when opened the brine, though 
 present, will not be found on the top. 
 
 Until the middle of May, dairymen should pack in 
 quarter firkins or tubs, with white oak covers, and send 
 directly to market as fresh butter. From this time until 
 the fall frost there is but little change in color and 
 flavor with the same dairy, and it may be packed in 
 whole firkins, and kept in a cool place. The fall butter 
 should also be packed separately in tubs. 
 
 To prepare new butter-boxes for use in the shortest 
 time, dissolve common, or bicarbonate of soda in boiling 
 water, as much as the water will dissolve, and water 
 enough to fill the boxes ; about a pound of soda will be 
 required to be put into a thirty-two pound box, and the 
 water should be poured upon it. Let it stand over 
 night, and the box may be safely used next day. This 
 mode is cheap and expeditious, and, if adopted, would 
 often save great losses. Potash has a like effect. 
 
 As already seen, in the statements of practical dairy- 
 men, the greatest care is required in the salting or sea- 
 soning. Over-salted butter is not only less palatable to 
 the taste, but less healthy than fresh, sweet butter. The 
 same degree of care is needed with respect to the box 
 in which it ; s packed. I have often seen the best and 
 richest-flavored butter spoilt by sending it to the exhibi- 
 
A NEW PROCESS. 239 
 
 tion or to market in new and improper boxes. A new 
 pine-wood box should always be avoided. 
 
 Butter that has been thoroughly worked, and per- 
 fectly freed from butter-milk, is of a firm and waxy con- 
 sistence, so as scarcely to dim the polish of the blade 
 of a knife thrust into it, leaving upon it only a slight 
 dew as it is withdrawn. If it is soft in texture, and 
 leaves greasy streaks of butter-milk upon the knife that 
 cuts it, or upon the cut surface after the blade is with- 
 drawn, it shows an imperfect and defective process of 
 manufacture, and is of poor quality, and will be liable 
 to become rancid. 
 
 An exceedingly delicate and fine-flavored butter may 
 be made by wrapping the cream in a napkin or clean 
 cloth, and burying it, a foot deep or more, in the earth, 
 from twelve to twenty hours. This experiment I have 
 repeatedly tried with complete success, and have never 
 tasted butter superior to that produced by this method. 
 It requires to be salted to the taste as much as butter 
 made by any other process. A tenacious subsoil loam 
 would seem to be best. After putting the cream into 
 a clean cloth, the whole should be surrounded by a 
 coarse towel. The butter thus produced is white 
 instead of yellow or straw-color. 
 
 Butter has been analyzed by Prof. Way, with the fol- 
 lowing result: 
 
 Pure fat, or oil, 82.70 
 
 Caseine, or curd, 2.45 
 
 Water, with a little salt, 14.85 *M 100 
 
 The fat or oil peculiar to butter is in winter more 
 solid than in summer, and known as margarine fat, 
 while that of summer is known as liquid or oleine fat. 
 The proportions in which these are found in ordinary 
 
240 THE FAT OF BUTTER. ICE. 
 
 butter have been stated by Prof. Thomson, a follows : 
 
 Summer. Winter. 
 
 Solid or margarine fat, 40 65 
 
 Liquid or oleine fat, 60 35 
 
 100 100 
 
 Winter butter appears to be rich and fine in propor- 
 tion as the oleine fat increases. The proportion is 
 undoubtedly dependent on the food. 
 
 A more general attention to the details of butter- 
 making, and to the best modes of preserving its good 
 qualities, would add many thousands of dollars to the 
 aggregate profits of our American dairies. 
 
 In the management of the dairy, an ice-house and a 
 good quantity of ice for summer use are not only very 
 convenient for regulating the temperature of the dairy- 
 room, and for keeping butter at the proper consistence, 
 and preserving it, but are also profitable in other respects. 
 And now, when ice-houses are so easily constructed, and 
 ice is so readily procured, no well-ordered dairy should 
 be without a liberal supply of it. It is housed at a time 
 when other farm-work is not pressing, and ponds are so 
 distributed over the country that it may be generally pro- 
 cured without difficulty ; but where ponds or streams are 
 at too great a distance from the dairy-house, an artificial 
 pond can be easily made, by damming up the outlet of 
 some spring in the neighborhood. Where this is done, 
 the utmost care should be taken to keep the water per- 
 fectly clean when the ice is forming. The ice-house 
 should be above ground, and in a dry, airy place. The 
 top of a dry knoll is better than a low, damp shade. 
 The ice may be packed in tan, sawdust, shavings, or 
 other non-conductors, and when wanted for use it 
 should be taken off the top. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE CHEESE-DAIRY. 
 
 * Streams of new milk through flowing coolers stray, 
 And snow-white curds abound, and wholesome whey." 
 
 MILK, if allowed to become sour, will eventually 
 curdle, when the whey is easily separated ; and this 
 simple mode was probably the universal method of 
 making cheese in ancient times. Cheese, as already 
 explained, is made from caseine, an ingredient of milk 
 held in solution by means of an alkali, which it re- 
 quires the presence of an acid to neutralize. This, in 
 modern manufacture, is artificially added to form the 
 curd ; but the acidity of milk, after standing, acts in 
 the same manner to produce coagulation. This is due 
 to the change of the milk-sugar into lactic acid. 
 
 Cheese has been made and used as an article of food 
 from a very early date. It was well known to the early 
 Jewish patriarchs, and is frequently mentioned in the 
 earliest Hebrew records. " Hast thou not poured me 
 out as milk, and curdled me like cheese?" says Job ; and 
 David was sent to " carry ten cheeses to the captain of 
 their thousand in the camp." Most of the ancient 
 nations, indeed, barbarous as well as civilized, made it 
 a prominent article of food. But cheese, as made by 
 the ancients, was found to be hard and brittle, and not 
 well flavored, and means were devised to produce the 
 same effect while the milk still remained sweet. It was 
 21 16 
 
242 CHEESE. ITS RICHNESS. 
 
 observed that acids of various kinds would answer, and 
 vinegar was used ; and cream of tartar, muriatic acid, and 
 sour milk, added to sweet, produced a rapid coagulation. 
 In Sweden, Norway, and other countries, a handful of the 
 plant known as butterwort (Pinguicula vulgaris] is some- 
 times mixed with the food of the cow, to cause the milk 
 to coagulate readily. A few hours after milking, the curd 
 is formed without the addition of an acid. Milk taken 
 into the stomach of the calf was found to curdle rapidly, 
 even while sweet ; and hence the use of rennet, which is 
 simply the stomach of the calf, prepared by washing, 
 salting, and drying, for preservation. This acts the 
 most surely, and, if properly prepared and preserved, is 
 the least objectionable, of any article now known ; and 
 is, in fact, the natural mode of curdling the milk as it 
 enters the stomach, preparatory to the process of diges- 
 tion. Besides this, it is generally the cheapest and 
 most available for the farmer. 
 
 The richness of cheese depends very much upon the 
 amount of butter or oily matter it contains. It may be 
 made entirely of cream, or from whole or unskimmed 
 milk, to which the cream of other milk is added, or 
 from milk from which a part of its cream has been 
 taken, or from ordinary skim-milk, or from milk that 
 has been skimmed three or four times, so as to remove 
 nearly every particle of cream, or from butter-milk. 
 The acid used in curdling milk acts upon the caseine 
 alone, and not upon the butter particles, which are 
 imbedded in the curd as it hardens, and thus increase 
 its richness and flavor without adding to its con- 
 sistency, which is due to the caseine. 
 
 It is evident, therefore, that cheese made entirely of 
 cream cannot have the firmness and consistence of 
 ordinary cheese. It is only made for immediate use, 
 and cannot be long kept. It is, in fact, little more than 
 
PROCESS OF MAKING. 243 
 
 thick, dried, sweet cream, from which all the milk has 
 been pressed. On the other hand, skim-milk cheese 
 has the opposite fault of being too hard and tough, and 
 destitute of flavor and richness. The best quality of 
 cheese is made from full milk, or from milk to which 
 some extra cream is added, as in the English Stilton 
 renowned for its richness and flavor. The Gloucester, 
 Cheshire, Cheddar, Dunlop, and the Dutch Gouda, are 
 made of whole milk, as are the best qualities made in 
 this country. 
 
 The process of making cheese is both chemical and 
 mechanical. The heating of the milk at the time of 
 adding the acid or rennet hastens the chemical action, 
 and facilitates the separation of the whey ; at the same 
 time great nicety is required, for, if over-heated, the oily 
 particles will run off" with the whey. On the complete 
 separation of the whey from the curd, and the amount 
 of butter particles retained in the latter, the taste or 
 flavor and keeping qualities of the cheese depend. If 
 properly made, the taste improves by keeping, but the 
 chemical changes effected by age are not very well 
 understood. 
 
 The practical process of manufacture most common 
 in the best dairies of this country will appear in the fol- 
 lowing statements of successful competitors at agricul- 
 tural exhibitions. The first was made, by request, to 
 the New York State Agricultural Society, and appeared 
 in its transactions, by A. L. Fish, of Herkimer county, 
 one of the finest dairy regions of that state. The 
 value of his statement is enhanced by the fact that his 
 cows averaged seven hundred pounds of the first 
 quality of cheese each in 1844, and seven hundred and 
 seventy-five pounds each in 1845. In his mode of 
 manufacture, " the evening's and morning's milk is com- 
 monly used to make one cheese. The evening's is 
 
244 AMERICAN CHEESE. 
 
 strained into a tub or pans, and coo.ed to prevent 
 souring. The proper mode of cooling is to strain the 
 milk into the tin tub set in a wooden vat, described in 
 the dairy-house, and cool by filling the wooden vat with 
 ice-water from the ice-house, or ice in small lumps, and 
 water from the pump. The little cream that rises over 
 night is taken off in the morning, and kept till the 
 morning and evening milk are put together, and the 
 cream is warmed to receive the rennet. It is mixed 
 with about twice its quantity of new milk, and warm 
 water added to raise its temperature to ninety-eight 
 degrees: stir it till perfectly limpid, put in rennet 
 enough to curdle the milk in forty minutes, and mix it 
 with the mass of milk by thorough stirring; the milk 
 having been previously raised to eighty-eight or ninety 
 degrees, by passing steam from the steam generator to 
 the water in the wooden vat. In case no double vat is 
 to be had, the milk may be safely heated to the right 
 temperature, by setting a tin pail of hot water into the 
 milk in the tubs. It may be cooled in like manner by 
 filling the pail with ice-water, or cold spring-water 
 where ice is not to be had. It is not safe to heat milk 
 in a kettle exposed directly to the fire, as a slight 
 scorching will communicate its taint to the whole 
 cheese and spoil it. If milk is curdled below eighty- 
 four degrees, the cream is more liable to work off with 
 the whey. An extreme of heat will have a like effect. 
 The curdling heat is varied with the temperature of 
 the air, or the liability of the milk to cool after adding 
 rennet. The thermometer is the only safe guide in 
 determining the temperature ; for, if the dairyman 
 depends upon the sensation of the hand, a great liability 
 to error will render the operation uncertain. If, for 
 instance, the hands have previously been immersed in 
 cold water, the milk will feel warmer than it really is ; 
 
PRACTICAL DETAILS. 245 
 
 if, on the contrary, they have recently been m warm 
 water, the milk will feel colder than it really is. To 
 satisfy the reader how much this circumstance alone 
 will affect the sensation of the hand, let him immerse 
 one hand in warm water, and at the same time keep the 
 other in a vessel of cold water, for a few moments; 
 then pour the water in the two dishes together, and 
 immerse both hands in the mixture. The hand that was 
 previously in the warm water will feel cold, and the 
 other quite warm, showing that the sense of feeling is 
 not a test of temperature worthy of being relied upon. 
 A fine cloth spread over the tub while the milk is curd- 
 ling will prevent the surface from being cooled by cir- 
 culation of air. No jarring of the milk, by walking 
 upon a springy floor, or otherwise, should be allowed 
 while it is curdling, as it will prevent a perfect cohesion 
 of the particles. 
 
 " When milk is curdled so as to appear like a solid, it 
 is divided into small particles to aid the separation of 
 the whey from the curd. This is often too speedily done 
 to facilitate the work, but at a sacrifice of quality and 
 quantity." 
 
 To effect the fine division of the curd 'for the easy 
 separation of the whey, Mr. Fish uses a wire network, 
 made to fit into the tub, the meshes of fine wire being 
 about a half-inch square, and the outer rim of coarse 
 and stronger material. A cheese-knife is also used, 
 about half as long as the .diameter of the tub, and firmly 
 fastened to the lower end of a long screw which passes 
 through one end of the blade as it lies horizontally, 
 leaving the blade at right angles with the screw, which 
 has a coarse thread, and passes through a piece of 
 wood on the top of the tub, held firm by notches at the 
 ends laid on the edges of the tub. By turning a crank, 
 the knife passes down through the curd in revolutions, 
 
246 HOW TO MAKE SAGE CHEESE, 
 
 cutting it into layers of the thickness of the threads of 
 the screw. 
 
 The following is the statement of Mrs. Williams, of 
 Windsor, Massachusetts, who received the first premium 
 at the Franklin County Fair, in 1857, for exceedingly 
 rich, fine, and delicately-flavored cheeses of seventy-five 
 pounds each. Her method, which is the result of her 
 own experience and observation, corresponds almost 
 exactly, as the committee remark, with the English 
 mode of making the famous Cheddar cheese, which is 
 much the same as the Cheshire. Mrs. Williams says : 
 " My cheese is made from one day's milk of twenty- 
 nine cows. I strain the night's milk into a tub, skim it 
 in the morning, and melt the cream in the morning's 
 milk : I warm the night's milk, so that with the morn- 
 ing's milk, when mixed together, it will be at the tem- 
 perature of ninety-six degrees j then add rennet suffi- 
 cient to turn it in thirty minutes. Let it stand about half 
 or three quarters of an hour; then cross it off and let it 
 stand about thirty minutes, working upon it very care- 
 fully with a skimmer. When the curd begins to settle, 
 dip off the whey, and heat it up and pour it on again at 
 the temperature of one hundred and two degrees. After 
 draining off and cutting up, add a teacup of salt to four- 
 teen pounds. 
 
 " The process of making sage cheese is the same as the 
 other, except adding the juice of the sage in a small 
 quantity of milk." 
 
 Another successful competitor in the same state says: 
 " We usually make but one curd in a day. The night's 
 milk is strained into pans till morning, when the cream 
 that will have risen is taken off, and the milk wai med to 
 blood heat, when the cream is again returned to the 
 milk and thoroughly mixed. This prevents the melt- 
 ing of the cream that would otherwise run off with 
 
PRACTICAL STATEMENT. RENNET. 247 
 
 the whey. The whole is then immediately laded into a tub 
 with the morning's milk, and set for the cheese, with 
 rennet sufficient to form the curd in about thirty min- 
 utes ; and here much care is thought to be necessary in 
 cutting and crossing the curd, and much moderation in 
 dipping and draining the whey from it, that the white 
 whey (so called) may not exude from it. 
 
 "When sufficiently drained, it is taken and cut with a 
 sharp knife to about the size and form of dice, when it 
 is salted with about one pound of fine salt to twenty- 
 five of curd. It is then subjected to a moderate press- 
 ure at first, gradually increasing it for two days, in the 
 mean time turning it twice a day, and substituting dry 
 cloths. It is then taken from the press and dressed all 
 over with hot melted butter, and covered with thin cot- 
 ton cloth, and this saturated with the melted butter. 
 It is then placed upon the shelf, and turned and rubbed 
 daily with the dressing until ripe for use." 
 
 One of the most important processes in the manufac- 
 ture of good cheese is the preparation of the rennet. 
 This is made of the inner lining or mucous membrane 
 of the stomach of the young sucking calf, sometimes 
 called the bag or maw; and the use of it was undoubt- 
 edly suggested, originally, by observing the complete 
 and rapid coagulation or curdling of milk in the stom- 
 ach of a calf newly killed. "Coagulation is the first pro- 
 cess of digestion in the fourth stomach of the calf. There 
 are numerous glands scattered in and about the stomach 
 that secrete a fluid which readily and almost immedi- 
 ately accomplishes this coagulation. They are always 
 full of it ; even after the animal is dead they remain 
 filled with it ; and if the stomach is preserved from 
 putrefaction, this fluid retains its coagulating quality 
 for a considerable period; therefore dairy-women usually 
 take care o c the maw or stomach of the calf, and pre- 
 
248 RENNET IN THE SCOTCH DAIRIES. 
 
 serve it by salting it, and then, by steeping it, or por- 
 tions of it, in warm water, they prepare what they call 
 a rennet. After the maw has been salted a certain time, 
 it may be taken out and dried, and then it will retain 
 the same property for an indefinite period. A small 
 piece of the maw thus dried is steeped over night in a 
 few teaspoonfuls of warm water, and this water will 
 turn the milk of three or four cows." 
 
 It is important that rennet enough should be pre- 
 pared at once for the whole season, in order to secure 
 as great a uniformity in strength as possible. The 
 object should be to produce a prompt, complete, and 
 firm or compact coagulation of all the cheesy matter. 
 
 Mr. Aiton, in his admirable treatise on the Dairy Hus- 
 bandry of Scotland, gives the simple method of prepar- 
 ing the rennet in the dairy districts, as follows : " When 
 the stomach or bag usually termed the yirning is 
 taken from the calf's body, its contents are examined, 
 and if any straw or other food is found among the 
 curdled milk, such impurity is carefully removed ; but 
 all the curdled milk found in the bag is carefully pre- 
 served, and no part of the chyle is washed out. A 
 considerable quantity of salt at least two handfuls 
 is put into and outside the bag, which is then rolled up 
 and hung near a fire to dry. It is always allowed to 
 hang until it is well dried, and is understood to be 
 improved by hanging a year or longer before being 
 infused. 
 
 " When rennet is wanted, the yirning with its contents 
 is cut small, and put into a jar with a handful or two of 
 salt ; and a quantity of soft water that has been boiled 
 and cooled to sixty-five degrees, or of new whey taken 
 off the curd, is poured into it. The quantity of water 
 or whey necessary is more or less, according to the 
 quality of the yirning: if it is that of a new-dropped 
 
RENNET IN AMERICAN DAIRIES. 249 
 
 calf, a Scotch chop pin, or at most three English pints, 
 will be enough ; but if the calf has been fed four or 
 five weeks, two quarts or more may be used : the yirn- 
 ing of a calf four weeks old yields more rennet than 
 that of one twice that age. When the infusion has 
 remained in the jar from one to three days, the liquid is 
 drawn off and strained, after which it is bottled for use; 
 and if a dram-glass of any ardent spirit is put into each 
 bottle, the infusion may either be used immediately, or 
 kept as long as may be convenient." 
 
 The mode of preparing rennet in the dairy districts 
 of this country is various ; but that adopted by Mr. 
 Fish, of Herkimer, New York, already quoted, is simple 
 and easy of application. He says : " Various opinions 
 exist as to the best mode of saving rennet, and that is 
 generally adopted which, it is supposed, will curdle the 
 most milk. I have no objection to any mode that will 
 preserve its strength and flavor so that it will be smelled 
 and tasted with good relish when put into the milk. Any 
 composition not thus kept I deem unfit for use, as the 
 coagulator is an essential agent in cheesing the curd, 
 and sure to impart its own flavor. 
 
 " The rennet never should be taken from the calf till 
 the excrement shows the animal to be in perfect health. 
 It should be emptied of its contents, salted, and dried, 
 without any scraping or rinsing, and kept dry for one 
 year, when it will be fit for use. It should not be 
 allowed to gather dampness, or its strength will evap- 
 orate. To prepare it for use, into ten gallons of water, 
 blood warm, put ten rennets ; churn or rub them often 
 for twenty-four hours ; then rub and press them to get 
 the strength ; stretch, salt, and dry them, as before. 
 They will gain strength for a second use. Make the 
 liquor as salt as it can be made, strain and settle it, sep- 
 arate it from the sediment, if any, and it is fit for use. 
 
250 ANNATTO FOR COLORING. 
 
 Six lemons, two ounces of cloves, two ounces of cinna- 
 mon, and two ounces of common sage, are sometimes 
 added to the liquor, to preserve its flavor and quicken 
 its action. If kept cool in a stone jar, it will keep 
 sweet any length of time desired, and a uniform strength 
 is secured while it lasts. Stir it before dipping off. To 
 set milk, take of it enough to curdle milk firm in forty 
 minutes ; squeeze or rub through a rag annatto enough 
 to make the curd a cream color, and stir it in with the 
 rennet." It will be seen that he adopts the practice of 
 removing the contents of the stomach. This, it appears 
 to me, is the best calculated to promote cleanliness and 
 purity, so important in making a good-flavored cheese. 
 
 But in Cheshire, so celebrated for its superior cheese, 
 the contents of the stomach are frequently salted by 
 themselves, and after being a short time exposed to the 
 air are fit for use ; while the well-known and highly- 
 esteemed Limburg cheese is mostly made with rennet 
 prepared as in Ayrshire, the curd being left in the 
 stomach, and both dried together. The general opinion 
 is that rennet, as usually prepared, is not fit to use till 
 nearly a year old. 
 
 Perhaps the plan of making a liquid rennet from new 
 and fresh stomachs, and keeping it in bottles corked 
 tight till wanted for use, would tend still further to 
 secure this end. 
 
 The use of annatto to color the cheese artificially is 
 somewhat common in this country, though probably not 
 so much so as in many other countries. Annatto, or 
 annotto, is made from the red pulp of the seeds of an 
 evergreen tree of the same name, found in the West 
 Indies and in Brazil, by bruising and obtaining a precip- 
 itate. A variety is made in Cayenne, which comes into 
 the market in cakes of two or three pounds. It is bright 
 yellow, rather soft to the touch, but of considerable 
 
THE CHEESE-PRESS. 251 
 
 solidity. The quantity used is rarely more than an 
 ounce to one hundred pounds, and the effect is simply 
 to give the high coloring so common to the Gloucester 
 and Cheshire cheeses, and to many made in this coun- 
 try. This artificial coloring is continued from an 
 idle prejudice, somewhat troublesome to the dairyman, 
 expensive to the consumer, and adding nothing to the 
 taste or flavor of the article. The annatto itself is so 
 universally and so largely adulterated, often by poison- 
 ous substances, such as lead and mercury, that the prac- 
 tice of using it by the cheese-maker, and of requiring the 
 high coloring by the consumer, might well be discon- 
 tinued. The common mode of application is to dissolve it 
 
 Fig. 82. Cheese-preas. 
 
 in hot milk, and add at the time of putting in the rennet, 
 or to put it upon the outside, in the manner of paint. 
 The cheese-presses in most common use are very dif 
 
252 
 
 THERMOMETER. TEMPERATURE. 
 
 ferent in construction, and each possesses, doubtless, 
 some peculiar merits. The self-acting press, Fig. 82, is 
 the favorite of some. Another form of this is seen m 
 Fig. 83. i-,.-i 
 
 Fig. 83. Self-acting cheese-press. 
 
 One of the most extensive and experienced dealers in 
 cheese, in one of the largest dairy districts of New York, 
 Mr. Harry Burrill, of Little Falls, has placed in 
 my hands the following simple directions for cheese- 
 making. 
 
 The cheese-tub should be so graduated that it may 
 be correctly known what quantity of milk is used. This 
 is requisite, in order that the proper proportions, both 
 of coloring matter and rennet, may be used. The tem- 
 perature should be ascertained by the thermometer. 
 Experience proves that when the dairy has been at 
 
PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS. 253 
 
 seventy degrees the best temperature at which to run the 
 milk will be eighty-four degrees; but, as the temperature 
 of the dairy at different times of the year will be found 
 to vary above or below seventy degrees, the temperature 
 of the milk must be proportionally regulated by the 
 simple addition of cold water, to lower it ; but, to in- 
 crease the temperature, heat the milk in the usual man- 
 ner, although ifr is absolutely necessary to avoid heating 
 it beyond one hundred and twenty degrees. 
 
 After having brought the milk to the required tempera- 
 ture, and added the coloring, for every quarter hundred 
 weight of cheese mix one pint of new sour whey with the 
 requisite proportion of rennet ; and, having arrived at 
 the formation of a good curd, which will be the invari- 
 able result of a strict adhesion to the foregoing rules, 
 let it be carefully cut up with three-bladed knives, as 
 fine as possible ; then dip off half the whey, and heat a 
 portion of it to the temperature of ninety-five degrees, 
 and return it to the whey and curds ; then, after stirring 
 it for five minutes, allow the curd to sink, and as quickly 
 as possible dip off the whey. Having done this, press 
 the curd by placing on it a board weighted with from 
 three to five fifty-pound weights, which will gradually 
 and effectually press the remainder of the whey out. 
 
 When the whey is dipped off, put the curd into white 
 twig basket-vats, made the shape and size of a turned 
 vat, which would contain the sixth of a hundred weight 
 (about three inches deep, and two feet in diameter). It 
 will be necessary to have boards about one inch thick, 
 and two feet four inches in diameter, to go between 
 each of these twig vats, to prevent the whey running 
 from one vat into the other. When it has been pressed, 
 return it again into the cheese-tub, cut it into small 
 pieces, put it into the vats again in dry cloths, press it 
 and return it to the tub again, cutting it into small 
 22 
 
254 FINE COAT. VARIETIES. 
 
 pieces, and to every hundred weight of curd idd one 
 and one quarter pounds of salt ; grind it twice, and stir 
 it so that it shall be properly mixed with the salt ; then 
 put it into well-perforated turned vats, taking care to 
 press it thoroughly whilst the vats are filling, to prevent 
 the accumulation of air, to the presence of which is to 
 be attributed the honeycomb appearance so often ob- 
 served in cheese when cut. * 
 
 When the cheese is put into the press let the press- 
 ure gradually upon it. After it has been in press 
 one and a half hours, take it out and examine it, and, 
 should there be any curd pressed over, cut it round 
 and put it into the middle of the cheese, carefully break- 
 ing it up in the middle. Wash the ends of the cloths 
 out in a bowl of warm water, squeeze them, and cover 
 the cheese up, and, if there should be any not sufficiently 
 full, it will be necessary either to put a follower upon it, 
 or to put it into a smaller vat ; in the evening let them 
 be dry clothed. The following morning salt them all 
 over and dry cloth them, and repeat this three suc- 
 cessive mornings ; after which, put them in vats, placed 
 one on the other, and allow them to stand, if possible, 
 a fortnight, occasionally wiping them. The cheese 
 will get matured much sooner by these means, and the 
 tendency to cracking and bulging be prevented. 
 
 The way to get a fine coat upon cheese, after the first 
 coat has been washed and scraped off, is to put the 
 cheese on shelves, nail thick sheeting to the ceiling from 
 one of the shelves to the other, and let it drop closely 
 to the floor. If put over the floor, cover them over 
 with thick sheeting, or rugs. 
 
 The varieties of cheese are almost infinite in num- 
 ber, and are often dependent on very minute details of 
 practice. The general principles involved are the same 
 in all ; but it would be next to impossible to find any 
 
TO WHAT VARIETIES ARE OWING. 255 
 
 one variety of cheese possessing uniformity through- 
 out, in point of texture, consistency, taste, flavor, and 
 keeping qualities ; and it is rare, with the present guess- 
 work in many of the operations of cheese-making, to 
 find a lot of cheese made in the same dairy, from the 
 same cows, on the same pastures and by the same 
 hands, which can be considered a fair sample of what is 
 generally produced. These great differences are due 
 to feeding and treatment of the cows in part, but 
 especially to the temperature of the milk at the time 
 of curding, which is again in part dependent on the 
 quality and strength of the rennet employed. 
 
 Nothing is more susceptible to external influences, 
 as has been remarked elsewhere, than milk and cream, 
 both of which are liable to taint from the food of the 
 cows, from impurities derived from careless milking, 
 from exposure to foul or impure air in the cellar or 
 milk-room, and from sudden changes in the atmosphere. 
 The most scrupulous cleanliness is, therefore, required 
 to produce a first quality of cheese, even under favor- 
 able circumstances. And when it is considered that it 
 is necessary to observe minutely the temperature of 
 the milk, and that slight differences at the time of 
 forming the curd may make the difference of mellow- 
 ness or toughness in the ripened cheese, and that the 
 proper temperature is affected by the time taken to 
 bring the curd, which depends on the strength and 
 quality of the rennet, some of which will act in fifteen 
 or twenty minutes, while the same quantity of others 
 requires even two or three hours to produce the same 
 effect, the infinite variety in the qualities of cheese will 
 scarcely be a matter of surprise. 
 
 A brief statement of the mode of making some of 
 the more important and well-known varieties will be suf- 
 ficient in this connection. The details of. cheese-making 
 
256 CHESHIRE CHEESE. 
 
 in some of the best of the dairies of New England and 
 New York correspond in a remarkable degree with the 
 mode of making Cheddar and Cheshire cheese, both 
 celebrated for their richness and popularity in the mar- 
 ket. Of the latter there are made, it is said, over 
 twelve thousand tons annually; Cheshire taking the 
 lead in cheese-making, and keeping about forty thousand 
 cows. 
 
 CHESHIRE CHEESE is remarkable for its uniformity, 
 being, in dairies of the best repute, made by fixed rules, 
 and usually by the same persons. If the number of 
 cows is sufficient to make a cheese from one meal, that 
 amount is used ; if not, two meals are united. The 
 cows are milked at six o'clock, morning and evening ; 
 are kept on rich pastures, and never driven far, great 
 care being taken that nothing shall interfere with the 
 regularity with which every operation connected with 
 this chief source of the wealth and prosperity of the 
 Cheshire farmer is conducted. The milk is brought in 
 large wooden pails into the milk-house, which it is gen- 
 erally contrived shall have a cool north aspect, and 
 immediately strained into pans, and placed upon the 
 floor of the dairy. Each pan is about six inches in 
 depth, and usually made of block-tin. This substance 
 is objected to by some because it is liable, like 
 every other metal, although, perhaps, in a less degree 
 than either zinc or lead, to be acted upon by the lactic 
 acid, and so produce compounds of a deleterious char- 
 acter. At six o'clock in the morning the cheese-ladder 
 is put on the cheese-tub, the whole of the night's milk 
 is again passed through the sieve, and the morning's 
 milk is then poured upon it, and well agitated to equal- 
 ize the temperature ; in cold weather a pan of hot water 
 is previously put into the tub, to increase the temper 
 ature of the previous night's meal. 
 
DETAILS OF MAKING. 257 
 
 The rennet is next applied, care being taken that 
 the heat of the whole quantity of the milk is about 
 seventy-four degrees ; and, almost simultaneously with 
 the rennet, the annatto, about a quarter of an ounce 
 is sufficient for a cheese of sixty-four pounds, both 
 of which, in all well-regulated dairies, are strained 
 through a piece of silk or fine cloth. The rennet :'s 
 generally made on the previous evening, by a piece 
 of the dried skin about the size of a crown-piece being 
 immersed in hot water, and allowed to stand all night. 
 After the rennet and coloring matter have been thor- 
 oughly mixed with the milk, it is covered with the lid 
 of the cheese-tub, and in cold weather with a cloth in 
 addition, to preserve the temperature of the mass until 
 the curd has formed. It is then left undisturbed for 
 about an hour, and frequently longer, to allow the coag- 
 ulation of the milk. After that time a curd-breaker is 
 passed up and down it for about five minutes, and 
 again it is allowed to settle for another half-hour. The 
 whey is then taken out by means of a dish or bowl, the 
 curd being gathered to one side of the tub, and gently 
 pressed by the hand, to allow the whey to separate from 
 it more easily. It is then pressed by a weight of about 
 fifty pounds ; afterwards the curd is taken out of the 
 tub and put into a basket, the inside of which is cov- 
 ered with a coarse square cheese-cloth. The four ends 
 of the cloth are then folded over the curd, a tin hoop 
 being put around the upper edge of the cheese, and 
 within the sides of the vat, upon which a board is placed 
 bearing a weight of about one hundred pounds, varying, 
 of course, with the size of the cheese. This process 
 is repeated two or three times, the curd being slightly 
 broken at each operation. It is next taken out of the 
 basket for salting or curing, and either broken down 
 small by hand or in a curd-rnill. A certain quantity of 
 22* 17 
 
258 CHESHIRE CHEESE. 
 
 salt is then carefully and intimately mixed with the 
 curd, according to the experience, taste, and custom, 
 of the dairymaid. It is then put into the cheese-vat in 
 a coarse cloth, pressed lightly at first for an hour ; then 
 taken out and turned, and the pressure increased until 
 the proper degree of consistence is attained. After- 
 wards it is turned every twelve hours for three or four 
 days, remaining in the vat until the curd becomes so 
 dry as not to moisten the cloth. During this time 
 skewers are passed through holes made in the sides 
 of the vat into the body of the cheese, the more effect- 
 ually to aid the expression of the whey, the pressure 
 being still continued. When they are withdrawn, the 
 whey flows through these miniature tunnels, which are 
 in a few moments obliterated by the superincumbent 
 weight. 
 
 It is the practice of some dairymaids in this county 
 to take the cheese to a cool salting-house, leaving it 
 there for a week or ten days, turning it daily, and rub- 
 bing salt on the upper surface. Others immerse the 
 cheese in a brine almost sufficiently strong to float it, 
 with occasional turning ; others, again, after taking the 
 cheese from the press, place it in a furnace at a mod- 
 erate heat, and keep it closed therein for a night ; while 
 some run a hot iron over the whole, or over the edges. 
 The binder a cloth of three or four inches in breadth 
 is then passed tightly round the cheese, and secured 
 by pins, when it is removed to the cheese-room, and 
 placed on a kind of grass, which in Cheshire is called 
 sniggle, the newest or latest-made cheese being put in 
 the warmest situation. Here it remains, being turned 
 over three times a week while it is new, and less often 
 as it becomes matured, care being taken to keep each 
 one of the cheeses separate from all the others. The 
 room selected for a store is always that which can be 
 
STILTON CHEESE. 259 
 
 best protected from the light, and any sudden changes 
 of temperature. The best Cheshire cheese is seldom 
 ripe for the market under one or two years. 
 
 The STILTON CHEESE is by far the richest of the 
 English dairies. This originated in a small town of that 
 name, in Leicestershire. It possesses " a peculiar deli- 
 cacy of flavor, a delicious mellowness, and a great apt- 
 ness to acquire a species of artificial decay ; without 
 which, to the somewhat vitiated taste of lovers of Stilton 
 cheese, as now eaten, it is not considered of prime 
 account. To be in good order, according to the present 
 standard of taste, it must be decayed, blue, and moist." 
 To suit this taste, an artificial mode is adopted, old and 
 decayed cheese being introduced into the new, or port 
 wine or ale added by means of tasters, or caulking-pins 
 are stuck into them, and left till they rust and produce 
 an appearance of decay in the cheese. 
 
 " It is commonly made by putting the night's cream 
 to the milk of the following morning with the rennet, 
 great care being taken that the milk and the cream are 
 thoroughly mixed together, and that they both have 
 the proper temperature. The rennet should also be 
 very pure and sweet. As soon as the milk is curdled, 
 the whole of it is taken out, put into a sieve gradually 
 to drain, and moderately pressed. It is then put into 
 a case or box, of the form that it is intended to be ; for, 
 on account of its richness, it would separate and fall to 
 pieces were not this precaution adopted. Afterwards 
 it is turned every day on dry boards, cloth-binders being 
 tied around it, which are gradually tightened as occasion 
 requires. After it is removed from the box or hoop, the 
 cheese must be closely bound with cloths and changed 
 daily, until it becomes sufficiently compact to support 
 itself. When these cloths are taken away, each cheese 
 has to be rubbed over with a brush once every day. If 
 
260 ACORN FORM. GLOUCESTER CHEESE. 
 
 the weather is moist or damp, this is done twice a day 
 during two or three months. It is occasionally pow- 
 dered with flour, and plunged into hot water. This 
 hardens the outer coat and favors the internal ferment- 
 ation, and thus produces what is called the ripening 
 of the cheese. Sometimes it is made in a net like a 
 cabbage-net, which gives it the form of an acorn." 
 
 The maturity of Stilton cheeses is sometimes has 
 tened by putting them in a bucket, and covering them 
 over with horse-dung. 
 
 GLOUCESTER CHEESE is likewise quite celebrated for 
 its richness, piquancy, and delicacy of flavor, and justly 
 commands a high price in the market. The manage- 
 ment of the milk up to the time of curding is similar to 
 that of Cheshire ; a cheese, often being made of one 
 meal, requires no additional heat to raise it to a proper 
 temperature. After the curd is cut into small squares, 
 the whey is carefully drained off through a hair strainer. 
 The cutting is repeated every thirty minutes till the 
 whey is removed, when it is put into vats and covered 
 with dry cloths, and placed in the press. After remain- 
 ing a sufficient length of time, it is put into a curd-mill 
 and cut or ground into small pieces, when it is again 
 packed in fine canvas cloth, and put in the cheese-vat. 
 Hot water or whey is poured over the cloth, to harden 
 the rind and prevent its cracking. " The curd is next 
 turned out of the vat into the cloth, and, the inside of 
 the vat being washed with whey, the inverted curd 
 with the cloth is returned to the vat. The cloth is then 
 folded over, and the vat put into the press for two 
 hours, when it is taken out, and dry cloths applied dur- 
 ing the course of the day. It is then replaced in the 
 press until salted, which operation is generally performed 
 about twenty-four hours after it is made. In salting the 
 cheese, it is rubbed with finely-powdered salt, and this 
 
CHEDDAR AND DUNLOP CHEESE. 261 
 
 is thought to make the cheese more smooth and solid 
 than when the salting process is performed upon the 
 curd. The cheese is after this returned to the vat, 
 and put under the press, in which several are placed, 
 the newest at the bottom and the oldest on the top. 
 The salting is repeated three times, twenty-four hours 
 being allowed to intervene between each ; and the 
 cheese is finally taken from the press to the cheese-room 
 in the course of five days. In the cheese-room it is 
 turned over every day for a month, when it is cleaned 
 of all scurf, and rubbed over with a woollen cloth 
 dipped in a paint made of Indian red or Spanish 
 brown and small beer. As soon as the paint is dry, 
 the cheese is rubbed once a week with a cloth. The 
 quantity of salt employed is about three and a half 
 pounds ; and one pound of annatto is sufficient to color 
 half a ton of cheese." 
 
 CHEDDAR CHEESE is another variety in high repute 
 for its richness, and commands a high price in the mar- 
 ket. It is made of new milk only, and contains more 
 fat than the egg. It is, indeed, too rich for ordinary 
 consumption. The milk is set with rennet while yet 
 warm, and allowed to stand still about two hours. The 
 whey first taken off is heated and poured back upon the 
 curd, and, after turning off the remainder, that is also 
 heated and poured back in the same manner, where it 
 stands about half an hour. The curd is then put into 
 the press, and treated very much as the Cheshire up to 
 the time of ripeness. 
 
 The DUNLOP CHEESE, the most celebrated of Scot 
 land, had its origin in Ayrshire, from which it was sent 
 to the Glasgow market, and from which the manufacture 
 soon spread to Lanark, Renfrew, and other adjoining 
 counties. It is manufactured, according to Aiton, in the 
 following manner : When the cows on a farm are not 
 
262 MODE OF MAKING DUNLOP CHEESE. 
 
 so numerous as to yield milk sufficient to make a cheese 
 every time they are milked, the milk is stored about 
 six or eight inches deep in the coolers, and placed in 
 the milk-house until as much is collected as will form a 
 cheese of a proper size. When the cheese is to be 
 made, the cream is skimmed from the milk in the cool- 
 ers, and, without being heated, is, with the milk that 
 is drawn from the cows at the time, passed through the 
 sieve into the curd-vat. The cold milk from which 
 the cream has been taken is heated so as to raise the 
 temperature of the whole mass to near blood heat ; and 
 the whole is coagulated by the means of rennet care- 
 fully mixed with the milk. The cream is put into the 
 curd-vat, that its oily parts may not be melted, and the 
 skimmed milk is heated sufficient to raise the whole 
 to near animal heat. 
 
 It may be said that the utmost care is always taken 
 to keep the milk, in all stages of the operation, free 
 not only from every admixture or impurity, but also 
 from being hurt by foul air arising from acidity in 
 any milky substance, putrid water, the stench of the 
 barn, dunghill, or any other substance ; and likewise to 
 prevent the milk from becoming sour, which, when it 
 happens, greatly injures the cheese. Great care is taken 
 to prevent any of the butyraceous or oily matter in the 
 cream from being melted in any stage of the process. 
 To cool the milk, and to facilitate the separation or 
 rising of the cream, a small quantity of clean cold 
 water is generally mixed with the milk in each cooler. 
 The coagulum is formed in from ten to fifteen minutes, 
 and nobody would use rennet twice that required more 
 than twenty minutes or half an hour to form a curd. 
 Whenever the milk is completely coagulated the curd 
 is broken, in order to let the serum or whey be sep- 
 arated and taken off. Some break the curd slightly at 
 
MR. AITON'S STATEMENT. 263 
 
 first, by making cross-scores with a knife or a thin piece 
 of wood, at about one or two inches distant, and inter- 
 secting each other at right angles ; and these are 
 renewed still more closely after some of the whey has 
 been discharged. Others break the whole curd more 
 minutely at once with the hand or the skimmer. 
 
 After the curd has been broken, the whey ought to 
 be taken off as speedily as it can be done, and with as 
 little further breaking or handling the curd as possible. 
 It is necessary, however, to turn the curd, cut it with 
 a knife, or break it gently with the hand. 
 
 When the curd has 'consolidated a little, it is cut 
 with the cheese-knife, slightly at first, and more mi- 
 nutely as it hardens, so as to bring off the whey. When 
 the greater part of the whey has been extracted, the 
 curd is taken up from the curd-boyn, and, being cut into 
 pieces of about two inches in thickness, it is placed in 
 a sort of vat or sieve with many holes. A Jid is placed 
 upon it, and a slight pressure, say from three to four 
 stone avoirdupois ; and the curd is turned up arid cut 
 small every ten or fifteen minutes, and occasionally 
 pressed with the hand so long as it continues to dis- 
 charge serum. When no more whey can be drawn off 
 by these means, the curd is cut as small as possible with 
 the knife, the proper quantity of salt minutely mixed 
 into it in the curd-boyn, and placed in the chessart 
 within a shift of thin canvas, and put under the press. 
 
 All these operations ought to be carried on and com- 
 pleted with the least possible delay, and yet without 
 precipitation. The sooner the whey is removed after 
 the coagulation of the milk, so much the better. But, 
 if the curd is soft, from being set too cold, it requires 
 more time, and to be more gently dealt with, as other- 
 wise much of the curd and of the fat would go off with 
 the whey ; and when the curd has been formed too hot, 
 
CHEESE IN THE SCOTCH DAIRIES. 
 
 the same caution is necessary. Precipitation, or hand- 
 ling the curd too roughly, would add to its toughness, 
 and expel still more of the oily matter ; and, as has been 
 already mentioned, hot water or whey should be put on 
 the curd when it is soft and cold, and cold water when 
 the curd is set too hot. 
 
 Undue delay, however, in any of these operations, 
 from the time the milk is taken out of the coolers until 
 the curd is under the press in the shape of a cheese, 
 is most improper, as the curd in all these stages is, 
 when neglected for even a few minutes, very apt to 
 become ill-flavored. If it is allowed to remain too 
 long in the curd- vat, or in the dripper over it, before 
 the whey is completely extracted, the curd becomes 
 too cold, and acquires a pungent or acrid taste ; or, it 
 softens so much that the cheese is not sufficiently adhe- 
 sive, and does not easily part with the serum. Whenever 
 the curd is completely set, the whey should be taken off 
 without delay; and the dairymaid should never leave 
 the curd-boyn until the curd is ready for the dripper or 
 cheese-vat. The salt is mixed into the curd. 
 
 After the cheese is put into the press, it remains for 
 the first time about an hour, or less than two hours, 
 until it is taken out, turned upside down in the cheese- 
 vat, and a new cloth put around it every four or six 
 hours until the cheese is completed, which is generally 
 in the course of a day and a half, two, or at most in 
 three days after it was first put under the press. 
 
 Some have shortened the process of pressing by 
 placing the cheese after it has been under the press 
 for two hours or so for the first time into water 
 heated to about one hundred or one hundred and ten 
 degrees, and allowing the cheese to remain in the water 
 about the space of half an hour, and thereafter drying 
 it with a "*,loth, and putting it again under the press. 
 
THE STORE-ROOM. 265 
 
 When taken from the press, generally after two or 
 three days from the time they were first placed under it, 
 they are exposed for a week or so to the warmth and 
 heat of the farmer's kitchen, not to excite sweating, 
 but merely to dry them a little before they are placed 
 in the store, where a small proportion of heat is 
 admitted. While they remain in the kitchen they are 
 turned over three or four times every day ; and, when- 
 ever they begin to harden a little on the outside, they 
 are laid up on the shelves of the store, where they are 
 turned over once a day or once in two days for a 
 week or so, until they are dry, and twice every week 
 afterwards. 
 
 The store-houses for cheese in Scotland are in pro- 
 portion to the size of the dairy, generally a small 
 place adjoining the milk-house, or in the end of the 
 barn or other buildings, where racks are placed, with 
 as many shelves as can hold the cheeses made in the 
 season. When no particular place is prepared, the 
 racks are placed in the barn, which is generally empty 
 during summer ; or some lay the cheeses on the floor 
 of a garret over some part of their dwelling-house. 
 
 Wherever the cheeses are stored, they are not 
 sweated or put into a warm place, but kept cool, in a 
 place in a medium state, between damp and dry, with- 
 out the sun being allowed to shine on them, or yet a 
 great current of air admitted. Too much air, or the 
 rays of the sun, would dry the cheeses too fast, diminish 
 their weight, and make them crack ; and heat would 
 make them sweat or perspire, which extracts the fat, 
 and tends to induce hooving. But when they are kept 
 in a temperature nearly similar to that of a barn, the 
 doors of which are not much open, and but a moderate 
 current of air admitted, the cheeses are kept in a 
 proper shape, neither so dry as to rend the skin, nor so 
 23 
 
266 DUTCH AND PARMESAN CHEESE. 
 
 damp as to render them mouldy on the outside ; ai.d no 
 partial fermentation is excited, but the cheese is pre- 
 served sound and good. 
 
 DUTCH CHEESE. The most celebrated of the Dutch 
 cheeses is the Edam, of North Holland, and the Gouda. 
 The manufacture of these and other varieties will be 
 described in a subsequent chapter, on Dairy Husbandry 
 in Holland. 
 
 The PARMESAN is an Italian cheese, made of one meal 
 of milk, allowed to stand sixteen hours, to which is 
 added another which has stood eight hours. The cream 
 being taken from both, the skim-milk is heated an hour 
 over a slow fire, and constantly stirred till it reaches 
 about eighty-two degrees, when the rennet is put in and 
 an hour allowed to form the curd. The curd is 
 thoroughly broken or cut, after which a part of the 
 whey is removed, and the curd is then heated nearly 
 up to the boiling point, when a little saffron is added to 
 color it. It then stands over the fire about half an 
 hour, when it is taken off, and nearly all the rest of 
 the whey removed, cold water being added, till the 
 curd is cool enough to handle. It is then surrounded 
 with a cloth, and, after being partially dried, is put 
 into a hoop and remains there two days. It is then 
 sprinkled with salt for thirty days in summer, or about 
 forty in winter. One cheese is then laid above another 
 to allow them to take the salt ; after which they are 
 scraped and cleansed every day, and rubbed with lin- 
 seed-oil to preserve them from the attack of insects, and 
 they are ready for sale at the age of six months. 
 
 AMERICAN CHEESE, as it is called in the English 
 markets, whither large quantities are shipped for sale, 
 is made of almost every conceivable variety and quality, 
 from the richest Cheddar or Cheshire to the poorest 
 skim-milk cheese. The statements of some of the best 
 
AMERICAN CHEESE. 267 
 
 dairymen have already been given. As a further illus- 
 tration of the mode pursued in other sections of the 
 country, the statement of C. G. Taylor, a successful 
 competitor for the premiums offered by the Illinois State 
 Agricultural Society, may be given as follows : 
 
 " As the milk is drawn from the cows, it is immedi- 
 ately strained into a vat. This vat is a new patent, and 
 is better than any I have ever seen for cheese-making. 
 It is double, a space being left between the two parts. 
 Into the upper vat the milk is strained, and cold water 
 is applied between it and the lower one. Thus the ani- 
 mal heat is soon expelled, and the milk is prevented 
 from souring before morning. The morning milk is 
 added. Under the lower vat a copper boiler is 
 arranged. The water in the boiler is in perfect con- 
 nection with that remaining all around the upper or 
 milk vat, connected with three copper pipes. With a 
 little wood the water is warmed. Thus the tempera- 
 ture of the milk is soon brought to the desired point to 
 receive the rennet, which is about ninety to ninety- 
 five degrees. Sufficient rennet is applied to the milk 
 to cause it to curdle or coagulate in from thirty to 
 forty minutes. Then the curd is carefully cut, each 
 way, into slices of aboiit one inch square. Soon the 
 temperature is slowly increased. In about twenty 
 minutes the curd is carefully broken up with the hand, 
 increasing the heat, and stirring often. When the 
 curd is sufficiently hard, so as to "squeal" when you bite 
 it, it is scalded. By this time the temperature is up to 
 about one hundred and thirty or one hundred and 
 forty. 
 
 " There are hinges placed in the legs of one end of 
 the vat, which is easily tipped, and through the curd- 
 strainer and whey-gate the whey is soon run off. The 
 curd is then dipped into a sink, over which is placed a 
 
268 COMPOSITION OF CHEESE. 
 
 coarse strainer, and allowed to drain quite dry. It is 
 then broken up fine, and one teacup of ground solar salt 
 added to curd to make twenty pounds of cheese, and well 
 worked in. After the curd is quite cool, it is placed 
 in the hoop, and a light pressure is applied. In a few 
 minutes more power is needed. After remaining in press 
 about six hours, it is taken out of the hoop, wholly 
 covered with strong muslin, finely sewed on, and then 
 reversed and replaced in the hoop and press. It is 
 allowed to remain until the next day, when it has to 
 give place for another. 
 
 " After pressing thus twenty-four hours, the cheese is 
 placed upon the shelf, and allowed to stand until the 
 cloth is dry. Then a preparation, made from annatto 
 and butter-oil, is applied sufficiently to fill all the 
 interstices of the cloth. It must be turned and thor- 
 oughly rubbed three times a week, until ripe for use. 
 
 " I use the self-acting press. I know of none in use 
 that is better, the weight of the cheese being the 
 power.'' 
 
 The statements of skilful and practical dairymen, in 
 different parts of the country, are sufficient to show 
 that good cheese can be produced ; but it is believed 
 that a more general attention to all the details of the 
 dairy would add many thousand dollars a year to the 
 wealth of the people, and enable us to compete suc- 
 cessfully with the best dairy countries in the world. 
 
 The composition of cheese will, of course, differ 
 widely in nutritive value, according to the mode of 
 manufacture, age, etc. A specimen of good cheese was 
 found to contain about 31.02 per cent, of flesh-forming 
 substances, 25.30 per cent, of heat-producing sub- 
 stances, 4.90 per cent, of mineral matter, and 38.78 per 
 cent, of water. 
 
 The analyses of several varieties will serve as a com- 
 
CHEESE AS FOOD. 
 
 269 
 
 parison of cheese with other kinds of food. The Ched- 
 dar was a rich cheese two years old, the double Glou- 
 cester one year old, the Dunlop one year old, the skim- 
 milk one year. 
 
 
 Cheddar. 
 
 Dbl. Glo'ster. 
 
 Dunlop. 
 
 Skim-milk. 
 
 Water, .... 
 
 30.04 
 
 35.81 
 
 38.46 
 
 43.82 
 
 Caseine, .... 
 Fat, 
 
 28.98 
 30.40 
 
 37.96 
 21.97 
 
 25.87 
 31.86 
 
 45.04 
 
 5.98 
 
 Ash, 
 
 4.58 
 
 4.25 
 
 8.81 
 
 5.18 
 
 Professor Johnston gives a table of comparison of 
 Cheddar and skim-milk cheese in a dried state, and milk, 
 beef, and eggs, also in a dried state, as follows : 
 
 Caseine (curd), . 
 Fat (butter), . . 
 Sugar, .... 
 Mineral matter, . 
 
 Milk. 
 
 Cheddar 
 cheese, dried. 
 
 Skim-milk 
 cheese, dried. 
 
 Beef. 
 
 Eggs. 
 
 55 
 40 
 
 5 
 
 35 
 24 
 37 
 4 
 
 45 
 
 48 
 
 7 
 
 80 
 11 
 
 9 
 
 89 
 
 7 
 4 
 
 100 
 
 100 
 
 100 
 
 100 
 
 100 
 
 A full-milk cheese differs but little from pure milk, 
 except in the absence of sugar, which, as already seen, 
 is held in solution, and goes off in the whey. The dif- 
 ference becomes greater in proportion as the cream is 
 removed from the milk before curding, and the nutritive 
 qualities thereby diminished. 
 
 Cheese is used both as a regular article of food, for 
 which the ordinary kinds of full-milk cheeses are 
 admirably fitted, and as a condiment or digester, in con- 
 nection with other articles of food; and for this purpose 
 the stronger varieties, such as are partially decayed 
 and mouldy, are best. " When the curd of milk is 
 exposed to the air in a moist state, for a few days, at a 
 moderate temperature, it begins gradually to decay, to 
 emit a disagreeable odor, and to ferment. When in 
 23* 
 
270 DIGESTIVE QUALITY OF CHEESE. 
 
 this state, it possesses the property, in certain circum- 
 stances, of inducing a species of chemical change and 
 fermentation in other moist substances with which it is 
 mixed, or is brought into contact. It acts after the 
 same manner as sour leaven does when mixed with 
 sweet dough. Now, old and partially decayed cheese 
 acts in a similar way when introduced into the stomach. 
 It causes chemical changes gradually to commence 
 among the particles of the food which has previously 
 been eaten, and thus facilitates the dissolution which 
 necessarily precedes digestion. It is only some kinds 
 of cheese, however, which will effect this purpose. 
 Those are generally considered the best in which some 
 kind of cheese-mould has established itself. Hence, 
 the mere eating of a morsel of cheese after dinner does 
 not necessarily promote digestion. If too new, or of 
 improper quality, it will only add to the quantity of 
 food with which the stomach is probably already over- 
 loaded, arid will have to await its turn for digestion by 
 the ordinary processes." This mouldiness and tendency 
 to decay, with its flavor and digestive quality, are 
 often communicated to new cheese by inoculation, or 
 insertion of a small portion of the old into the interior 
 of the new by means of the cheese-taster. 
 
 In studying attentively the practice of the most suc- 
 cessful cheese-makers, I think it will be observed that 
 they are particularly careful about the preparation of 
 the rennet, and equally so about the details of pressing. 
 In my opinion, the point in which many American 
 cheese-makers fail of success is in hurrying the press- 
 ing. I think it will be found that the best cheese is 
 pressed two days, at least, and in many cases still 
 longer. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE DISEASES OF DAIRY STOCK. 
 
 DAIRY STOCK, properly fed and managed, is liable to 
 few diseases in this country, notwithstanding the 
 sudden changes to which our climate is subject. If 
 pure air, pure water, a dry barn or pasture, and a fre- 
 quent but gradual change of diet, when kept in the stall, 
 are provided for milch cows, nature will generally 
 remedy any derangements of the system which may 
 occur, far better than art. Common sense is especially 
 requisite in the treatment of stock, and that will very 
 rarely dictate a resort to bleeding, boring the horns, 
 cutting off the tail, and a thousand other equally absurd 
 practices, too common even within the memory of men 
 still living. 
 
 The diseases most to be dreaded are garget, puer- 
 peral or milk fever, and idiopathic or common fever, 
 commonly called " horn ail," and often " tail ail." 
 
 GARGET is an inflammation of the internal substance 
 of the udder. One or more of the teats, or whole sec- 
 tions of the udder, become enlarged and thickened, hot, 
 tender, and painful. The milk coagulates in the bag, 
 and causes inflammation where it is deposited, which is 
 accompanied by fever. It most commonly occurs in 
 young cows after calving, especially when in too high 
 condition. The secretion of milk is very much lessened, 
 and, in very bad cases, stopped altogether. Sometimes 
 
272 GARGET. SYMPTOMS. TREATMENT. 
 
 the milk is thick, and mixed with blood. Often, also, 
 in severe cases, the hind extremities, as the hip-joint, 
 hock, or fetlock, are swollen and inflamed to such an 
 extent that the animal cannot rise. The simplest remedy, 
 in mild cases, is to put the calf to its mother several 
 times a day. This will remove the flow of milk, and 
 often dispel the congestion. 
 
 Sometimes the udder is so much swollen that the cow 
 will not permit the calf to suck. If the fever increases, 
 the appetite declines, and rumination ceases. In this 
 stage of the complaint, the advice of a scientific veter- 
 inary practitioner is required. A dose of purging 
 medicine and frequent washing of the udder, in mild 
 cases, are usually successful. The physic should con- 
 sist of Epsom salts one pound, ginger half an ounce, 
 nitrate of potassa half an ounce ; dissolved in a quart of 
 boiling water ; then add a gill of molasses, and give to 
 the cow lukewarm. Diet moderate ; that is, on bran, or 
 if in summer green food. There are various medicines 
 for the different forms and stages of garget, which, if 
 the above medicine fails, can be properly prescribed 
 only by a skilful veterinary practitioner. 
 
 It is important that the udder should be frequently 
 examined, as matter may be forming, which should be 
 immediately released. Various causes are assigned for 
 this disease, such as exposure to cold and wet, or the 
 want of proper care or attention in parturition. 
 
 An able writer, Mr. Youatt, says that hasty drying 
 up a cow often gives rise to inflammation and indura- 
 tions of the udder, difficult of removal. Sometimes a 
 cow lies down upon and bruises the udder, and this is 
 another cause. But a very frequent source, and one 
 for which there can be no excuse, is the failure to milk 
 a cow clean. The culf should be allowed to suck often, 
 and the cow should be milked at least twice a day 
 
PREVENTION CHEAPER THAN CURE. 273 
 
 as clean as possible, while suffering from this com- 
 plaint. 
 
 If the urlder is hot and feverish, a wash may be 
 used, consisting of eight ounces of vinegar and two 
 ounces of camphoretted spirit; the whole well and 
 thoroughly mixed, and applied just after milking, to be 
 washed off in warm water before milking again. 
 
 In very bad cases, iodine has often been found most 
 effectual. An iodine ointment may be prepared by 
 taking one drachm of hydriodate of potash and an 
 ounce of lard, and mixing them well together. A small 
 portion of the mixture, from the size of a pigeon's egg, 
 in limited inflammations, to twice that amount, is to be 
 well rubbed into the swollen part, morning and night. 
 
 When milk forms in the bag before parturition, so as 
 to cause a swelling of the udder, it should be milked 
 away ; and a neglect of this precaution often leads to 
 violent attacks of garget. 
 
 Prevention is always better than cure. The reason 
 most commonly given for letting the cow run dry for 
 a month or two before calving is that after a long period 
 of milking her system requires rest, and that she will 
 give more milk and do better the coming season than 
 if milked up to the time of calving. 
 
 This is all true, and a reason sufficient in itself for 
 drying off the cow some weeks before parturition; but 
 there is another important reason for the practice, which 
 is that the mixture of the old milk with the new secre- 
 tion is liable to end in an obstinate case of garget. 
 
 To prevent any ill effects from calving, the cow 
 should not be suffered to get too fat, which high feed- 
 ing after drying off might induce. 
 
 The period of gestation is about two hundred and 
 eighty-four or two hundred and eighty-five days. But 
 cows sometimes overrun their time, and have been 
 
 18 
 
274 GESTATION. SLINKING. CALVING. 
 
 known to go three hundred and thirteen days, and even 
 more ; while they now and then fall short of it, and have 
 been known to calve in two hundred and twenty days. 
 If they go much over the average time, the calf will 
 generally be a male. But cows are sometimes liable to 
 slink their calves; and this usually takes place about 
 the middle of their pregnancy. To avoid the evil con- 
 sequences, so far as possible, they should be watched ; 
 and, if a cow is found to be uneasy and feverish, or 
 wandering about away from the rest of the herd, and 
 apparently longing for something she cannot get, she 
 ought to be taken away from the others. 
 
 If a cow slinks her calf while in the pasture with 
 others, they will be liable to be affected in the same way. 
 
 In many cases, physicking will quiet the cow's excite- 
 ment in the condition above described, and prove of es- 
 sential benefit. A dose of one pound of Epsom or Glau- 
 ber's salts, and one ounce of ginger, mixed in a pint of 
 thick gruel, should be given first, to be immediately 
 followed by the salts, in a little thinner gruel. 
 
 When a cow once slinks her calf, there is great risk in 
 breeding from her. She is liable to do the same again. 
 But when the slinking is caused by sudden fright or 
 over-exertion, or any offensive matter, such as blood or 
 the dead carcasses of animals, this result is not so much 
 to be feared. 
 
 But the cow, when about to calve, ought not to be 
 disturbed by too constant watching. The natural pre- 
 sentation of the foetus is with the head lying upon the 
 fore legs. If in this position, nature will generally do 
 all. But, if the presentation is unnatural, and the labor 
 has been long and ineffectual, some assistance is 
 required. The hand, well greased, may be introduced, 
 and the position of the calf changed ; and, when in a 
 proper position, a cord should be tied round the fore 
 
FALSE PRESENTATIONS. MILK FEVER. 275 
 
 legs, just above the hoofs ; but no effort should be 
 made to draw out the calf till the natural throes are re- 
 peated. If the nostril of the calf has protruded, and the 
 position is then found to be unnatural, the head cannot 
 be thrust back without destroying the life of the calf. 
 
 The false position most usually presented is that of 
 the head first, with the legs doubled under the belly. A 
 cord is then fixed around the lower jaw, when it is 
 pushed back, to give an opportunity to adjust the fore 
 legs, if possible. The object must now be to save the 
 life of the cow. 
 
 But the cases of false presentation, though compara- 
 tively rare, are so varied that no directions could be 
 given which would be applicable in all cases. 
 
 After calving the cow will require but little care, if she 
 is in the barn, and protected from changes of weather. 
 A warm bran mash is usually given, and the state of 
 the udder examined. 
 
 PUERPERAL OR MILK FEVER. Calving is often at- 
 tended with feverish excitement. The change of power- 
 ful action from the womb to the udder causes much 
 constitutional disturbance and local inflammation. A cow 
 is subject to nervousness in such circumstances, which 
 sometimes extends to the whole system, and causes 
 puerperal fever. This complaint is called dropping 
 after, calving, because it succeeds that process. The 
 prominent symptom is a loss of power over the motion 
 of the hind extremities, and inability to stand ; some- 
 times loss of sensibility in these parts, so that a deep 
 puncture with a pin, or other sharp instrument, is unfelt. 
 
 This disease is much to be dreaded by the farmer, on 
 account of the high state of excitement and the local 
 inflammation. Either from neglect or ignorance, the mal- 
 ady is not discovered until the manageable symptoms 
 have passed, and extreme debility has appeared. The 
 
276 MILK FEVER. SYMPTOMS. 
 
 animal is often first seen lying down, unable to rise ; 
 prostration of strength and violent fever are brought on 
 by inflammation of the womb. But soon a general 
 inflammatory action succeeds, rapid and violent, with 
 complete prostration of all the vital forces, bidding 
 defiance to the best-selected remedies. 
 
 Cows in very high condition, and cattle removed from 
 low keeping to high feeding, are the most liable to 
 puerperal fever. It occurs most frequently during the 
 hot weather of summer, and then it is most dangerous. 
 When it occurs in winter, cows sometimes recover. In 
 hot weather they usually die. 
 
 Milk fever may be induced by the hot drinks often 
 given after calving. A young cow at her first calving 
 is rarely attacked with it. Great milkers are most com- 
 monly subject to it ; but all cows have generally more 
 or less fever at calving. A little addition to it, by im- 
 proper treatment or neglect, will prevent the secretion 
 of milk ; and thus the milk, being thrown back into the 
 system, will increase the inflammation. 
 
 This disease sometimes shows itself in the short 
 space of two or three hours after calving, but often not 
 under two or three days. If four or five days have 
 passed, the cow may generally be considered safe. The 
 earliest symptoms of this disease are as follows : 
 
 The animal is restless, frequently shifting her posi- 
 tion; occasionally pawing and heaving at the flanks. 
 Muzzle hot and dry, the mouth open, and tongue 
 out at one side ; countenance wild ; eyes staring. She 
 moans often, and soon becomes very irritable. Delirium 
 follows; she grates her teeth, foams at the mouth, 
 tosses her head about, and frequently injures herself. 
 From the first, the udder is hot, enlarged, and tender ; 
 and if this swelling is attended by a suspension of milk, 
 the cause is clear. As the case is inflammatory, its 
 
BLEEDING RARELY NECESSARY. 277 
 
 treatment must be in accordance ; and it is usually 
 subdued without much difficulty. Mr. Youatt says, 
 "The animal should be bled, and the quantity regulated 
 by the impression made upon the circulation, from 
 six to ten quarts often before the desired effect is pro- 
 duced." He wrote at a time when bleeding was 
 adopted as the universal cure, and before the general 
 reasoning and treatment of diseases of the human sys- 
 tem was applied to similar diseases of animals. The 
 cases are very rare, indeed, where the physician of the 
 present day finds it necessary to bleed in diseases of 
 the human subject ; and they are equally rare, I appre- 
 hend, where it is really necessary or judicious to bleed 
 for the diseases of animals. A more humane and 
 equally effectual course will be the following : 
 
 A pound to one and a half pounds of Epsom or Glau- 
 ber's salts, according to the size and condition of the 
 animal, should be given, dissolved in a quart of boiling 
 water ; and, when dissolved, add pulv. red pepper a 
 quarter of an ounce, caraway do. do., ginger do. do. ; 
 mix, and add a gill of molasses, and give lukewarm. 
 If this medicine does not act on the bowels, the quantity 
 of ginger, capsicum, and caraway, must be doubled. 
 The insensible stomach must be roused. When purg- 
 ing in an early stage is begun, the fever will more 
 readily subside. After the operation of the medicine, 
 sedatives may be given, if necessary. 
 
 The digestive function first fails, when the secondary 
 or low state of fever comes on. The food undis- 
 charged ferments; the stomach and intestines are 
 inflated with gas, and swell rapidly. The nervous 
 system is also attacked, and the poor beast staggers. 
 The hind extremities show the weakness; the cow 
 falls, and cannot rise ; her head is turned on one side, 
 where it re^ts ; her limbs are palsied. The treatment 
 24 
 
278 THE PULSE. PRESCRIPTION. 
 
 in this stage must depend on the existence and degree 
 of fever. The pulse will be the only true guide. If it 
 is weak, wavering, and irregular, we mu-st avoid deplet- 
 ing, purgative agents. The blood flows through the 
 arteries, impelled by the action of the heart, and its 
 pulsations can be very distinctly felt by pressing the 
 finger upon almost any of these arteries that is not too 
 thickly covered by fat or the cellular tissues of the 
 skin, especially where it can be pressed upon some 
 hard or bony substance beneath it. The most conve- 
 nient place is directly at the back part of the lower jaw, 
 where a large artery passes over the edge of the jaw- 
 bone to ramify on the face. The natural pulse of a full- 
 grown ox will vary from about forty-eight to fifty-five 
 beats a minute ; that of a cow is rather quicker, 
 especially near the time of calving ; and that of a calf 
 is quicker than that of a cow. But a very much 
 quicker rate than that indicated will show a feverish 
 state, or inflammation ; and a much slower pulsation 
 indicates debility of some kind. 
 
 Next in importance, as we have already stated, is 
 the physic. The bowels must be opened, or the ani- 
 mal will fall a victim to the disease. All medicines 
 should be of an active character, and in sufficient 
 quantity ; and stimulants should always be added to 
 the purgative medicines, to insure their operation. 
 Ginger, gentian, caraway, or red pepper in powder, may 
 be given with each dose of physic. Some give a power- 
 ful purgative, by means of Epsom salts one pound, flour 
 of sulphur four ounces, powdered ginger a quarter of 
 an ounce, all dissolved in a quart of cold water, and 
 one half given twice a day till the bowels are opened. 
 The digestive organs are deranged in most forms 
 of milk fever, and the third stomach is loaded with 
 hard, indigestible food. When the medicine has operated, 
 
PROPER NURSING. SIMPLE FEVER. 279 
 
 and the fever is subdued, little is required but good 
 nursing to restore the patient. 
 
 No powerful medicines should be used without dis- 
 cretion ; for in the milder forms of the disease, as the 
 simple palsy of the hind extremities, the treatment, 
 though of a similar character, should be less powerful, 
 and every effort should be made for the comfort of the 
 cow, by providing a thick bed of straw, and raising the 
 fore quarters to assist the efforts of nature, while all 
 filth should be promptly and carefully removed. She 
 may be covered with a warm cloth, and warm gruel 
 should be frequently offered to her, and light mashes. 
 An attempt should be made several times a day to 
 bring milk from the teats. The return of milk is an 
 indication of speedy recovery. 
 
 Milch cows in too high condition appear to have a 
 constitutional tendency to this complaint, and one 
 attack of it predisposes them to another. 
 
 SIMPLE FEVER. This may be considered as increased 
 arterial action, with or without any local affection ; or 
 it may be the consequence of the sympathy of the sys- 
 tem with the morbid condition of some particular part. 
 The first is pure or idiopathic fever ; the other, symptom- 
 atic fever. Pure fever is of frequent occurrence in cattle. 
 Symptoms as follows : muzzle dry ; rumination slow 
 or entirely suspended ; respiration slightly accelerated ; 
 the horn at the root hot, and its other extremity fre- 
 quently cold ; pulse quick ; bowels constipated ; coat 
 staring, and the cow is usually seen separated from the 
 rest of the herd. In slight attacks, a cathartic of salts, 
 sulphur, and ginger, is sufficient. But, if the common 
 fever is neglected, or improperly treated, it may assume, 
 after a time, a local determination, as pleurisy, or 
 inflammation of the lungs or bowels. In such cases the 
 above remedy would be insufficient, and a veterinary 
 
280 SYMPTOMATIC FEVER. 
 
 surgeon, to manage the case, would be necessary. 
 Symptomatic fever is more dangerous, and is commonly 
 the result of injury, the neighboring parts sympathizing 
 with the injured part. Cattle become unwell, are stinted 
 in their feed, have a dose of physic, and in a few days 
 are well ; still, a fever may terminate in some local 
 affection. But in both cases pure fever is the primary 
 disease. 
 
 A more dangerous form of fever is that known as 
 symptomatic. As we have said, cattle are not only 
 subject to fever of common intensity, but to symp- 
 tomatic fever, and thousands die annually from its 
 effects. But the young and the most thriving are its 
 victims. There are few premonitory symptoms of symp- 
 tomatic fever. It often appears without any previous 
 indications of illness. The animal stands with her neck 
 extended, her eyes protruding and red, muzzle dry, 
 nostrils expanded, breath hot, base of the horn hot, 
 mouth open, pulse full, breathing quick. She is often 
 moaning ; rumination and appetite are suspended ; she 
 soon becomes more uneasy; changes her position often. 
 Unless these symptoms are speedily removed, she dies 
 in a few hours. The name of the ailment, inflam- 
 matory or symptomatic fever, shows the treatment 
 necessary, which must commence with purging. Salts 
 here, as in most inflammatory diseases, are the most 
 reliable. From a pound to a pound and a half, with 
 ginger and sulphur, is a dose, dissolved in warm water 
 or thin gruel. If this does not operate in twelve hours, 
 give half the dose, and repeat once in twelve hours, 
 until the bowels are freed. After the operation of the 
 medicine the animal is relieved. Then sedative medi- 
 cines may be given. Sal ammoniac one drachm, pow- 
 dered nitre two drachms, should be administered in thin 
 gruel, two or three times a day, if required, 
 
ASSISTING NATURE. PURGATIVES. 281 
 
 Typhus fever, common in some countries, is little 
 known here among cattle. 
 
 TYPHOID FEVER sometimes follows intense inflamma- 
 tory action, and is considered the second stage of it. 
 This form of fever is usually attended with diarrhoea. 
 It is a debilitating complaint, and is sometimes followed 
 by diseases known as black tongue, black leg, or quarter 
 evil. The cause of typhoid fever is involved in obscur- 
 ity. It may be proper to say that copious drinks of 
 oat-meal gruel, with tincture of red pepper, a diet of 
 bran, warmth to the body, and pure air, are great 
 essentials in the treatment of this disease. 
 
 The barbarous practices of boring the horns, cutting 
 the tail, and others equally absurd, should at once and 
 forever be discarded by every farmer and dairyman. 
 Alternate heat or coldness of the horn is only a symptom 
 of this and other fevers, and has nothing to do with 
 their cause. The horns are not diseased any further 
 than a determination of blood to the head causes a 
 sympathetic heat, while an unnatural distribution of 
 blood, from exposure or other cause, may make them 
 cold. 
 
 In all cases of this kind, if anything is done, it should 
 be an effort to assist nature to regulate the animal sys- 
 tem, by rousing the digestive organs to their natural 
 action, by a light food, or, if necessary, a mild purga- 
 tive medicine, followed by light stimulants. 
 
 The principal purgative medicines in use for neat 
 cattle are Epsom salts, linseed-oil, and sulphur. A 
 pound of salts will ordinarily be sufficient to purge a 
 full-grown cow. 
 
 A slight purgative drink is often very useful for 
 
 cows soon after calving, particularly if feverish, and in 
 
 cases of over-feeding, when the animal will often appear 
 
 dull and feverish ; but when the surfeiting is attended 
 
 24* 
 
282 THE HOOVES. 
 
 by loss of appetite, it can generally be cured by wit i 
 holding food at firsthand then feeding but slightly till 
 the system is renovated by dieting. 
 
 Purgative drinks will often cure cases of red water, 
 if taken in season. 
 
 A purgative is often necessary for cows after being 
 turned into a fresh and luxuriant pasture, when they 
 are apt to become bound from over-feeding ; but con- 
 stipation does not so often follow a change from dry to 
 green food in spring, as from a poor pasture in summer 
 to one where they obtain much better feed. 
 
 The HOOVE or HOVEN is brought on by a derange- 
 ment of the digestive organs, occasioned by over-feed- 
 ing on green and luxuriant clover, or other luxuriant 
 food. It is simply the distension of the first stom- 
 ach by carbonic acid gas. In later stages, after fer- 
 mentation of the contents of the stomach has com- 
 menced, hydrogen gas is also found. The green food, 
 being gathered very greedily after the animal has been 
 kept on dry and perhaps unpalatable hay, is not sent 
 forward so rapidly as it is received, and remains to 
 overload and clog the stomach, till this organ ceases or 
 loses the power to act upon it. Here it becomes moist 
 and heated, begins to ferment, and produces a gas 
 which distends the paunch of the animal, which often 
 swells up enormously. The cow is in great pain, breath- 
 ing with difficulty, as if nearly suffocating. Then the body 
 grows cold, and, unless relief is at hand, the cow dies. 
 
 Prevention is both cheaper and safer than cure ; but 
 if by neglect, or want of proper precaution, the animal 
 is found in this suffering condition, relief must be 
 afforded as soon as possible, or the result will be fatal. 
 
 A hollow flexible tube, introduced into the gullet, 
 will sometimes afford a temporary relief till other means 
 can be had, by allowing a part of the gas to escape ; 
 
CHOKING. REMOVAL. 283 
 
 but the cause is not removed either by this means or 
 by puncturing the paunch, which is often dangerous. 
 
 In the early stage of the disease the gas may be neu- 
 tralized by ammonia, which .is usually near at hand. 
 Two ounces of liquid ammonia, in a quart of distilled 
 or rain water, given every quarter of an hour, will 
 prove beneficial. A little tincture of ginger, essence 
 of anise-seed, or some other cordial, may be added, with- 
 out lessening the effect of the ammonia. 
 
 If the case has assumed an alarming character, the 
 flexible tube, or probang, may be introduced, and after- 
 wards take three drachms either of the chloride of 
 lime or the chloride of soda, dissolve in a pint of 
 water, and pour it down the throat. Lime-water, pot- 
 ash, and sulphuric ether, are often used with effect. 
 
 In desperate cases it may be found necessary to 
 make an incision through the paunch ; but the chloride 
 of lime will, in most cases, give relief at once, by 
 neutralizing the gas. 
 
 CHOKING is often produced by feeding on roots, par- 
 ticularly round and uncut roots, like the potato. The 
 animal slavers at the mouth, tries to raise the obstruction 
 from the throat, often groans, and appears to be in 
 great pain. Then the belly begins to swell, from the 
 amount of gases in the paunch. 
 
 The obstruction, if not too large, can sometimes be 
 thrust forward by introducing a flexible rod, or tube, 
 into the throat. This method, if adopted, should be 
 attended with great care and patience, or the tender 
 parts will be injured. If the obstruction is low down, 
 and a tube is to be inserted, a pint of olive or linseed 
 oil first turned down will so lubricate the parts as to 
 aid the operation, and the power applied must be steady. 
 If the gullet is torn by the carelessness of the operator, 
 or the roughness of the instrument, a rupture generally 
 
284 FOUL IN THE FOOT. CURE. 
 
 results in serious consequences. A hollow tube is 
 best, and if the object is passed on into the paunch, the 
 tube should remain a short time, to permit the gas to 
 escape. In case the animal is very badly swelled, the 
 dose of chloride of lime, or ammonia, should be given, 
 as for the hoove, after the obstruction is removed. 
 
 Care should be taken, after the obstruction h 
 removed, to allow no solid food for some days. 
 
 FOUL IN THE FOOT. Cows and other stock, when 
 fed in low, wet pastures, will often suffer from ulcers 
 or sores, generally appearing first between the claws. 
 This is commonly called foul in the foot, and is analo- 
 gous to foot-rot in sheep. It is often very painful, 
 causing severe lameness and loss of flesh, and dis- 
 charges a putrid matter, or pus. Sometimes it first 
 appears in the form of a swelling near the top of the 
 hoof, which breaks and discharges foul matter. 
 
 The rough and common practice among farmers is to 
 fasten the foot in the same manner as the foot of an ox 
 is fastened in shoeing, and draw a rough rope back and 
 forth over the ulcerated parts, so as to produce a 
 clean, fresh wound, and then dress it with tar or other 
 similar substance. 
 
 This is often an unnecessarily cruel operation. The 
 loose matter may easily be removed by a knife, and then 
 carefully wiped off with with a moist sponge. The ani- 
 mal should then be removed at once to a warm, dry 
 pasture, or kept in the barn. 
 
 If the case has been neglected till the pasterns 
 become swollen and tender, the sore may be thoroughly 
 cleansed out, and dressed with an ointment of sul- 
 phate of iron one ounce, molasses four ounces, sim- 
 mered over a slow fire till well mixed. Apply on a 
 piece of cotton batting, and secure upon the parts. If 
 an) morbid growth or fungus appear, use equal parts 
 
RED WATER. TREATMENT. 285 
 
 of powdered blood-root and alum sprinkled on the sore, 
 and this will usually effect a cure. 
 
 Some also give a dose of flour of sulphur half an 
 ounce, powdered sassafras-bark one ounce, and bur- 
 dock two ounces, the whole steeped in a quart of boil- 
 ing water, and strained when cool ; and, if the matter 
 still continues to flow from the sore, wash it morning 
 and night with chloride of soda one ounce, or a table- 
 spoonful of common salt dissolved in a pint of water. 
 
 Foul in the foot causes very serious trouble, if not 
 taken in season. The health of cows is injured to a 
 great extent. I have seen, during the present season, 
 many instances of foul in the foot in dairy stock arising 
 from the wetness of the pastures. No lameness in 
 cattle should be neglected. 
 
 RED WATER is so called from the high color of the 
 urine. It is rather a symptom of some derangement of 
 the digestive organs than a disease of itself, and the 
 cause is most frequently to be found in the quality 
 of the food. It is peculiar to certain localities, and is 
 of very rare occurrence in New England. 
 
 In the early stage of the difficulty the bowels are 
 loose, but soon constipation ensues, and the appetite is 
 affected, the milk decreases, and the urine becomes 
 either very red or sometimes black. 
 
 The case demands treatment, for it is apt to prey 
 upon the health of the cow. Purgatives are usually 
 employed with most success. Take a pound of Epsom 
 salts, half an ounce of ginger, and half an ounce of car- 
 bonate of ammonia. Pour a quart of boiling water on 
 the salts and ginger, stir thoroughly, and, when cold, 
 add the ammonia. If this fails to act on the bowels, 
 repeat a quarter part of it every six or eight hours till 
 it succeeds. Then a nutritious diet should be used till 
 the appetite is fully restored. 
 
286 HOOSE. INFLAMMATION OF THE LUNGS. 
 
 If a cow is once affected in this way, the difficulty 
 will be liable to return, and she had better be dis- 
 posed of. 
 
 HOOSE is a cold or cough to which stock are subject 
 when exposed to wet weather and damp pastures. 
 
 The cold may not be bad at first, or may be so slight 
 as not to attract attention ; but it often leads to worse 
 complaints, and ought, when observed, to be attended 
 to at once, by keeping the animal in a dry and warm 
 barn a few days, and feeding with mashes, and, if it 
 continues, take an ounce of sweet spirits of nitre in a 
 pint of ginger tea ; mix, and give in a quart of thick 
 gruel. 
 
 No prudent farmer will neglect to observe approach- 
 ing symptoms of disease in his stock. The cheapest 
 way to keep animals healthy is to treat them properly 
 in time, and before disease is seated upon them. Hoose 
 often ends in consumption and death. 
 
 INFLAMMATION OF THE GLANDS often occurs in hoose, 
 catarrh, etc., but they resume their natural state when 
 these complaints are removed. The animal cannot swal- 
 low without pain sometimes, and soft food should be 
 given. Remove the cause, and the inflammation ceases. 
 Some make a relaxing poultice of marsh-mallows, or 
 similar substances ; and rub the throat with a mixture 
 of olive or goose oil one gill, spirit of camphor one 
 ounce, oil of cedar one ounce, and half a gill of vinegar. 
 
 INFLAMMATION OF THE LUNGS. Common catarrh or 
 hoose sometimes leads to inflammation of the lungs, 
 which is indicated by dulness and sore cough. The 
 ears, the roots of the horns, and legs, are sometimes 
 cold. The breath is hot, as well as the mouth ; and the 
 animal rarely lies down, and is reluctant to move, 
 or change its position. Warm water and mashes, or 
 gruel, may b given, and the animal kept in a dry 
 
DIARRHOEA. TREATMENT. 287 
 
 place. The cause of the complaint should be removed, 
 and the trouble will generally soon cease. The treat- 
 ment is much the same as for fever; but where the 
 surface of the body is cold, as is generally the case, 
 give sweet spirits of nitre two ounces, liquor acetate 
 of ammonia four ounces, in a pint of water, two or 
 three times a day. 
 
 DIARRHOEA is brought on by too sudden change of 
 food, especially from dry to green and succulent food ; 
 sometimes by poisonous plants or bad water. If slight, 
 the farmer may not be anxious to check it. It may show 
 simply an effort of nature to throw off some injurious 
 substances from the body, and so it may exist when the 
 animal is quite healthy. But, if it continues too long, 
 and is likely to debilitate the system, a mild purgative 
 may be given to assist rather than check the operation 
 of nature. Half a pound of Epsom salts, with a little 
 ginger and gentian, will do for a medium-sized animal 
 in this case ; but a purgative may be followed in a day 
 or two by an astringent medicine. Take prepared chalk 
 two ounces, powdered oak-bark one ounce, powdered 
 catechu two drachms, powdered opium one drachm, and 
 four drachms powdered ginger. Mix these together, 
 and give in a quart of warm gruel. Sometimes a few 
 ounces of pulverized charcoal will arrest the diarrhoea. 
 Common diarrhoea may be distinguished from dysentery 
 ty a too abundant discharge of dung in too fluid a form, 
 or in a full, almost liquid stream, sometimes very offen 
 sive to the smell, and now and then bloody. In dysen- 
 tery, the dung is often mixed with mucus and blood, and 
 is not unfrequently attended by a hard straining. The 
 quantity of dung is less than in diarrhoea, but more 
 offensive. 
 
 Diarrhoea may occur at any season of the year, and 
 sometimes leads to dysentery, which more frequently 
 appears in the spring and fall. 
 
288 DYSENTERY. MANGE. SYMPTOMS. 
 
 DYSENTERY, or scouring rot, is a dangerous and trouble- 
 some malady when it becomes seated. 
 
 The cow suffers from painful efforts to pass the dung, 
 which is thin, slimy, olive-colored, and offensive, and 
 after it falls rises up in little bubbles, with a slimy sub- 
 stance upon it. She is restless, lying down and soon 
 rising again, and appears to be in great distress. The 
 hair seems to stand out stiff from the body, and this 
 stage of the malady indicates an obstinate and fatal 
 disease. 
 
 It is often brought on by a simple cold at the time of 
 calving, exposure to sudden changes, and by poor keep- 
 ing, which exhausts the system, especially in winter. A 
 dry, warm barn, and careful nursing, will do much ; and 
 dry, sweet food, as hay, oat-meal, boiled potatoes, gruel, 
 &c. Some linseed-meal is also very good for cows with 
 this complaint. A little gum-arabic or starch may be 
 mixed with the medicine. 
 
 The treatment is much the same as for diarrhoea. 
 
 The MANGE is commonly brought on by half starving 
 in winter, and by keeping the cow in a filthy, ill-ven- 
 tilated place. It is contagious, and if one cow of a 
 herd has it, the rest will be apt to get it also. Elaine 
 says, " Mange has three origins, filth, debility, and 
 contagion." It is a disgrace to the farmer to suffer 
 it to enter his herd from either of these causes, since 
 it shows a culpable neglect of his stock. I am sorry 
 to say it is too common in this country, especially 
 in filthy barns. 
 
 The cow afflicted with the mange is hide-bound ; the 
 hair is dry and stiff, and comes off. She is constantly 
 rubbing, and a kind of white scurfiness appears on the 
 skin. It is most perceptible towards the latter part of 
 winter and in spring, and thus too plainly tells the story 
 of the winter's neglect. 
 
LICE. HOW TO DESTROY THEM. 289 
 
 An ointment composed chiefly of sulphur has been 
 found most effectual. Some mercurial ointment may be 
 added, if the cows are kept housed ; but, if let out 
 during the day, the quantity must be very small, else 
 salivation is produced by their licking themselves. 
 
 The ointment may be made of flour of sulphur one 
 pound, strong mercurial ointment two ounces, common 
 turpentine one half-pound, lard one and a quarter 
 pounds. Melt the turpentine and lard together, and stir 
 in the sulphur as they begin to cool off; then rub down 
 the mercurial ointment on some hard substance with 
 the other ingredients. Rub the whole in with the hand, 
 and take care to leave no places untouched, once a day, 
 for three days ; and after this, if any places are left un- 
 cured, rub it in over them. There is no danger in this 
 application, if the animal is not exposed to severe cold. 
 This will be pretty sure to effect a speedy cure, if aided 
 by cleanliness, pure air, and a nutritious diet. 
 
 Another wash for mange is the following : Pyrolig- 
 neous acid four ounces, water a pint ; mix and apply. 
 
 LICE show unpardonable neglect of duty wherever 
 they are suffered to exist. They crawl all over the 
 stable-floor and the stalls, on the pastures, and a touch 
 is sufficient to give them to other animals. They 
 worry and trouble the poor animal constantly ; and no 
 thriftiness can be expected where they are found. If 
 the mange ointment does not completely destroy them, 
 as it often will, take bees-wax, tallow, and lard, in equal 
 parts, and rub it into the hide in the most thorough man- 
 ner, with the hand or a brush, two and a half pounds 
 for a small cow, three pounds for a large one. The 
 next day it may be washed off in soft soap, and the 
 lice will have disappeared from the animal, but not 
 always from the barn. Some use a wash of powdered 
 lobelia-seeds two ounces, steeped in boiling water, and 
 25 19 
 
290 WARBLES. LOSS OF CUD. 
 
 applied with a sponge. Others hang up tobacco-leaves 
 over the stalls. This may do to keep them away ; but, 
 after the animal is covered with them, they are not so 
 easily scared. 
 
 WARBLES. The gad-fly is very troublesome to cattle 
 towards the end of summer. The fly alights on the back 
 of the cow, punctures the skin, and lays her eggs under 
 it. A tumor is now formed, varying in size, which soon 
 bursts and leaves a small hole for the grub already 
 hatched to breathe through. Here the insect feeds on 
 its surroundings, and grows up to considerable size. 
 All this time the animal is probably suffering more or 
 less pain, and often tries to lick or rub the part affected, 
 if possible. Farmers often press them out with the fin- 
 ger and thumb. The best way is to puncture the skin 
 with a common pen-knife, and then press out the 
 grub. They injure the hide more than most people are 
 aware of. 
 
 Loss OF CUD is a consequence of indigestion, and is 
 often brought on by eating too greedily of food which 
 the cow is not used to. Loss of cud and loss of appetite 
 are synonymous. Gentle purgatives may be given, 
 with such as salts, ginger, and sulphur. But when a cow 
 is surfeited, as already said, I should prefer to withhold 
 food entirely, or for the most part, till the system can 
 regulate itself. 
 
 DISEASES OF CALVES. The colostrum, or first milk of 
 the cow after calving, contains medicinal qualities pecu- 
 liarly adapted to cleanse the young calf, and free its 
 bowels from the matter always existing in them at birth. 
 This should, therefore, never be denied it. Bleeding 
 at the navel, with which calves are sometimes seriously 
 troubled, may generally and safely be stopped by tying 
 a string around the cord which hangs suspended 
 from it. 
 
DISEASES OF CALVES. SCOURS. 291 
 
 But DIARRHCEA, PURGING, or SCOURS, is the most dan- 
 gerous complaint with which calves are afflicted. This 
 is caused often by neglect, or exposure to wet and cold, 
 or insufficiency of food at one time and over-feeding at 
 another. Stinting the calf in food or attention will often 
 involve the loss of considerable profit on the cow for 
 the year. When purging is once fully seated from 
 several days' neglect, it is often difficult to remove it. 
 
 The acidity on the stomach which always attends it 
 must first be removed. A mild purgative medicine may 
 be given. Rhubarb and magnesia is a very convenient 
 article, and may easily be given in ounce doses along 
 with the milk. Potash is also to be given in quarter- 
 ounce doses in the same way. Two ounces of castor- 
 oil, or two ounces of Epsom salts, might be given with 
 the desired effect. After this, mild astringents may be 
 given. Take prepared chalk two drachms, or magnesia 
 one ounce, powdered opium ten grains, powdered cate- 
 chu half a drachm, tincture of capsicum two drachms, 
 essence of peppermint five drops. Mix together, and 
 give twice a day in the milk or gruel. 
 
 After giving the above repeatedly without effect, 
 which will rarely happen, take Dover's powders two 
 scruples, starch or arrow-root powdered one ounce, 
 cinnamon powder one drachm, and powdered kino 
 half a drachm. Boil the starch or arrow-root in water 
 till it thickens, and when cold stir in the other ingre- 
 dients. Give night and morning. This complaint is 
 often attended by inflammation of the bowels and 
 general fever. 
 
 It is a good plan to keep a lump of chalk constantly 
 before calves after they are two or three weeks old. 
 It corrects acidity on the stomach, and is otherwise 
 useful to them. 
 
 CONSTIPATION or COSTIVENESS sometimes attacks calves 
 
292 COSTIVENESS. HOOVE. CANKER. 
 
 a few days old, that have not been judiciously managed, 
 It may be brought on by putting a calf to a cow whose 
 milk is too old, or from feeding a calf from the milk of 
 several cows mixed. It results from too heavy a mass 
 of coagulated milk in the fourth stomach, which becomes 
 very much swollen with hard curd. It is difficult to 
 remedy. The best way is to pour down some Epsom 
 salts, two ounces, dissolved in two quarts of warm 
 water, by means of a horn or bottle, and follow this by 
 half the dose every six hours. 
 
 Constipation sometimes appears in calves from two 
 to four months old, when their food is too suddenly 
 changed. The bowels must be opened and the hardened 
 mass in the stomach softened very soon, or it will lead 
 to fatal consequences. 
 
 Farmers are generally very careless about observing 
 these things till it is too late. As already said, preven- 
 tion is cheaper than cure ; but, if the complaint once 
 appears, no time should be lost to administer a purge 
 of salts in proportion to the size of the animal or the 
 severity of the attack. Many a valuable animal will be 
 saved by it. 
 
 The HOOVE often appears among calves after being 
 turned out to pasture. The young animal coughs vio- 
 lently, and appears in pain. It should be removed at 
 once to a dry place, and physicked. If taken in season, 
 it is easily cured. If neglected, it will often prove fatal. 
 This complaint assumes the form of an epidemic at times, 
 and becomes very prevalent and troublesome. 
 
 Calves sometimes suffer from CANKER IN THE MOUTH, 
 especially at the time of teething. The gums swell, 
 and fever sets in. Common alum or borax, dissolved in 
 water, may be applied, and a mild purgative admin- 
 istered, in the shape of one or two ounce doses of 
 Epsom salts. 
 
THE MEDICINES AT HAND. 293 
 
 The diseases and complaints mentioned above are 
 nearly all that afflict our dairy stock ; and the list at 
 least includes all the common diseases and their treat- 
 ment. Some of the diseases and epidemics from which 
 the cattle of Great Britain and other countries suffer 
 are not known at all here, or are of so very rare occur- 
 rence as not to have attracted attention; and among 
 these may be named pleuro-pneumonia, typhus fever, 
 cow-pox, and various epidemics which have from time to 
 time decimated the cattle of all Europe. To accidents 
 of various kinds, to wounds, trouble with the eyes, and 
 to lameness from other causes than those named, they 
 are, indeed, more or less subject ; but no work could 
 anticipate or cover the treatment best in every case, 
 and much must be left to the judgment of the owner. 
 
 I have tried to make this chapter, which I consider 
 one of the most important of any to the dairy farmer, of 
 practical value to every one who owns or has the care of 
 a cow. But, lest a want of familiarity with some of the 
 medicines recommended for particular diseases, or the 
 fear of the expense of procuring and keeping them on 
 hand, should deter some one from providing himself 
 with a good medicine-chest, I wish to remind the reader 
 that no small portion of them are always to be found in 
 every well-regulated household, and that the others are 
 obtained at so little expense that no one need be with- 
 out them for a single day. 
 
 Let us see, for instance, how many of them are at 
 hand. But few families are destitute of a supply of 
 ginger, camphor, red pepper, lard, molasses, cinnamon, 
 peppermint, starch, turpentine, tallow, bees-wax, bur- 
 dock, and caraway-seed. The farmer's wife or daughter 
 will generally have a supply of ammonia or hartshorn. 
 
 Now, I wish to suggest to the farmer or dairyman 
 who happens to live at a distance from the apothecary 
 25* 
 
294 COST OF MEDICINE-CHEST. 
 
 to provide himself with a convenient little medicine- 
 chest, and put into it say four times the quantities of 
 the various medicines which are mentioned in the pre- 
 ceding pages, carefully bottled and labelled for use. To 
 aid in this simple plan, which might be the means of 
 saving an animal worth twenty times its cost, I have 
 obtained, from a ivholesale druggist, about the average 
 cost of the following quantities and kinds of medicines, 
 which include all, or nearly all, that would be likely to 
 be needed : Five pounds of Epsom salts, .18; one pint of 
 castor-oil, .25 ; one pint of sweet spirits of nitre, .19 ; 
 one pound of powdered nitrate of potash, .20 ; one 
 pound carbonate of ammonia, .23 ; one half-pound sal 
 ammoniac, .08 ; one pint of tincture of red pepper (hot 
 drops), .37 ; one ounce of hydriodate of potash, .30 ; 
 one pound chloride of lime, .10: one pound sulphate of 
 iron, .10 ; 2 pounds powdered sulphur, .16; one pint of 
 tmcture of ginger, 37 ; one quart of essence of anise- 
 seed, .50 ; one half-pound sulphuric ether, .20 ; one 
 half-pound powdered sassafras-bark, .20 ; one quarter- 
 pound magnesia, .06 ; one quarter-pound rhubarb, 30 
 (the common will answer instead of prepared) ; one 
 ounce powdered opium, .43; one quarter-pound catechu, 
 .06 ; one ounce Dover's powders, .25 ; 2 ounces gum 
 kino, .05 ; one half-pound mercurial ointment, .37J ; and 
 one pound aloes, .25. Then keep in the chest a good pro- 
 bang, which is a flexible tube made for the purpose, and 
 is much safer and better for introducing into the throat 
 or gullet of an animal than a common whip-stick, which 
 some use. This costs about $3.50, and can be pro- 
 cured at almost any veterinary surgeon's. This whole 
 chest and contents will cost less than ten dollars. 
 
 Let the farmer also become familiar with the structure 
 and anatomy of his animals. It will open a wide field 
 of useful and interesting investigation. 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 THE DAIRY HUSBANDRY OF HOLLAND. 
 
 THIS chapter I translate from an admirable little work in German, 
 *' Die Holldndische Rindviehzucht und Milchwirfhschaft in Kimiyreich 
 Holland" by Ellerbrock, a distinguished veterinary surgeon, pro- 
 fessor of cattle pathology and cattle-breeding in the Agricultural 
 Institute at Zeyst, in Holland. 
 
 MILKING AND TREATMENT OF MILK. The cows are 
 turned to pasture early in spring, and stay there day 
 and night throughout the pasture-season. They are 
 milked daily in a particular part of the lot called the 
 milk-yard. This is kept in some instances permanently 
 in the same place ; in others, it is changed about at 
 pleasure. A shady part of the pasture is generally 
 selected, and it is commonly enclosed with a board fence. 
 The cows are driven into this yard to be milked, when 
 not already there at the usual time. The milking is 
 
 done by male and female do- 
 mestics, who carry their pails, 
 cans, and dishes, hung on a 
 kind of wooden yoke, Fig. 
 84, neatly cut out, painted, 
 and set with copper nails. 
 This is swung over the shoulders, or else the dairy 
 utensils are carried on donkeys, ponies, or hand-carts ; 
 or, where there is water communication, in boats, twice 
 a day, to the yard. 
 
296 
 
 THE DUTCH DAIRY. 
 
 In the larger dairies the utensils in common use are 
 small wooden pails, Fig. 85, painted in variegated colors, 
 with bright brazen or iron hoops, and neatly washed ; 
 a strainer, Fig. 86, made of horse-hair ; a large wooden 
 
 Fig. 85. Fig. 86. Fig. 87. 
 
 tunnel, Fig. 87, for pouring the milk into the cans 
 and casks ; one or more buckets, Fig. 88, usually of 
 
 Fig. 88. 
 
 Fig. 89. 
 
 brass, lined with tin, large enough to hold the milk of 
 several cows together, or from twelve to eighteen 
 quarts. In many dairies they have wooden buckets, 
 Fig. 89, painted green or blue outside, with black stripes, 
 and with iron or brass handles, kept very bright. Here 
 the buckets are coated over inside with white oil-colors. 
 These are borne by the yoke (Fig. 84), or in some of 
 the ways indicated above. 
 
 In many places, instead of buckets for keeping the 
 milk together, they use copper or brass cans lined inside 
 with tin, and in the form of antique vases or large 
 beer-jugs, Figs. 90 and 91, which are constantly kept 
 brightly polished. In other places, they use for hold, 
 ing the milk smaller or larger barrels, Fig. 92, with 
 broad hoops also kept constantly polished. 
 
THE DAIRY UTENSILS. 
 
 297 
 
 Instead of the yoke a soft cushion is also used, which 
 the dairymaids strap over their backs, so that they hang 
 
 Fig. 90. Fig. 91. Fig. 92. 
 
 down and rest over the hips and thighs. On this cush- 
 ion the cans are laid, and fastened with broad hempen 
 straps, that they may not press too heavily upon the 
 body. This band is called the milk-strap. Where the 
 milk is carried home on a hand-cart, neatly-woven 
 baskets are fastened upon little wagons in which the 
 cans are placed. If it is to be carried in casks, the same 
 arrangement is fixed upon a hand-cart. Two wooden 
 floats are laid upon the milk in the buckets, in order to 
 protect it from slopping over. One or more large milk- 
 casks or tubs, in which it may cool off properly , are also 
 used. The size of these tubs ia different, as well as the 
 materials of which they are made. Where the cooling 
 is not left to the air alone, but is sought to be effected 
 by hanging the milk-tub into cold water, the vessels are 
 made of metal. The large vase-like jars are also used 
 for this purpose. These hold about thirty cans, or 
 twenty-six quarts. Wooden bowls are used, of different 
 sizes and forms, and earthen pans, rather deeper than 
 broad, Figs. 93 and 94, in which the milk as it cools is 
 
298 
 
 THE MILKING. 
 
 set for the cream to rise. A large pot for collecting the 
 cream until there is enough to churn, and wooden skim- 
 mers for taking off the cream, are also used. The milker 
 
 Fig. 93. 
 
 Fig. 94. 
 
 sits upon a common four-legged, and sometimes one- 
 legged milking-stool, and milks either the teats on one 
 side, or one hind and one front teat, the pail being 
 held between the knees. The cows are milked regu- 
 larly at four or five o'clock in the morning, and at five 
 or six in the afternoon. 
 
 In West Friesland, North and South Holland, Utrecht, 
 and other places, it is customary to tie the tail to the 
 leg of the cow, that she may not annoy the milker. 
 Most cows do not resist this, being accustomed to it 
 from the beginning. They also pass a cord around the 
 
 Fig. 95. 
 
 horns and tie her to a post stuck in the ground during 
 the milking, as in Fig. 95. In many provinces only the 
 unruly cows are tied in this way. 
 
 The milking takes place on the right side of the cow, 
 
THE PRACTICE IN WINTER. 299 
 
 so that the milker sits on this side. In West Friesland 
 and North Holland there is an exception to this rule. 
 The cows are tied in pairs in the stalls, and one is 
 milked on one side and the other on the other, the 
 milker sitting with his back to the board partition, to 
 avoid annoyance from either animal. 
 
 When the milking is ended the milk is poured 
 through the hair strainer into the bucket, or through a 
 strainer or tunnel in the cans or casks, whichever are 
 used. The milk is taken to the dairy-house, without 
 delay, in some of the ways already mentioned. When 
 the yoke is used, one bucket is hung on the right side 
 and another on the left, each with a float on the top of 
 the milk to keep it from slopping over. The large 
 metallic milk-cans, with wooden stoppers, are borne 
 home on the cushions already described as being held 
 by shoulder-knots strapped round the waist. The 
 mode of transportation depends much on the distance 
 from the dairy-house and the quantity to be carried. 
 
 In winter, when the cows are in the barn, they are 
 likewise milked twice a day, and the milk is at once 
 strained through the hair strainer into casks made for 
 the purpose. These implements differ according to the 
 object pursued in the dairy; yet pans and pots are 
 mostly used for raising the cream to be made into 
 butter, since but few dairymen make cheese in winter. 
 
 All utensils necessary for milking, the preservation 
 of milk, and the making of butter and cheese, are kept 
 with the utmost neatness. Where a stream of running 
 water flows through the yard, the implements are gene- 
 rally washed in that, and flowing water is preferred for 
 the purpose. But where the farm or dairy-house 
 stands at a distance from a stream, a shallow fountain, 
 or basin, is dug out in the earth, walled up, and so 
 arranged that the water can be taken from it and fresh 
 
300 CLEANLINESS EXEMPLIFIED. 
 
 water substituted when it gets impure. In such a 
 basin, or in flowing water, all new wooden dairy uten- 
 sils aie soaked for a long time before being used; but 
 those in daily use are washed, rinsed, and scoured out 
 with ashes, with the greatest care. None but cold, 
 clear, fresh fountain or flowing water is taken for cleans- 
 ing dairy implements. It is to be observed that, in 
 large dairies, the use of water which is covered with 
 newly-fallen honey-dew, for washing the dairy utensils, 
 is carefully avoided. When the milk-vessels have been 
 perfectly rinsed out in fresh water, they are, in many 
 dairies, put into a large kettle of water over the fire, 
 and properly scalded ; after which they are again cleanly 
 washed with cold water, so that not the least particle 
 of milk or impurity is to be seen, nor the least smell of 
 it to be observed. The metallic milk-vessels and the 
 metal parts of the wooden ones are cleansed with equal 
 care and exactness, and kept polished. Dairymaids 
 feel a pride in always having the brightest, most 
 polished, and cleanest utensils, and each strives earnestly 
 to excel the others in this respect. 
 
 When the milk-vessels are scoured, scalded, and 
 rinsed perfectly clean, they are hung on a stand of 
 laths and poles, made for the purpose, to be properly 
 dried. The round wooden milk-bowls, being made of 
 one piece, are very easily broken or split, and must be 
 handled with very great care in cleaning. To avoid 
 breaking, a peculiar table is used for scouring them. 
 
 The Dutch dairyman knows perfectly well that his 
 dairy can secure him the highest profit only when the 
 utmost cleanliness is the basis and groundwork of his 
 whole business ; and so he keeps, with the most extraor- 
 dinary carefulness, and even with anxiety, the great- 
 est possible neatness in all parts of the dairy establish- 
 ment. 
 
THE YIELD OF DUTCH COWS. 301 
 
 DETERMINATION OF THE MILKING QUALITIES OF THE 
 Cows. The Dutch cattle are, in general, renowned 
 for their dairy qualities ; but especially so are the cows 
 of North Holland, which not only give a large quantity, 
 but also a very good quality, so that a yield of sixteen 
 to twenty-five cans * at every milking is not rare. Next 
 to these come the West Friesland and South Dutch 
 cows, from which from twenty to twenty-four cans of 
 milk may be calculated on. Though one could not 
 take a certain number and calculate surely what the 
 yield of each cow would be, yet he could come very 
 near the truth if he reckoned that a cow, in three hun- 
 dred days, or as long as she is milked, gives, on an 
 average, daily, from six to eight cans of milk, from 
 which the whole annual yield would be from one 
 thousand eight hundred to two thousand four hundred 
 cans. Of this the cow gives one half in the first four 
 months, one third in the next three, and in the 
 remainder one sixth. These superficial results cannot 
 be taken, however, as the fixed rule. 
 
 Professor Wilkins, in his Handbook of Agriculture, 
 gives the following estimates of the yield of milk: A 
 good West Friesland or Groningen cow will, after calv- 
 ing, give daily fourteen quarts of milk. This will, after 
 a while, be reduced to eight quarts. She may be milked 
 three hundred and twenty-three days in the year, and 
 her product in butter and cheese will amount to one 
 hundred guldens. 
 
 In Prof. Kop's Magazine it is stated that a medium- 
 sized Friesland cow, which had had several calves, was 
 giving daily, on good feed, five and a half to six buckets, 
 or from twenty to twenty-two cans, and over. In South 
 Holland, also, this quantity is considered a good yield 
 
 * A Butch can is a little less than our wine quart. 
 26 
 
302 TREATMENT OF MILK. 
 
 of a cow. Of the cows of Gelderland, Overyssel, and 
 Utrecht, the yield cannot be reckoned higher than six- 
 teen cans daily, and that only during the first half of 
 their milking season. 
 
 TREATMENT OF MILK FOR BUTTER. To get good 
 butter it is quite necessary that the fresh milk be 
 properly cooled before it is set for cream. In the great 
 dairies of North and South Holland, which not only 
 possess the best cattle, but may be given as models in 
 dairy husbandry, they manage as follows : 
 
 The milk, as it is brought from the pasture, is poured 
 from the buckets, cans, and casks, through a hair 
 strainer, into one vessel, the milk-kettle. These milk- 
 kettles are not everywhere of the same size, or of simi- 
 lar form, but are always riveted together with strong 
 brass or copper bands, and lined with tin inside. The 
 most common milk-kettles hold sixteen cans ; yet they 
 are found so large as to hold three barrels, or about six 
 hundred quarts. The peculiar kettle form is very rarely 
 found, but more frequently the cylindrical, or vase- 
 shaped. They are held either by two handles or one. 
 The number required depends on the number of cows 
 and the quantity of milk expected. 
 
 The milk-kettles, when filled, are set into a basin 
 with cold water, called the cool-bath, for the purpose of 
 cooling the milk. The cool-bath is frequently in the 
 kitchen, sometimes in the bauer-house, so called, or 
 directly before the cow-room, near the spring. The 
 latter is the most common and the most convenient 
 place. The water reservoir is dug in the ground, and 
 an oblong four-cornered form is preferred for it ; the 
 sides of the excavation being walled up with hard-burnt 
 building-stones and cement, but the bottom is laid in 
 tiles, either red, hard-burnt, or white glazed. Richer 
 dairymen take finely-hewn blue stone or white marble 
 
THE COOL-BATH. 
 
 303 
 
 for it. The size of the reservoir is governed by the 
 number of milk-kettles to be put into it, and so is its 
 depth by their height, so that the rim of the kettle is on 
 a level with the top of the cool-bath, Fig. 96. The 
 sides of the cool-bath in the 
 kitchen project some feet over 
 the floor, yet are not so high 
 that the setting in and taking 
 out the milk-kettle will be at- 
 
 Fig. 96. Cool-bath. 
 
 tended with great inconvenience and trouble. Where 
 it is desired to make the work of setting in or raising 
 up the milk-kettles from the cool-bath as easy as pos- 
 sible, a beam is fixed along the side of the trough, and 
 iron props are firmly fixed, which extend out a little 
 over the edge of the trough, half-way down from the 
 beam. On these the operator can support himself in 
 lowering or raising heavy vessels. These stays, or 
 props, are sometimes fixed directly into the wall, along 
 
304 
 
 THE BATH IN THE BARN. 
 
 which the cool-bath stands. Under the bottom of the 
 reservoir, on the other side from where the water 
 comes in, is an outlet, stopped with a tap or faucet, to 
 let off the water. 
 
 The cool-baths in the kitchen are, for the most part, 
 on the floor, and extend up a convenient height ; whilst 
 those in the cow-barns, as a general rule, are dug down 
 and walled up, and their top is fastened to the floor of 
 the barn. They are deep enough to allow the water 
 for cooling the milk to come up to the rim of the milk- 
 
 rig. 97. Cool-bath 
 
 kettle ; but, in order to prevent men and cattle from 
 falling in, it is covered with a strong wooden lid to 
 shut down, as in Fig. 97. 
 
THE TIME OP COOLING. 305 
 
 Such a cool-bath is used in the cow-room only in 
 summer, when the heat is so great that it is difficult to 
 keep the milk cool in the kitchen. The cool-bath in the 
 cow-room is considered as only an auxiliary to that in 
 the kitchen, and to be used only in case of necessity. 
 The milk-kettles are hung by their handles, and let 
 down by means of a crank. When the platform is not 
 in use it is taken away from the cool-bath, and the cover 
 is let down and kept closed. 
 
 The milk is allowed to remain in the cool-bath until 
 the froth has disappeared, and there is no difference in 
 temperature between the water and the milk. The 
 milk of one milking must give place for the next, so 
 that it will be changed twice daily, morning and even- 
 ing. A very great importance is, everywhere in the 
 Dutch dairies, attached to this rapid cooling of the 
 milk, because it is known by experience that it is thus 
 greatly protected from turning sour.* 
 
 The milk, when properly cooled, is brought to the 
 milk-cellar, where it is immediately poured out of 
 the milk-kettles into vessels designed to receive it. 
 Wooden bowls or pans, or high earthen pots, are used 
 for holding it. The pans and pots are set on the table, 
 and a small ladder, or hand-barrow, is laid on them, on 
 which is placed the strainer, when the milk is poured 
 from the kettles. The wooden milk-pans are of several 
 forms, generally made of ash or of linden, and oval. 
 They are, on an average, three and a half feet long, and 
 half a foot broad, more or less ; but their dimensions 
 vary. 
 
 * It will be perceived that the arrangement for cooling the milk before 
 setting in the pans, in the Dutch dairies, is very elaborate. I have fol- 
 lowed the original in translating the above, though the practice in Hol- 
 land differs widely from our own in this respect, and from that recom- 
 mended in the preceding pages. The point may be worthy of careful 
 experiment. TRANSLATOR. 
 
 26* 20 
 
306 DEPTH IN THE PANS. 
 
 It has been found, by experience, that the flattei and 
 shallower the pans, the quicker and better the cream 
 rises. The milk-pots are pretty large, but are rather 
 shallow than deep, glazed inside, of different forms, and 
 different capacities ; but they are always broader on the 
 top than at the bottom, though they stand firmly on a 
 round, broad foot-piece. Milk pans and pots are rinsed 
 with cold water before the milk is poured into them. 
 When properly cleaned and filled, they are placed on 
 shelves made for the purpose, in regular rows. These 
 shelves are only a few feet high above the floor of the 
 cellar, and of suitable width ; but, if there is not space 
 enough for the milk, the pans are placed on the bottom 
 of the cellar. The pots are also set along the walls, on 
 firm board shelves. 
 
 The milk-cellar, or rather the milk-room, Fig. 98, in 
 the North and South Dutch dairies, is placed on the 
 north side of the house, next to the kitchen, but a little 
 lower than the latter, so that there are usually three 
 steps down. The longer side, facing towards the 
 north, has one window, whilst the gable end, with its 
 two windows, faces towards the west. The windows 
 are generally kept shut, and are open only nights in 
 summer. The cellar is either archeol or covered with 
 strongly-boarded rafters, over which the so-called 
 cellar-chamber is situated. The floor of this room is 
 laid in lime or cement, with red or blue burnt tiles, so 
 that nothing can pass down through into the milk-cellar. 
 In the cellar itself are the above-mentioned shelves and 
 platforms for the milk-vessels along the walls, while 
 outside, in front of the cellar, linden and juniper trees 
 are planted, to prevent as much as possible the heat of 
 the sun from striking upon the walls. Cleanliness, the 
 fundamental principle of Dutch dairy husbandry, is 
 carried to its utmost extent in the cellar. Barrels of 
 
DUTCH DAIRY-BOOM. 
 
 307 
 
308 TIME FOB THE CREAM TO RISE. 
 
 meat, bacon, vegetables of every kind, and everything 
 which could possibly create a strong odor and infect 
 the air, or impart a flavor to the milk, butter, or cheese, 
 are carefully excluded. 
 
 The vessels in which the milk is set remain standing 
 undisturbed in their places, that the formation of cream 
 may go on without interruption. Twenty-four hours, 
 on an average, are thought to be necessary for the milk 
 to stand, during which time the cream is twice taken 
 off, once at the end of each twelve hours. The morn- 
 ing's milk is skimmed in the evening, and the evening's 
 on the next morning. But the milk always remains 
 quite still till the dairymaid thinks it time to skim, 
 which she decides by the taste. Long practice enables 
 her to judge with great certainty by this mode of trial. 
 When the cream is ripe it is taken off 
 by the dairymaid with a shallow wooden 
 skimmer, Fig. 99, in the form of a deep 
 plate, and carefully placed in a particular 
 Fi<r 99 vessel a bucket or cream-pot. The 
 cream-pot is generally washed very clean, 
 the staves very finely polished, striped with blue or 
 white outside, and held together by broad brass or 
 copper hoops, kept very bright. For closing the jar 
 they use an ashen cover, which is either simply laid 
 on by a common handle, or sometimes held on by 
 brass or copper hinges. Both cream-pot and cover 
 are always scoured quite white and clean. The cream 
 remains there till enough is got for churning, or till 
 it becomes of itself thick enough for butter. It is 
 known to be of the proper consistence for butter when 
 a long, slender, wooden spoon, thrust down into it, will 
 stand erect. When in summer the cream does not get 
 thick enough in season, they seek to hasten it by 
 putting in a little butter-milk ; but in winter the ripen- 
 
METHODS OF CHURNING. 309 
 
 ing of the cream is hastened by warming, either by 
 holding the cream-pot over a coal-pan, or on a hearth- 
 plate. 
 
 The remainder, the skim-milk from the milk bowls 
 or pans, sour milk, or butter-milk, is poured into a par- 
 ticular vessel, and made into spice-cheese. 
 
 Besides the methods here described for keeping milk 
 for butter, milk is used for other purposes. Sweet 
 milk cheese is made of the unskimmed milk ; cream is 
 used in the house for coffee. Eennet is also added to 
 fresh milk, and the product is immediately sold, being 
 greatly relished by many. From skim-milk and butter 
 milk put together is made an article called kramery 
 by cooking the mixture, putting it into a linen bag, 
 and hanging it in a cool part of the milk-cellar, or else- 
 where, when the liquid drops out and leaves a mass of 
 considerable consistence, called Hangebast. 
 
 As soon as the milk is taken from the vessels, they 
 are taken out of the cellar and carefully cleansed and 
 dried before being used again. 
 
 METHODS OF CHURNING. Churning is the principal 
 operation in the manufacture of butter, for by it the 
 fatty particles are separated from the other constitu- 
 ents. There are several methods in Holland of effect- 
 ing this separation of the butter globules. The oldest 
 and simplest is that of putting the cream into an 
 upright churn, in which the cream is agitated by mov- 
 ing a long dasher, pierced with holes, up and down, till 
 the object is accomplished. 
 
 There are, strictly speaking, only two forms of the 
 churn which are used in all parts of the country. One 
 is broad at the bottom and narrow at the top. This 
 has been known from the earliest times, and is called 
 the old churn, Fig. 100. 
 
 This old churn is still used in many dairies, and it 
 
310 VARIETIES OF CHURNS. 
 
 has the preference over the other form, 
 because it is thought to bring the butter 
 quicker and more completely. 
 
 The other form is more like a beer or 
 brandy cask on end, being smaller at 
 each end than in the middle, and is 
 called the barrel-churn. Both kinds are 
 made of oak-wood, and have wooden or 
 broad metal hoops. In the one case 
 Fig. 100. they are painted outside ; in the other, 
 
 they remain of the natural color, but are the more 
 frequently scoured, so that the dark-colored oak-wood 
 gets a whitish color. The metallic hoops are always 
 kept polished bright. 
 
 Both kinds are of different sizes, according as the 
 quantity of cream is greater or less, or as they are to 
 be worked by hand or animal power simply, or by 
 machinery. In South Holland, where unquestionably 
 the most butter is made, the barrel-churn is at each 
 end about two feet and two inches in diameter, and 
 in the centre is seven inches broader, with two-inch 
 staves. The old churn, on the other hand, is usually 
 fourteen inches at the top and twenty-five at the bot- 
 tom. 
 
 In North Holland and West Friesland, also, sizes are 
 found in which one hundred and fifty to two hundred 
 quarts of cream can be churned. The churns have each 
 a strong cover at the top, which fits into their rim about 
 the thickness of the hand, with a hole in the middle for 
 the dasher. 
 
 The churning is performed either by the hand motion 
 of the dasher, as in all small dairies, and in the smallest 
 churns, or by man-power with the help of certain 
 mechanical contrivances. The means for effecting this 
 are diffeient, and so the churns have different names. 
 
MOVING THE DASHER. 311 
 
 In many dairies, for instance, they have a lever con- 
 nected with the dasher; in other places they use a 
 flexible pole, fixed into the ceiling above, for facilitat- 
 ing the motion of the dasher, or put a lever in motion 
 with the feet, which raises and sinks the dasher. There 
 are also complicated artificial butter-machines and 
 butter-mills, which are named after the inventor, the 
 manufacturer, or the motive power. The most known 
 and widely used are the turning-mills, the wheel-mills, 
 and the clock-work mills ; as the Hand Butter-Mill of 
 Valk, Fiirst's churn, etc. 
 
 There are also still more elaborate machine-works 
 for moving the dasher, which are used in the larger 
 dairies on account of their convenience and economy. 
 Dog-power and horse-power churns are frequently met 
 with. 
 
 CHURNING IN THE COMMON CHURN. The use of this 
 is well known. The dasher is moved up and down by 
 hand, with the churn full of cream, till the butter 
 particles are separated and collected together. The 
 operator keeps his body in equilibrium, to exercise the 
 power cf moving the dasher regularly for agitating the 
 cream. 
 
 THE LEVER CHURN is very commonly used in South 
 Holland, Fig. 101. The churn itself is barrel-form, 
 as already described, and the dasher is put in motion 
 by a lever. The upper end is pierced with holes, 
 through which runs an iron pin. In a beam of the 
 ceiling two joists are firmly fixed, about a foot and 
 five inches long and four inches square, and several 
 inches apart. The longer arm of the lever is four 
 feet and seven inches ; the shorter, three feet and six 
 inches. The churn stands under the short arm of the 
 lever, where the dasher is fixed. By drawing the 
 longer arm of the lever towards him, the operator 
 
312 
 
 THE LEVEK CHURN. 
 
 Fig. 101. 
 
 presses the dasher down through the cream. This 
 mode is far less wearisome than the hand-churn, 
 because by the lever, with less expense of power, a far 
 greater agitation is produced. A weight is sometimes 
 attached to the longer arm, by which the power required 
 is still further reduced. 
 
 CHURNING WITH AN ELASTIC ROD. The old-fashioned 
 churn is set in motion by the aid of another kind of 
 power, as seen in Pig. 102. A long, tough, flexible 
 stick is fastened into the cross-beam in the ceiling, so 
 that its larger end is held firm by two iron clasps. The 
 elasticity of the rod is such that, when the smaller end 
 is drawn down by hand, which, at the same time, moves 
 
THE ELASTIC ROD. 
 
 313 
 
 the dasher, it rebounds, and thus saves considerable 
 expenditure of power. 
 
 Fig. 102. 
 
 CHURNING WITH THE TREADLE LEVER. In many 
 places the churn is put in motion by the feet, as in Fig. 
 103, where several levers are united to produce the 
 upward and downward motion of the dasher. The 
 longer arm of the lever is connected with the churn, 
 and the shorter is set in motion by a foot-board. 
 The foot-board lies on a roller, with its longer part 
 attached to the lever ; and by throwing the weight of 
 the body upon this part the shorter arm of the lever 
 is drawn clown, and the longer, attached to the churn- 
 27 
 
314 
 
 THE TREADLE LEVER. 
 
 Fig. 108. 
 
 dasher, is raised. The mode of operation is so plainly 
 seen in the cut as to need no explanation. 
 
 Among the more ingenious contrivances used for 
 churning in Holland belongs the churn invented by 
 Fiirst. The body is somewhat similar to the barrel- 
 churn, but is smaller ; and it is of uniform diameter 
 throughout, as in Fig. 104. It is covered with a 
 wooden lid, furnished with a convenient handle, and 
 stands on a low platform, to which it is fixed, when in 
 use, by means of a screw, k. The motion is com- 
 municated to the dasher by means of a wheel, or wind- 
 lass, and an endless cord. 
 
 In the interior of the cylinder is placed a kind of 
 
THE HAND BUTTER-MILL 
 
 315 
 
 Fig. 104. 
 
 ventilator, Fig. 105. This consists of eight wooden 
 wings, pierced with holes, and motion is communicated 
 to it by means of the wheel, 6, connected by the 
 
 Fig. 105. 
 
 cord to the larger windlass. The wings of the machine 
 when set in motion, strike incessantly in the cream, and 
 so powerfully that the whole mass is agitated, and in this 
 manner the separation of the butter particles is soon 
 effected. The motion is so rapid that it is often neces- 
 sary to turn the crank very slowly, especially just as the 
 butter is coming. 
 
 TALK'S HAND BUTTER-MILL, Fig. 106, has many ad- 
 vantages. It is less fatiguing to work than the old- 
 
316 
 
 THE DOG-POWER CHURN. 
 
 fashioned churn, and even than Fiirst's, because the 
 motion of the body required is simple and less exact- 
 ing. And again, the churn takes up less room, and is 
 
 Fig. 106. 
 
 easily transported, which is an important consideration 
 in churning, on account of the influence of the tempe- 
 
 Fig. 107. 
 
THE DOUBLE DASHER. 
 
 317 
 
 rature. In summer the heat may delay, or render the 
 operation difficult, and in winter the coldness presents 
 obstacles. A transportable churn can be moved into a 
 cool place in summer, and a warm one in winter, when 
 it is desirable. The dasher of the churn is also seen 
 separate in the same figure. 
 
 THE DOG-POWER CHURN, Fig. 107, economizes labor, 
 while, at the same time, more butter is obtained, on 
 account of the uniformity of the agitation produced. It 
 is in use in all the Dutch provinces. The form and size 
 of the churn are comparatively indifferent ; but the 
 tread-wheel and direction of the moving power are the 
 important points. The diameter of the wheel is from 
 ten to twelve feet, and the rim or outer circumference 
 
 is made of boards two 
 feet wide. The weight 
 of the animal turns the 
 wheel and moves the 
 dasher by means of 
 cogs, as shown in the 
 figure. 
 
 Where there is a 
 sufficient supply of 
 moving power, a churn 
 with two dashers is 
 sometimes attached, as 
 shown in Fig. 108, in 
 which case one dasher 
 moves down while the 
 other is raised. 
 
 A large and strong 
 dog is required, and 
 MS. he is easily taught to 
 
 keep to his work, by beginning with short trials, and 
 gradually lengthening them. A steady and uniform step 
 27* 
 
318 THE HORSE-POWER CHURN. 
 
 is necessary, and this will soon be acquired. The dog 
 is sometimes left free, and sometimes tied by a line. 
 
 Fig. 109. 
 
 CHURNING BY HORSE-POWER. On large farms and in 
 extensive dairies the churning is done by horse-power, 
 
 fig. 110 
 
THE TIME IT TAKES TO CHURN. 319 
 
 as shown in Fig. 109. The form of the churn itself 
 is optional in this case, also. The size of the wheel va- 
 ries, but it is seldom less than nine or ten feet in diam- 
 eter, furnished with cogs on the upper surface, which 
 are from four to six inches long, and play into a smaller 
 wheel, the axle of which is attached to the dasher of 
 the churn. A third and smaller wheel is sometimes 
 introduced, as in Fig. 110. A quick and regular step 
 is required of the animal, and a quiet and docile horse 
 is always preferred. A horse adapted to this work com- 
 mands a good price. Blinders are always used on the 
 horse while churning. 
 
 DURATION OP THE CHURNING. In whatever way the 
 churning is performed, the result is always a separation 
 of the fatty particles from the other constituents of 
 the milk. As soon as the churning indicates that the 
 butter particles increase in size and collect together, 
 the motion of the dasher must be hastened till the but- 
 ter has come together in a large mass. Great care 
 should be taken to observe the appearance of this form- 
 ation. The Dutch dairymaids acquire great skill, by 
 long practice and experience, in judging of the proper 
 moment when the separation of the particles has com- 
 pletely taken place. Very great importance is with 
 justice attached to this skill, for it is undoubtedly true 
 that one with this knowledge can get far more and 
 better butter from milk of the same quality, the same 
 quantity, and skimmed at the same time. 
 
 The cream taken from the milk of thirty-five cows, 
 after standing twenty-four hours, is generally churned 
 in summer in less than an hour, sometimes in three 
 quarters of an hour. In very hot weather the cream- 
 pot is frequently set into the cool-bath of fresh water 
 for five or six hours before the churning begins, and it 
 churns the easier for it. Cold water is never poured 
 
320 
 
 WORKING OF THE BUTTER. 
 
 Fig. 111. 
 
 into the churn with the cream. In winter, as well as in 
 cold weather in spring and fall, warm water is some- 
 times poured in with the cream. 
 
 WORKING AND TREATMENT OF BUTTER. When the 
 churning is finished, the dairy-woman 
 takes out the butter with a wooden 
 scoop, Fig. Ill, and puts it into a 
 tub for further working. The tub, 
 Fig. 112, is a 
 bi oad, shallow vessel, open at the 
 top, and having an opening at the 
 bottom which is stopped by a 
 bung. The scoop is pierced with 
 holes, through which the butter-milk Fig. 112. 
 
 drains. The butter put into the tub is now rinsed, 
 salted, and formed. 
 
 The tub is put upon a low, firm table, and the butter 
 is worked by the hands, or by a shallow, rather wide 
 and strong wooden ladle, until the butter is united into 
 one firm and entire mass. Many 
 dairy-women are accustomed to 
 work the butter out from the mid- 
 dle towards all sides before bring- 
 ing the whole mass together in the 
 tub. Then very clear arid pure 
 fresh cold water is poured 
 upon the butter, and 
 worked through it till all 
 the milky particles are 
 entirely removed. After 
 this is done in several 
 workings, the bung is 
 removed from the bottom 
 of the tub, and the watery 
 matter runs down through a little strainer, as in Fig. 1 13. 
 
 Fig. 113. 
 
SALTING. PREPARING FOR MARKET-DAY. 321 
 
 As a general rule, butter is washed with water and 
 worked over eleven or twelve times ; yet the operator 
 must judge whether the butter contains any particles of 
 milk, and must work with water till, as it runs off, it is 
 no longer whitish, but perfectly clear. Butter some- 
 times becomes too soft from too much working, if it is 
 all done at once ; it is then worked over two or three 
 times, and allowed to stand in cold water after each 
 working, which preserves its hardness and texture. 
 This whole operation is called the washing of the butter. 
 When the washing is finished, the butter is cut with 
 a blunt, saw-toothed knife, Fig. 114, in every direction, 
 
 in order to remove all 
 Lairs, or fibres of any 
 Fi - lu - kind, which by any pos- 
 
 sibility have got into it during the day. It is then 
 sprinkled over with white, finely-powdered salt, the 
 quantity of which is regulated by the taste ; and this is 
 perfectly worked in, so that the whole is uniformly 
 salted. Most dairy-women determine the quantity of 
 salt by the eye and the taste, and acquire such facility 
 by continued practice that they always get the proper 
 quantity ; but less experienced ones take the salt by 
 weight. The salting is not all done at once, but is con- 
 tinued three or four days, twelve hours intervening 
 between each application, until all the salt uaS dissolved, 
 and not a crystal is to be found. If the butter has a 
 speckled and variegated appearance, it is a sign that the 
 salt is not completely worked in, and the neglect must 
 be remedied by working it over still more in the most 
 thorough manner. When the salt is all dissolved, the 
 butter is brought into single balls and got ready for 
 the next market-day, or the whole mass is put into a 
 particular keg, in order to be taken to market at some 
 subsequent time as firkin-butter. 
 
 21 
 
322 THE BUTTER-MOULDS. 
 
 THE FORM OF FRESH BUTTER. The form of the but- 
 ter is made by taking a suitable quantity and press- 
 ing it into a mould, and then taking it out by knocking 
 on the mould. Many different forms of butter-moulds 
 are in use in the different sections of Holland, such as 
 are shown in Figs. 115, 116, and others. 
 
 Fig. 115. Fig. 116. 
 
 The figures impressed on the butter are given by the 
 mould, where it is deeply engraved ; or they are made 
 after the butter is taken out of the mould, and for this pur- 
 pose a peculiar instrument is used, Fig. 117, a kind of flat 
 wooden spoon, with a short, convenient handle, 
 and long grooves in the broad, flat surface. Each 
 region has its own peculiar stamp, or special 
 figures, which are given to lump-butter, to which 
 particular attention is paid by the purchaser. 
 The butter-dealer knows exactly that in one 
 section butter is stamped in one way, in another 
 section in some other way ; and that the butter 
 of one section, with its peculiar stamp, is woith 
 Fig. 117. more than that of another. 
 The butter-moulds are generally made of linden-wood, 
 but must always be large enough to hold at least a cer- 
 tain prescribed weight of butter ; for all lump-butter 
 brought for sale to the weekly market must be of a 
 prescribed weight. This weight is very different, and 
 almost every city has different regulations and market 
 customs; yet, in most places, a pound is the legal 
 
THE PACKING OF BUTTEK. 323 
 
 weight. Certain market-masters, or inspectors of 'but- 
 ter, are appointed, and watch that all the butter has its 
 proper weight. If too light, it is forfeited by the 
 seller, who is also punished for fraud. The butter 
 brought to market is generally covered with very clean 
 white cloths, and several sample lumps are put for 
 inspection in a large butter-bowl, basket, or shallow 
 box. 
 
 Many dairymen are accustomed in spring, when the 
 first grass butter is made, to send their regular custom- 
 ers a few little lumps of fresh May or grass butter. 
 These presents generally have a peculiar form, and on 
 the specimens most carefully prepared some animal is 
 moulded, as a sheep lying down, a dog, <fcc., with a bunch 
 of green grass or buttercups in its mouth. The dairy- 
 woman herself usually presents this butter in a beauti- 
 ful milk-bowl adorned with grass and flowers, covered 
 with glittering white cloths. 
 
 THE PACKING OF BUTTER IN FIRKINS AND BARRELS. 
 If the butter packed in firkins and barrels is to be kept 
 a long time, experience and knowledge are required to 
 pack it so that it will not be injured. The form and 
 size of these casks are different in different sections and 
 provinces. Where butter-making forms a chief branch 
 of dairy business, the particular form and size which 
 have been used for a long time are adhered to, because 
 dairymen know very well that the public recognizes 
 their choice butter by the form and size of the casks, 
 and buys it the more readily. The greatest anxiety of 
 the Dutch butter-maker is to keep up the old, well-earned 
 reputation which Dutch butter has in every foreign 
 country, both for its intrinsic good qualities, the result 
 of the process of manufacture, and for its extraordinary 
 appearance as an article of commerce. 
 
 For the proper preservation of the good qualities of 
 
324 THE CASKS REGULATED BY LAW. 
 
 butter, it is of the highest importance to have the casks 
 properly made and treated ; but the mode of salting and 
 packing the butter in them is also of special import- 
 ance, since this is examined at the sale. The old and 
 customary forms and sizes of butter-casks are, there- 
 fore, of great consequence to the butter-maker, because 
 every butter-dealer and judge of butter recognizes at 
 once, by the external form of the casks, from what sec- 
 tion the butter comes, and makes up his mind on the 
 money value of the article from these appearances. 
 
 It was not originally known what kinds of wood were 
 best for transporting butter long distances in, and pre- 
 serving its highest qualities ; and butter-casks were 
 made of several kinds of wood, as oak, beech, willow, 
 etc. But it was for the interest of the government that 
 Dutch butter should maintain its reputation for extraor- 
 dinary qualities abroad, and the most rigid laws were 
 enacted, prescribing from what wood the casks should 
 be made, etc. ; and now only oak is allowed to be used, 
 and the casks are all inspected and stamped according 
 to law. * * * * 
 
 Before the butter is packed the casks are properly 
 cleaned and prepared, for which practice and experience 
 are requisite. 
 
 Old butter-casks that have been previously used are 
 cleaned of every particle of fat and dirt remaining in 
 them, and scoured and washed out as carefully as pos- 
 sible, and are placed for several days in running water 
 before they are used again. If no running water is at 
 hand, quite clean pond or spring water is taken, and all 
 impure water is carefully avoided. After they have lain 
 in the water five or six days, they are carefully scoured 
 out with good wood-ashes and sand, and again well 
 rinsed. After several scourings and soakings, they are 
 put into a kettle over a fire and carefully scalded ; and 
 
TREATMENT OF NEW CASKS. 325 
 
 then, when cold, again scoured and rinsed, for which 
 the most judicious dairymen use milk instead of water, 
 and they are then placed to dry in the air. They are 
 fit for use only when everything has been done in the 
 most careful manner. 
 
 But new butter-casks require still more particular and 
 careful treatment before they can be filled with butter 
 without fear of injury. They are got ready for pack- 
 ing in several different ways. Some dairymen let them 
 lie in pure water a whole summer and winter long, and 
 wash them out in lye, and then treat them just as they 
 do those that have been used. Others, however, who 
 give the new casks the preference over the old, but 
 who cannot wait for the soaking in lye over summer 
 and winter, treat them in the following manner: They 
 prepare a lye of good American potash, which generally 
 contains the most alkali, in a cask holding some three 
 hundred quarts, taking a pound of potash to twenty 
 pounds of water. For a cask of the size named fifteen 
 pounds of potash are used, which is prepared by pour- 
 ing boiling water upon it and stirring constantly, add- 
 ing a little more water as the potash dissolves. With 
 this lye, which will be about five degrees strong by 
 Beaume's aerometer, the butter-barrels are entirely 
 filled. The barrels stand two hours filled with lye, and 
 are then emptied and exposed to the air to dry, without 
 being scoured out with water or milk. The lye may be 
 used again for other new barrels, even though a part 
 of its strength may be gone. Potash is added, from 
 time to time, to keep up the specified degree of strength. 
 A solution of fifteen pounds of coarsely-powdered alum 
 is prepared in about three hundred quarts of hot water, 
 in a vessel as large as the lye-cask. The butter-barrels 
 are also filled full of the solution of alum, and allowed 
 to stand twenty-four hours. This alum solution must 
 28 
 
326 EFFECT OF LYE ON THE BARRELS. 
 
 also be of five degrees strength by Beaume's scale, and 
 it can be used over and over by adding more alum now 
 and then. After emptying out the alum and lye, they 
 are dried a day in the sun and air, and then rinsed out 
 in fresh, pure water, when they can be used for packing 
 butter without fear. Some add a little sulphate of 
 iron or green copperas to the alum, when the solution 
 is more powerful ; yet the management of the butter- 
 barrels is then more troublesome, and requires more 
 experience. The effect of the copperas has also the 
 disadvantage that it blackens the barrels, which, though 
 it does not injure them, is not liked by the purchaser. 
 
 By this treatment the new butter-barrels are much 
 more quickly and cheaply cleansed, and got ready for 
 packing and transporting butter, than by the course 
 pursued with old barrels. The barrels, treated as above, 
 are not only quite water-tight, but the wood is stronger 
 and more durable. By means of the potash-lye and the 
 alum solution the tannin is taken from the oak-wood 
 used in the barrels, which, if it remained, would give a 
 disagreeable taste to the butter. The effect of the pot- 
 ash and alum upon the wood of the barrels is quite 
 harmless, and does not impart the least unhealthy quality 
 to the butter. 
 
 When the old or new barrels have been cleansed and 
 prepared, in either of the ways indicated, suitably for 
 packing the butter, the bottom of the barrel is evenly 
 covered with salt. Then a layer of butter which has 
 been thoroughly washed and salted is made, and 
 another layer of salt, and so alternate layers of salt 
 and butter till the barrel is full, when a little brine of 
 salt and water is poured on top. The butter is now 
 ready to be laid in the cellar, and thence to be sold and 
 exported. When the dairy is not sufficiently large to 
 fill a barrel each day, the butter of several churn- 
 
SUPPLY OF THE HOME MARKET. 
 
 327 
 
 ings must be used, and the barrel filled from time to 
 time as it stands in the cellar. In that case the upper 
 layer of butter is left covered with salt, and the cover 
 of the barrel is closed down tight. In most large dai- 
 ries a barrel is generally filled at one churning, which is 
 considered better for the quality of the butter. The 
 butter is always packed in so firmly that no space is lei't 
 unfilled. 
 
 In doing up butter for sale at home, or at a neighbor- 
 ing market, the lumps are worked into the form of half 
 a sphere, and put into little bright-hooped boxes, made 
 to fit into larger casks, which can be nicely covered and 
 closed up, as seen in Fig. 119, where the dairy-woman 
 holds a box in her hand. The covered casks are also 
 seen carefully nailed up. 
 
 Fig. 119. 
 
 The buyer who wishes to try the butter uses a long 
 iron or steel borer, hollow inside, and furnished with a 
 handle, as also seen in the cut. This not only enables 
 him to test the quality but the uniformity of the butter 
 in the cask. 
 
328 ARTIFICIAL COLORING OF BUTTER. 
 
 COLORING OF BUTTER. The practice of coloring but 
 ter is founded on the fact that we are accustomed to 
 form our judgment at once of the qualities of the arti- 
 cle from the whiteness or the yellowness of its color. 
 Whiter butter is less attractive generally than yellow 
 summer or grass-made butter. The color has come to 
 oe important to the seller, and artificial means are found 
 to regulate it. 
 
 The coloring is made as follows : About a pound of 
 butter is melted, so that the heavier parts sink to the 
 bottom, when the light, clear fat on the top is poured 
 into another dish. In this fat thus poured off is put a 
 piece of annatto about the size of a walnut, wrapped 
 up in a linen cloth, and it is then again put over the 
 fire. The coloring matter of the annatto strains through 
 the linen cloth, and turns the butter brown red, when 
 it is allowed to cool off. When the butter is to be col- 
 ored, some of this brown red is melted, salted, and 
 mixed very carefully into the butter after washing. The 
 quantity of coloring matter used depends on the color 
 which the maker wants to impart to his butter, and a 
 little practice soon enables him to take the right quan- 
 tity. Others pour the coloring matter directly upon 
 the butter to attain the same end. 
 
 In coloring artificially it is important to get a uniform- 
 ity of color, which is the result of very thorough work- 
 ing. Colored butter must not be marbled. 
 
 The cream is sometimes colored before churning. 
 The annatto is put into a clean beech-wood lye, and as 
 much of this colored and strained lye is taken as is 
 necessary to produce the desired color in the butter. It 
 is then churned as usual. 
 
 Turmeric is sometimes used instead of annatto for 
 coloring butter. It has no advantage, however, over 
 annatto. 
 
THE USE OF BUTTER-MILK. 329 
 
 In many sections the butter is colored with an ex- 
 tract of saffron in water, or of marigold, or with the 
 juice of carrots, which is applied to the cream before 
 churning. 
 
 The coloring adds nothing to the quality or the taste. 
 It is done for the sake of the looks ; but it gives the 
 butter a deceptive appearance. 
 
 USE OF THE BUTTER-MILK. The butter-milk in the 
 churn is poured into a great cask, which in large 
 dairies, as a general rule, is painted blue outside and 
 white inside, with broad black iron hoops. It stands 
 generally in the kitchen covered with a wooden lid. 
 Butter-milk is used either in cooking, or for calves or 
 swine, or is sold. 
 
 Dairymen in the vicinity of large cities have barrels 
 with broad, bright brass hoops, in which they carry 
 their butter-milk to market. It is put into them 
 through a bung-hole, and when full the wooden bung 
 is wound with linen and driven in. In these barrels 
 the butter-milk is carried to Amsterdam, Rotterdam, 
 etc., sometimes by boats on the canals, sometimes on 
 wagons, and by yokes, and there sold to the grocers at 
 wholesale, to be again sold out by them. The butter- 
 milk thus brings an income by no means inconsiderable 
 to well-managed dairies. 
 
 THE MANUFACTURE OF THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF DUTCH 
 CHEESE. From time immemorial, cheese, as an article 
 of commerce, which has had a large sale, has brought 
 an extensive income to the cattle-breeders and dairy- 
 men where its manufacture has been largely carried 
 on, as everywhere in West Friesland, North and South 
 Holland, and along the borders of the crooked Rhine in 
 Utrecht. 
 
 Dairymen are not the only ones who enjoy the advan- 
 tage which grows out of the cheese-trade ; but a large 
 28* 
 
330 VARIOUS KINDS OF CHEESE. 
 
 number of other people derive considerable profit from 
 it, and support themselves entirely by it. Even the 
 commonalty of the cities, where the weekly markets for 
 the sale of cheese are regularly held, derive a consid- 
 erable revenue from the small taxes for carriage and 
 market-dues, to which every seller has to submit. 
 
 The actual difference between the different kinds 
 of cheese made in Holland is due in part to the form 
 and size, and in part to the mode of making. Every sort 
 has also a name derived from its peculiarities, or from 
 the provinces or sections where it is made. The vari- 
 eties of cheese best known in the markets in South 
 Holland are the spice cheese, the sweet milk cheese, 
 known also under the name of Gouda cheese, the so- 
 called May cheese, the Council's cheese, the Jews' 
 cheese, and the English cheese, made in many places. 
 
 Further up in North Holland, the North Dutch sweet 
 milk cheese, as it is commonly called in the province, 
 known in the foreign markets as Edam cheese, is almost 
 exclusively made. A kind of sweet milk cheese is made 
 to a limited extent, called Commissions' cheese. In 
 West Friesland, Utrecht, and South Holland, but few 
 except sweet milk cheeses are made. 
 
 In making cheese, the utmost cle'anliness is most care- 
 fully observed in all the operations. Whoever is 
 intrusted with this work is required to display the 
 utmost neatness in his whole person, as well as in the 
 dairy-room ; and the vats and other utensils are daily 
 scoured, w r ashed with lye, and washed out in water and 
 rinsed. The greatest attention is also paid to the trans- 
 port of cheese to the weekly markets in the cities; 
 and in whatever way his load is carried, whether by 
 wagon or in little boats, the person intrusted with it is 
 always dressed in the so-called cheese-frock, a large white 
 linen, which is used exclusively for this purpose. At 
 
MODE OP MAKING SPICE CHEESE. 331 
 
 the market itself the cheese is laid on a four-cornered 
 bench, two feet high, and exposed to view in a glitter- 
 ing white linen cloth. But, in order to keep off all dust 
 and impurities, a sail-cloth is raised over the whole, 
 called the cheese-sail ; or it is covered with a sail-cloth 
 covering, or sometimes with clean straw. But in other 
 places it is customary to carry the cheese on wagons, 
 in a white linen cloth, and covered with a woollen cover, 
 ready packed for sale at the markets. 
 
 CHEESE-MAKING IN SOUTH HOLLAND. Spice cheese 
 from skim-milk, and sweet milk or Gouda cheese, are 
 the only kinds made to any extent in South Holland. 
 Spice cheese, which derived its name from the addition 
 of spices, is a firm, flat cheese, of about twenty pounds 
 weight, brought to market generally colored red. It is 
 three quarters of a foot thick, and one and a half feet in 
 diameter, and is made as follows : 
 
 The skim-milk is poured from the milk-pans into large 
 tubs, and allowed to stand quiet till the cheesy matter 
 has settled to the bottom, which requires, perhaps, half 
 a day. Then the thin liquid on top is poured t>ff very 
 carefully, without stirring up the rest, through a strainer, 
 into a large brass kettle, till it is full ; but the thicker 
 substance at the bottom is left, and not put into the 
 kettle. Under this kettle a fire is made, and the milk 
 heated to a certain degree, regulated by the judgment 
 of the dairymaid, sufficient to warm other cold milk, 
 but it must not boil. The fire is made in the kitchen, 
 or in the summer-house, or in some other room called 
 the cheese-house. When the milk in the kettle is 
 properly heated, it is poured into the tub of milk which 
 has been heated and allowed to get cold. This tub is 
 an upright vat, open at the top, of uniform diameter, 
 bound with wooden hoops, and generally left of the nat- 
 ural color of the wood : scoured very bright, but some- 
 
332 
 
 PREPARATION OF RENNET. 
 
 Fig. 120. 
 
 times painted blue and the 
 hoops black. It is seen in 
 Fig. 120. 
 
 When the quantity of milk 
 is large, the dairyman puts in 
 as much rennet as he thinks 
 necessary to curdle the milk 
 completely; but before and 
 during the addition of the 
 curd the whole is thoroughly 
 stirred, and this stirring is 
 continued until the stick or 
 wooden ladle used for the pur- 
 pose will stand erect in the curd. Then the dairy- 
 woman works the curd with her hands till no further 
 effect of the rennet in curding the milk is to be seen. 
 It is called the cheese-curd. 
 
 The rennet is prepared in the following manner : The 
 maw or fourth stomach of a newly-killed sucking calf is 
 taken from the other stomachs, carefully cleaned and 
 cut into strips two inches wide, and then hung up in 
 the chimney to be smoked and dried ; or, in hot weather 
 in summer, it. is hung up in the sun. Well smoked 
 and dried strips wiJl keep a very long time. When 
 these are wanted for use, they are very carefully washed 
 and purified, and then laid in the salt brine from the 
 butter-barrels, or in lukewarm salt water to soak. The 
 liquid is put into bottles and laid in the cellar. For 
 curding milk as much is taken as is thought to be 
 necessary, which cannot be determined without consid- 
 erable practice and experience. If too little is taken, 
 the cheese is not fat enough ; if more than the right 
 quantity, it gives a disgusting acid taste. It is diffi- 
 cult, almost impossible, to state exactly how much ren- 
 net should be used with a certain quantity of milk, 
 
THE AGE OP RENNET. 333 
 
 because this must be determined by its quality and its 
 strength. Something like the following quantity is, 
 however, taken : In a sixty-quart vat are placed about 
 fifty rennets, prepared by drying, washing, and cutting, 
 and a clear salt brine or butter-pickle of twenty to 
 twenty -five degrees strength is added. In smaller quan- 
 tities the proportion of rennet is about one and a half 
 quarts to a rennet, or even less. This dried maw can be 
 bought everywhere in packages of twenty-five pieces 
 each. 
 
 One great point in cheese-making is to have a suffi- 
 cient quantity of good rennet in store ; for the older it 
 grows the more powerful and effective it becomes, and 
 the experienced cheese-makers, studying their own 
 interests, know very well how difficult, hurtful, and 
 time- wasting, it is to use fresh or new rennet. The asser- 
 tion sometimes made that they use muriatic acid instead 
 of rennet for curding the milk in Holland rests on an 
 error, at least so far as the present methods are con- 
 cerned. In earlier times, and for the poorest kinds, as 
 the Jews' cheese, muriatic acid was more or less used. 
 
 At the present time, 
 the rennet for those 
 cheeses is prepared 
 from the stomachs of 
 calves some days old. 
 When the curd has 
 sufficiently come, an.l 
 has all been thorough- 
 ly broken, the dairy- 
 woman puts a four- 
 cornered linen cloth, 
 called the cheese- 
 cloth, which is used only for this purpose, and is 
 only loosely woven, upon a small strong ladder laid 
 
334 
 
 THE PRELIMINARY PRESSING. 
 
 over the edges of a low tub, and puts upon the 
 cloth the proper quantity of curd, then ties up the 
 four corners of the cloth, and presses with her whole 
 strength, that the milk may drain off. This work is 
 also done by men who can apply great strength, Fig. 
 121. The corners of the cheese-cloth are brought 
 together, and the operator presses as hard as he can, in 
 order to remove all the milk from the curd. But, as 
 this is not possible with the hands alone, the whole is 
 placed under a plank-press, and by this means as much 
 of the milk as possible is pressed out. A strong cleat 
 is nailed to a pillar in the wall at a convenient height from 
 the floor, say two feet, so that the tub, ladder, and 
 cheese-cloth, can be put under the plank, when the 
 plank is pressed down upon the cloth and curd. At 
 the other end of the plank the operator sits and presses 
 
 down with the whole weight of his body, as seen in Fig. 
 122. The whey runs into the tub, and is generally used 
 
THE CHEESE-MOULDS. 
 
 335 
 
 as food for swine. The pressure is continued till no 
 more runs off. 
 
 After the complete removal of the whey, the curd 
 remaining in the cloth has the form of the palms of the 
 hands, and is pressed so firmly that it holds together 
 when the cloth is removed. But it is again broken up, 
 and put for this purpose into the breaking-tub, a low 
 but broad, open tub, with wooden hoops, and made of 
 strong staves, and is here worked over by the bare but 
 cleanly-washed feet of the dairyman, or hired man. This 
 working with the feet is continued, just as in kneading 
 dough, till all is brought to a stiff paste. 
 
 When it has come to this consistence the forming of 
 the cheese begins. The dairyman has for this purpose 
 a cheese-mould standing before him, 
 and lays on the bottom a layer of 
 cheese without spice, and this is 
 called the blind layer. The cheese 
 tub or mould, Figs. 123 and 124, is 
 used only for this first moulding. It 
 is a wooden vat, made of staves from 
 one to one and a half inches thick, 
 and is nine and a half to twelve and a half inches in 
 diameter, and about ten inches high, bound at the 
 bottom and top with stout hoops. 
 The bottom of oak-wood, put in 
 very carefully, is pierced with holes 
 for letting off any moisture that may 
 remain in the cheese. On the top of 
 the tub a cover is exactly fitted, to 
 sink down upon the cheese when 
 the pressure is applied. This cover 
 is of oak, one and a half inches thick, and has a cross- 
 piece three and a half inches thick, which serves as a 
 handle. 
 
 Fig. 124. 
 
336 THE FORM OF THE CHEESE - PRESS. 
 
 The first layer of cheese is quite firmly pressed down 
 or trodden into the mould with the hands or feet, and 
 then follows a layer of curd mixed with spices. The 
 mixture is made best by putting as much of the pasty 
 curd from the vat into a tub as will form one layer in 
 the mould. Over this the spice is strewn, caraway and 
 some pounded cloves, and the mass is then worked over, 
 when it is placed as a new layer into the mould. Upon 
 the second layer some coarsely-pounded cloves are 
 generally scattered, or they are stuck whole over the 
 surface. After that the second layer is pressed in like 
 the first, and the third follows, and so on till the mould 
 is full. On the uppermost and firmly pressed layer is 
 laid the cover. The mould thus carefully filled is now 
 brought under a press, which, partly on account of its 
 length, is called the "long-press," and sometimes the 
 " first " or " cheese press," because the cheese first 
 comes under it. This press is seen in Fig. 125. It 
 
 Fig. 125. 
 
 Btands on four short legs, and consists of upright beams 
 fixed upon a platform, and a long beam, acting as a lever, 
 with one end fastened by a rivet or bolt. The other 
 end is loaded with weights to any desirable extent, as 
 appears in the cut. The power of the press may also 
 be increased or diminished by shifting the end of the 
 le^ T er to the lower or upper hole. 
 
THE EFFECT OF GREAT PRESSURE. 
 
 337 
 
 When the mould is put under the press it is set into 
 a shallow, four-cornered wooden box or pan on the foot- 
 board. This pan is furnished with grooves at the side, 
 through which the whey can escape. The pressure may 
 still further be increased by putting a block on the lid 
 of the mould, as appears in the press. It is this power- 
 ful pressure which gives the cheese the high quality for 
 which it is distinguished above others. The whey still 
 remaining in the curd runs off through the holes in the 
 bottom of the mould, when the strong pressure is 
 applied, into the pan, and is caught in another pan which 
 sets under the press. 
 
 When the cheese has stood two hours under the 
 press, it is taken from the mould, surrounded by a clean 
 linen cloth, and again brought under the press. The 
 change of cloth is repeated once or twice after two or 
 
 29 
 
 Fig. 126. 
 
 22 
 
338 SALTING IN THE TROUGH. 
 
 three hours' pressing, and the cheese is left standing in 
 the press over night. The next morning the cheese is 
 brought under another press, under which it is subjected 
 to still more powerful pressure, and receives its peculiar 
 form. This press is seen in Fig. 126, and consists of a 
 frame resting on four strong uprights, forming a kind 
 of firm table. On the plate of the table lie four or six 
 rollers, whose ends at both sides pass through holes 
 in the standard pieces, and serve merely to assist in 
 taking out the cheese. The pressure is obtained by 
 heavy weights let down and raised by a kind of wind- 
 lass fixed in two perpendic- 
 ular standards. The cheese 
 rF as it comes under this press 
 is not in the mould, but is 
 simply laid in a pan, as seen 
 
 in Fig. 127. Before the pressure begins, however, the 
 stamp or mark of the manufacturer, a key, a letter, 
 etc., in iron, is laid upon the cheese, and upon that a 
 square board. The pan and weight are lowered, so 
 that the pressure begins and fhe stamp is impressed on 
 the cheese, which becomes flatter, smoother, and firmer, 
 than before. The cheese is left under this press till it 
 gets its final form, and the pressure in the pan is 
 increased or diminished, according to circumstances. 
 
 When the cheese, after being pressed in both ma- 
 chines, has received its final form, it is placed in a long 
 trough, called the salt-trough, which is generally in the 
 cow-room behind the cow-stands. It has been already 
 said that the cow-stall is used as a cheese-room in sum- 
 mer, when the cows are out to pasture. In this trough, 
 a space deep and wide enough for the diameter of the 
 cheese, from four to six cheeses can be laid. In the 
 salt-trough the cheeses are salted as long and as thor- 
 oughly as is necessary. Observation and experience are 
 
COLORING. SWEET MILK CHEESE. 339 
 
 needed here to get the right quantity of salt and the 
 right time, that the cheese may receive a suitably firm 
 crust or rind. 
 
 When the cheese in the salt-trough is sufficiently 
 salted, it is put over a large tub, where it is properly 
 washed in cold, fresh water, trimmed with a cheese-knife, 
 and colored. For coloring, annatto boiled in water with 
 some potash is used. After the coloring the cheese is 
 rubbed with the beistings, or first milk of a cow newly- 
 calved. The spice cheese gets its red color and firm, 
 smooth rind in the coloring and washing in the beist- 
 ings ; and this distinguishes it from other sorts. 
 
 The colored cheeses are now laid upon shelves made 
 for the purpose in the cow-stall used as a cheese-room, 
 and turned daily till properly dried. When dry they 
 are laid for sale in a cheese or store room. This room 
 is connected with the house, or separated from the 
 other rooms only by a thin board partition. This room, 
 as well as the cow-stall, is kept extraordinarily clean, 
 scoured and aired, and used for nothing but the keeping 
 of cheese. 
 
 Fig. 128 represents the cow-stall used as a cheese- 
 room, in which the salt-trough is seen, and the dairyman 
 and dairy-woman are occupied in turning and trimming 
 the cheese. 
 
 MANUFACTURE OP SWEET MILK CHEESE IN SOUTH 
 HOLLAND. The best kind of sweet milk cheese is 
 made in the vicinity of the city of Gouda, and on the 
 gray and Dutch Yssel, from which circumstance it, is 
 often known by the name of Gouda cheese. 
 
 The making of this cheese is less difficult than that 
 of spice cheese, but requires more attention and care, 
 because the rich sweet milk is used for it. It is a*s fol- 
 lows: The milk as it comes fresh from the cow is 
 strained through a hair-strainer into a large wooden vat 
 
310 
 
 THE CHEESE-ROOM. 
 
 or tub, or, in some large dairies, into a copper kettle, 
 which stands on a peculiar tray or bench. This tray is 
 made of four to five inch posts, and its size is gov- 
 
 Fig. 128. 
 
 erned by the quantity of milk of the tubs to be used; 
 but these tubs generally hold from one hundred to one 
 hundred and fifty cans. The milk is immediately set 
 with the requisite quantity of rennet, usually one quar- 
 ter of a can to one hundred cans of milk ; and if it does 
 not " come " in a quarter of an hour, more rennet is 
 addefl. 
 
 When it has properly curdled, it is stirred in all direc- 
 tions with a wooden ladle three or four times over, and 
 
HOT AND COLD WATER. 341 
 
 somewhat broken up, when it is allowed to stand three 
 or four minutes at rest. It is then gently and constantly 
 stirred again, with the ladle or the hands, and broken. 
 By too active stirring one gets more whey than cheese, 
 and very quick stirring must be avoided. The whey is 
 then allowed to stand some time, by which the curdled 
 cheese particles collect, and the whey appears on the 
 surface, and can be taken off and poured into a tub 
 made for the purpose. To the mass still remaining in 
 the kettle, which is now almost all cheesy matter, as 
 much hot water is added as is sufficient to warm it prop- 
 erly. The addition of hot water must be made with 
 discretion, however, and must not exceed a certain 
 amount, which can be learned only by practice. The 
 more we add, the drier will the cheese become after a 
 while ; and, though it may keep the better, and be better 
 for transportation, the taste is unquestionably injured by 
 it. The cold-made cheese is far more liable to injury 
 from keeping, but is much richer and more palatable, 
 on which account the best is generally eaten fresh. The 
 quantity of hot water to be added for warming the milk 
 must therefore be determined somewhat by the disposi- 
 tion to be made of the cheese. 
 
 When the hot water has stood, say half an hour, on 
 the curd, it is taken off and poured into the whey. The 
 curd is now properly brought together by the hands or 
 a ladle, and again thoroughly worked and broken. After 
 standing at rest a short time, the water and whey are 
 turned off again, as completely as possible, in the whey- 
 tub. The mass of curd still remaining in the vat, now 
 called wrongel, is cut up into small pieces, which are 
 very carefully worked over, and then pressed into the 
 wooden cheese-mould. In order to get a very fine sep- 
 aration of the curd, only a small quantity is taken at once 
 from the vat, which is rubbed in the hands. *nd then 
 29* 
 
342 DETAILS OF PRESSING. 
 
 pressed into the mould till it is quite full. The cheese- 
 mould is in the form of a bowl, made of willow wood, 
 with its lower part pierced with holes, so that the whey 
 can run off when the pressure is applied. The cheese 
 now formed is taken out carefully, rubbed with the 
 hands, and still further worked in the cheese-tub, and 
 again very firmly pressed into the mould with the hands. 
 To be able to press it into the mould with greater 
 power, an implement called the presser is used. It con- 
 sists of a short stick, with a kind of handle or cross- 
 piece on the upper end. On the lower end a disc is 
 fixed which fits into the cheese-mould. In using the 
 instrument, the disc is placed on the cheese to be pressed 
 into the mould, the handle or cross-piece is placed 
 against the chest or shoulders, and the operator presses 
 down at the same time with his hands, thrusting the 
 disc as deeply as possible into the cheese-mould. When 
 pressed enough on one side, it is turned round in the 
 mould, bringing the other side up, and the pressure is 
 again applied as strongly as possible. For saving the 
 whey in cheese-pressing, the mould is set into a pan only 
 a little larger than the mould itself, which catches the 
 whey running out from the mould. When the cheese 
 in the mould is properly pressed by hand, the cover is 
 put upon the mould, which is loaded gradually, in order 
 to bring down the greatest possible pressure. The 
 weight or pressure is greater or less according to the 
 size of the cheese ; yet during the pressure the cheese 
 must be frequently turned, that it may get the right form. 
 The gradual increase of the pressure goes on for 
 twenty-four hours, when the cheese is taken from the 
 mould to be laid in a tub of salt-brine in the cellar ; the 
 cellar must be kept cool. The cheese remains in the 
 brine twenty-four hours, but is turned once in that time. 
 It is then taken out and put upon a table, the surface 
 
THE LIGHT AND AIR. 343 
 
 of which is inclined, the legs of one end being longer 
 than those of the other. On both sides of the inclined 
 table run grooves in the direction of the inclination of 
 the surface, which unite at the lower end, and serve as a 
 way of escape for the brine or pickle into a tub below. 
 Here the cheese is rubbed with salt, and a handful of 
 salt is scattered over the top, when it is left standing 
 for some time " in the salt." If one side was rubbed 
 in the morning, it is turned at evening ; and the other 
 side is served in the same manner as the first. A cheese 
 of from fifteen to sixteen pounds remains standing thus 
 four or five days, according to the temperature. If the 
 heat is great, it must stand the longer in the salt. When 
 sufficiently salted, it is washed off in hot water, and taken 
 to the cheese-room, where it is daily turned on dry, clean 
 shelves. If it is still greasy or dauby on the outside, 
 it is still further washed in water, and dried off with a 
 coarse linen towel. 
 
 The cheese-room is generally kept closed by day to 
 keep out the light and sun, which are not good for 
 cheese. It is opened in the morning and evening to let 
 in a little cooling air ; yet a strong breeze is avoided by 
 opening all the doors and windows at the same time, 
 for the cheese will crack and break open if exposed to it. 
 
 Sweet milk cheese is fit for use at the age of four 
 weeks. Strongly salted cheese does not ripen up so 
 quickly as that which is salted less ; but, if it takes 
 longer, the loss is less, and, on that account, it is pre- 
 ferred for sending off to less salted cheese, which, on 
 the other hand, is richer, and has a little better taste. 
 In the daily turning of the cheese, great care is taken 
 to observe any little specks in it where the mites con- 
 ceal themselves. As soon as such places are discovered, 
 a hole is dug out with a knife as deep as they extend 
 into the cheese. The holes are left open till the next 
 
344 EFFECT OF GREAT HEAT. 
 
 day, when, if no more mites appear, they are stopped 
 up with other cheese. But, if they still appear, some 
 pounded pepper is put into the holes, which destroys 
 them. Rotten or moist spots on the cheese are treated 
 in the same way, but very deep holes have to be made 
 into the cheese, and it is best to cover them with 
 buckwheat-meal, when they dry up very quickly. 
 
 In very hot weather it sometimes happens that tho 
 cheese swells up and begins to ferment. Then it is laid 
 on the cleanly-scoured pavement of the cheese-room, 
 where it is cooler ; or, as many do, pierced pretty deeply 
 with holes with a knitting-needle, which often helps it. 
 With the decrease of the great heat of the sun, the 
 swelling also ceases. The cheese is not injured except 
 in appearance, the taste being improved. But, if the 
 swelling is very considerable, it makes the cheese hol- 
 low. If the milk and cheese dishes are not very cleanly 
 washed and rinsed out, the cheese gets a wrinkled crust, 
 and begins to ferment. 
 
 Sweet milk cheese, three or four months old, is turned 
 and aired only once a week in dry weather. Many 
 cheese-makers also sprinkle the cheeses daily, for a week 
 or two after they are fourteen days old, with beer and 
 vinegar, or with vinegar in which saffron has been 
 extracted, by which it gets not only a beautiful yellow 
 color, but is also protected from flies. 
 
 THE USE OF THE WHEY OF SWEET MILK CHEESE. 
 On what remains of the milk devoted to the making of 
 sweet milk cheese in the manner above described, or the 
 whey which runs off in the pressing of the cheese, 
 there forms, after it has stood a few days, a fine creamy 
 skin, which is carefully taken off with a wooden spoon, 
 put in a clean jar, and stirred from time to time. This 
 cream is collected to make butter, and it can be done 
 once a week. This butter-whey is healthful and good, 
 
MAY CHEESE. NEW MILK'S CHEESE. 34o 
 
 to be sure ; but, on the whole, is not so fine and delicate 
 flavored as good cream butter, and on this account is 
 cheaper. 
 
 The butter-milk which comes from the churning of 
 the cream of whey is a good food for swine. They 
 greatly relish it. 
 
 Whey is also sold as a beverage, and is called " sweet 
 whey." When fresh and untainted, it is quite an agree- 
 able drink, very cooling, and good for the health in 
 spring, purifying the blood, though somewhat purgative 
 in its effect on the kidneys. Later in summer, when the 
 heat is very great, whey is thought to be rather injuri- 
 ous to the health than otherwise. It is then used 
 exclusively for swine. 
 
 MAY CHEESE. In the early part of summer, when 
 the grass is best, sweet milk cheese is made in precisely 
 the same way as that described, yet of smaller size and 
 less weight. This is called May cheese, and is designed 
 for immediate use or sale when ripe, as it will not keep, 
 and easily loses its fine flavor. 
 
 JEWS' CHEESE. Another kind of sweet milk cheese 
 is the Jews' cheese. It differs from common sweet milk 
 cheese in its form, which is flatter and thinner, and 
 partly in being less salted, and of a much looser texture. 
 It is but little made ; but some dairies are devoted to it. 
 
 COUNCIL'S CHEESE. This is made as the common 
 sweet milk cheese, only in much smaller moulds. It 
 has also a peculiar color. It is allowed to get rather 
 old before it is relished, and is then mostly given away. 
 
 NEW MILK'S CHEESE. This is made in winter, when 
 the cows are in the stall. It is not so good as grass 
 cheese, which is made in summer, when the cows are at 
 pasture, and is less relished, and brings a lower price. 
 When the cows are brought to the barn late in the fall, 
 it can be made of very good quality for a few days ; 
 
346 CHEESE-MAKING IN NORTH HOLLAND. 
 
 but the longer the cow remains in the stall the more 
 the milk loses its good quality for cheese, on which 
 account but few of the larger dairies make cheese at all 
 in winter. 
 
 To make it appear to buyers more like grass-made 
 cheese, and to be able to sell it, it is colored with the 
 same material, and it is then often very difficult to dis- 
 tinguish it, since great pains is taken to give the two 
 kinds the same form, hardness of rind, etc. The dairy- 
 men have less to do with this deception than the deal- 
 ers. Hay cheese is rather better in quality for coloring, 
 since it gains in appearance and taste ; but it never can 
 equal grass-made cheese in fine qualities. 
 
 CHEESE-MAKING IN NORTH HOLLAND. In the province 
 of North Holland sweet milk cheese is made almost 
 exclusively. From ancient times this particular branch 
 of farming has been carried to great extent 5 but it has 
 especially grown in importance since the province 
 gained a firm soil by artificial draining. At the present 
 time North Holland is the head-quarters of the cheese- 
 trade ; and it is easily explained in the fact that no 
 other province has more or better cattle. The manu- 
 facture of cheese is almost the only object of keeping 
 cattle, and the North Dutch dairy farmer applies him- 
 self with the greatest possible zeal to the most careful 
 modes of cheese-making, in order to keep up the ancient 
 reputation of his cheeses, both in the domestic and 
 foreign markets, and to secure to himself all of the 
 advantages springing from it. 
 
 The quantity of cheese which is weekly sold in the 
 markets of Alkmaar, Hoorn, Edam, Purmerend, Meden- 
 blik, Enkhuizen, etc., is enormous. We cite Alkmaar 
 alone as an example, where on the city scales there were 
 weighed no less than 23,859,258 Netherlandish pounds 
 (536,834,830 pounds, American), from 1758 to 1830. 
 
NORTH DUTCH CHEESE. 347 
 
 Since that time the manufacture has increased, so that 
 from three to four million Netherland pounds are 
 annually brought to the Alkmaar market. But, besides 
 this, a large quantity of cheese does not come into the 
 market, but is sold at the dairy without passing through 
 the hands of the traders, and never comes to the city 
 scales. 
 
 In 1843 there were sold in the North Dutch cheese- 
 markets 22,385,812 pounds, to say nothing of the large 
 quantity sold directly from the dairy. It is easy to 
 see, therefore, how important and extensive an interest 
 the manufacture of cheese has become for this province. 
 Of the twenty-two million pounds annually exported, 
 the value may be estimated as at least three million 
 Dutch guilders. The price and value of the cheese 
 vary, of course, with the markets. 
 
 The North Dutch cheese differs somewhat in quality 
 and money value, according to the section where it is 
 made ; but in general that made in the region about 
 Hoorn is considered the best, as is very natural, since 
 in that vicinity are to be found the finest meadows and 
 pastures in the province. The villages of Ooster- 
 blokker, Westerwoude, Hoogecarspel, and Twisk, are 
 distinguished above all others ; and so are the pastures 
 of Beemster, Purmer, and Schermer, almost equally so. 
 
 The Dutch cheese-maker reckons twelve Nether- 
 land cans of milk to a pound two and a quarter 
 pounds American of cheese, according to which a 
 cow in three hundred days would give from eighteen 
 hundred to two thousand cans of milk, or usually from 
 one hundred and fifty to one hundred and seventy-five 
 Netherland pounds of cheese, in a year. 
 
 THE UTENSILS USED IN CHEESE-MAKING IN NORTH HOL- 
 LAND are nearly the same as those already described for 
 saving the milk for butter, and those used in the 
 
348 VARIETIES OP NORTH DUTCH CHEESE. 
 
 various processes of cheese-making in South Holland. 
 They are modified to some extent, to be sure, by the 
 taste, the pride, the wealth, or the caprice, of each dairy- 
 man. Many of them are painted, wholly or in part, in 
 oil colors, for the sake of durability as well as cleanli- 
 ness, on which the North Dutch dairyman lays great 
 stress. They do not require much capital. 
 
 VARIETY OF NORTH DUTCH CHEESES, AND THE TRADE 
 IN THEM. The North Dutch cheese is called sweet 
 milk cheese, and also, pretty commonly, white cheese, 
 where it is made ; but in Germany it is called Edamer, 
 less because the best is made in the vicinity of this 
 city than because the largest trade in it is carried on 
 there. 
 
 All sweet milk cheese has not the same weight, 
 form, and size. Many kinds of it come into the market 
 under different names ; as, for example, large cheese 
 of 20 to 24 pounds (45 to 54 pounds), Malbollen of 
 16 pounds (36 pounds), medium of 10 to 12 pounds (22 
 to 27 pounds), Commission's of 6 or 7 pounds (14 to 16 
 pounds), and little ones of 4 pounds (9 pounds), to which 
 belong the Jews' cheese. Besides this, the making of 
 English cheese is carried on. Malbollen is but little made. 
 It is of about twenty pounds weight. Fifty years ago 
 large quantities of it came into market, and were sold 
 mostly in North Brabant and the Rhine provinces. Of 
 the medium cheese the manufacture is pretty extensive 
 at the present time, and it is sold to go to North Brabant 
 chiefly. The price of these sorts is more frequently 
 fluctuating than that of the smaller ones ; but less so 
 than that of Commission's cheese, which is not much 
 made. These varieties in former years were very profit- 
 able, since they were made with little labor, being light 
 and spongy from slight pressing and little salting, and 
 were sold green. 
 
MAKING OF EDAM CHEESE. 349 
 
 Dairy industry is now chiefly devoted to making 
 the varieties most known and sought for in Germany, 
 the Edam small sweet milk cheeses, which are sent in 
 enormous quantities to all parts of the world. There 
 are two varieties of Edam cheese in the market, one 
 with a white, the other with a red rind. The latter is 
 firm, more of a yellowish color inside, and colored out- 
 side. The coloring matter is prepared in France for 
 this special purpose. By this treatment the cheese is 
 better adapted to transportation. The early red rind 
 cheese is the finest and best. It is made in spring from 
 milk fresh and warm from cows just turned to pasture, 
 and is exported mostly to Italy, Spain, and America. 
 That made later in summer is not so good, and goes to 
 France ; the red rind, made still later in the fall, goes 
 to England and Brabant. Cheese that is injured, or 
 does not keep well, is sold mostly in Hamburg and 
 Brabant. 
 
 MAKING OF EDAM CHEESE. The Edam is a rich sweet 
 milk cheese, that is made from fresh, unskimmed milk. 
 The milk, while still warm from the cow, is poured into 
 a large tub or a kettle through the strainer. In cold 
 weather, when it has cooled off in standing in the air, 
 it is warmed to a proper degree by adding milk heated 
 by the fire. The rennet is then added. This is pre- 
 pared in the following manner: The maw of the nursing- 
 calf, cut into long strips, is soaked for twenty-four 
 hours in sweet whey, when it is made lukewarm over 
 a slow fire, whey and all, and three times the quantity 
 of cheese-brine, or solution of the salt of the cheese, 
 added. The mass is then allowed to stand four days, 
 when it is fit for use. An exact determination of the 
 quantity of rennet to be used cannot well be given, 
 since the quantity depends on the quality ; but usually 
 about two hundred cans of milk to one fifth of a can 
 30 
 
350 THE RENNET. SETTLING. 
 
 of rennet is the proportion, taking more or less, accord 
 ing to the strength of the rennet. 
 
 The milk in the tub to which the rennet has been 
 added is covered over and allowed to stand till it is 
 curdled, or become hard, which usually requires a 
 quarter of an hour. The curdled milk is then called 
 " glib." It is now slowly but regularly stirred, with a 
 shallow, long-handled cheese-spoon, in all directions. 
 
 Some cheese-makers treat the milk in the following 
 manner : They stir the milk, thrusting an inverted 
 cheese-ladle into the curdling mass every two or three 
 minutes after adding the rennet, by which the curdling 
 is much hastened. Now they move the ladle or cheese- 
 stick three or four times with considerable force through 
 the thickening milk, and lay it, inverted, on the surface 
 of the milk, covering the vat for ten or twelve minutes, 
 when the mass is again set in motion, and then again 
 allowed to stand. By this means the cheese particles 
 settle to the bottom, and the whey rises to the top. 
 
 When, after these alternate stirrings and rest of the 
 curdling milk, the solid particles have settled, and the 
 whey is collected on top, the latter is turned off, as care- 
 fully as possible, into the whey-tub. In order the better 
 to settle the cheesy parts, and to cause the whey to come 
 up, the cheese-stick is loaded with weights or stones, by 
 which the whey is separated in the pressure upon the 
 curd. Some minutes after, the whey is again turned 
 off, the whole mass is properly stirred, and the curd is 
 collected with the cheese-stick and worked with the 
 hands, and the whey is again carefully turned off. The 
 curd, now become thick, is taken out of the vat, piece 
 by piece, and broken with the hands as finely as pos- 
 sible, in order to fill as much into the cheese-moulds as 
 will just make a cheese. The moulds are set into the 
 cheese-vat, and the curd is worked and pressed closely in 
 
TIME OF PRESSING. 351 
 
 with the hand, to remove the whey as much as possible. 
 The cheese is then taken out of the mould, and again very 
 finely crumbled in the vat, and, after the whey is again 
 turned off through the strainer, is pressed the second 
 time into the mould, so that it is as full of cheese as it 
 can possibly be. It is then turned in the mould so 
 that the upper side goes down, when it is again firmly 
 pressed in. The turning is repeated several times. 
 
 In the making of large and medium cheeses the 
 presser is used, while space left empty by the press- 
 ure is again filled with curd, so that the mould is always 
 full, and the cheese gets its requisite size. In the 
 smaller or four-pound cheeses, the hands alone are used 
 for this pressing into the mould. The mould, now 
 pressed full, is put into a tub, properly washed in 
 whey, and cleansed of all remaining fat. By the wash- 
 ing and smoothing the cheese must get a glossy and 
 smooth rind. After this is done, the cheese is again 
 taken out of the mould, wrapped in a clean linen cloth, 
 put in again, and covered over and brought under the 
 press, that it may become harder and firmer, and that 
 the whey may run off. 
 
 In hot weather the cheese is left under the press five 
 hours, from nine in the morning till two in the after- 
 noon; but, if it is cool, it must stand longer. There are 
 several different objects in view in deciding the con- 
 tinuance of the pressure. Many think two or three 
 hours sufficient, whilst others press five hours. Cheese 
 designed for export is pressed longer, or twelve hours. 
 
 It takes from three to four hours, usually, from the 
 pouring in of the milk to the bringing of the cheese 
 under the press ; but it can be done in two or two and 
 a half hours without injuring the cheese. 
 
 After the first pressing is finished, the cheese is put 
 into another mould, rounder than the first, and with 
 
352 PRACTICAL DETAILS. 
 
 only one hole in the bottom, to lie in the salt. In many 
 places a long trough is used, in which several such 
 moulds are placed to be salted at the same time; and 
 for this either dry salt or pickle (brine, or salt in solu- 
 tion) is used. The pickle is most commonly used, and 
 is thought best. When one side of the cheese has laid 
 eome hours in the brine, it is turned, and the other side 
 is also salted. After a while it is salted or turned in 
 the brine but once a day. Small four-pound cheeses 
 remain nine days in hot weather, and in cold ten or 
 twelve days, in the salt ; medium ones of ten to twelve 
 pounds must lie at least three weeks. In very hot 
 weather they are often salted twice a day. The moulds 
 with the salted cheese are placed, several together, into 
 the cheese-vat where the brine is, or on a salting-tray 
 where the brine is collected in a tub beneath. After 
 being finally salted, they are washed perfectly clean 
 with water or warm whey. Many put their cheeses 
 from the brine immediately in a kettle of hot whey for 
 some minutes, and wash them in it. All unevenness or 
 roughness got in pressing in the mould is now scraped 
 off with a knife. 
 
 After the washing, the cheeses are again perfectly 
 dried, and laid on the shelves in the cheese-room, where 
 they are daily turned, and remain from two to four, and 
 even five weeks. The cheese is now salable; but before 
 it is packed or delivered it is laid for some hours to 
 soak in pure, cold spring or well water, the smallest 
 for three hours, the medium four, and the largest five 
 hours. The cheese is then well cleaned with the cheese- 
 brush, laid on the shelf in the store-room, and turned a 
 week or more, daily. But, in order to give them a fine 
 yellow color, in damp weather, especially, the poorer 
 ones are, by many dairymen, laid a good ways apart, 
 and sprinkled or washed daily with new beer. When 
 
COLOR OP EDAM CHEESE. 353 
 
 the cheese is to be sold, it is properly washed still again 
 in hot whey, and rubbed with a woolen cloth a day 
 before sending to market, with hot or cold linseed-oil ; 
 by which the outside of the cheese gets a fine glow ; 
 but it must be rubbed till no fat or oil is to be felt. 
 
 THE RED COLOR OF EDAM CHEESE. After the dairy- 
 man has sold his cheese to the merchant, it is colored 
 by him quite red. It will not be uninteresting to many 
 readers to know some of the details of this peculiar 
 color. 
 
 Edam cheese is colored with what is called tournesol, 
 which is extracted from a plant (Croton tinctorium). 
 This is an annual, which grows wild in France, in great 
 abundance, in the vicinity of Montpelier, in Langue- 
 doc ; and around Aix, in Provence, large commons are 
 sown with it. The seed is sown in March and April. 
 From a white and straight tap root, it sends up a stalk 
 something like six inches high, which divides into many 
 branches. The leaves have very long stems, of a pale 
 green color. The flower-stalks spring up from between 
 the branches, and bear flowers in fan-shaped clusters. 
 The vegetation of the plant continues four months. 
 
 The preparation of the tournesol is as follows : The 
 plants are collected late in summer, the roots thrown 
 away, and the other parts taken to a mill, where they 
 are ground, and the juice pressed out. Into this juice 
 the rags of old hempen cloth are dipped till they 
 are soaked full, when they are hung up to dry in the 
 sun. When they are dry they are laid on a tray over 
 a tub filled with urine, in which carbonate of lime has 
 been dissolved, so that the edges hang over the rim of 
 the tub on which they rest. The vapor from the solu- 
 tion of lime must penetrate the rags, and this gives 
 them a violet color, when they are taken off and dried 
 again, to be replaced till they are fully colored. 
 30* 23 
 
354 USE OF THE WHEY. 
 
 The tournesol rags have become an article of com- 
 merce, for which France receives annually from Holland 
 from 100,000 to 200,000 guilders (from $38,000 to 
 $76,000). 
 
 To give the Edam cheeses the red rind, they are 
 rubbed with these tournesol rags, from which they get, 
 the dark violet color ; and after they are dried they are 
 again rubbed, which gives them a glowing red. 
 
 It is an excellent peculiarity of the tournesol rags 
 that they not only impart the color to Edam cheese, to 
 which people abroad are so accustomed, but that they 
 keep the insects from the cheese, whilst the coloring 
 matter does not penetrate inside, but remains on the 
 rind. Substitutes for it have been repeatedly sought, 
 but not found; nor have the attempts made to grow the 
 plant in Holland proved successful. 
 
 USE OF THE WHEY OF THE NORTH DUTCH SWEET MILK 
 CHEESE. The whey obtained in making cheese in 
 North Holland is collected in large tubs. The sweet, 
 agreeable taste of the whey is soon lost when it is set 
 to obtain the fatty particles still remaining in it. The 
 cream which forms on it is daily taken off with a skim- 
 mer, put into a cream-pot, and when it is collected in 
 sufficient quantity it is made into whey butter. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 LETTER TO A DAIRY-WOMAN. 
 
 IN the earlier chapters of this work I have spoken 
 to farmers and dairymen of the selection, care, and 
 management, of dairy stock. The seventh, eighth, and 
 ninth chapters relate more especially to your depart- 
 ment, and on your application and skill will depend 
 chiefly the successful result of the dairy establishment. 
 Of what avail are costly barns, well-selected cows, and 
 judicious feeding, in the butter and cheese dairy, if the 
 products are to be depreciated in value by the imper- 
 fect modes of preparing them for the market, where the 
 final judgment is passed upon them, and where it is 
 expected the price will be according to their value ? 
 
 You have, doubtless, had a much greater practical 
 knowledge and experience of the details of dairy 
 management than I have. For this practice and experi- 
 ence I have the utmost respect ; but I have not spoken 
 without a knowledge of the subject. I have made many 
 a cheese, and many a pound of butter, while my ob- 
 servations have extended over all the most important 
 dairy districts of the country, and have not been limited 
 to the practices of any one section, which, however 
 good in themselves, may not be the best. I trust, there- 
 fore, you will excuse me for calling your attention to the 
 more important points to which I have alluded ; and, if 
 my cor elusions happen to differ from your own, in any 
 
356 A DRUG IN THE MARKET. 
 
 respect, that you will not discard them as worthless, 
 without first bringing them to the test of careful 
 experiment, when I trust they will be found correct. 
 
 I have not written to establish any favorite theory, 
 but simply to inculcate truth, and to aid in developing 
 a most important branch of American industry, which, 
 either directly or indirectly, involves the investment 
 of a vast amount of capital, the aggregate profits of 
 which depend so largely on your judgment and skill. 
 
 I need not remind you that any addition, however 
 small, to the market value of each pound of butter or 
 cheese, will largely increase the annual income of your 
 establishment. Nor need I remind you that these arti- 
 cles are generally the last of either the luxuries or 
 the necessaries of life in which city customers are will- 
 ing to economize. They must and will have a good 
 article, and are ready to pay for it in proportion to its 
 goodness ; or, if they desire to economize in butter, it 
 will be in the quantity rather than the quality. 
 
 Poor butter is a drug in the market. Nobody wants 
 it, and the dealer often finds it difficult to get it oft' his 
 hands, when a delicate and finely-flavored article attracts 
 attention and secures a ready sale. Some say that poor 
 butter will do for cooking. But a good steak or mutton- 
 chop is too expensive to allow any one to spoil it by the 
 use of a poor quality of butter ; and good pastry-cooks 
 will tell you that cakes and pies cannot be made without 
 good sweet butter, and plenty of it. These dishes rel- 
 ish too well, when properly cooked with nice butter, for 
 any one to tolerate the use of poor butter in them. 
 
 On page 220 and elsewhere, I have dwelt on the 
 necessity of extreme cleanliness in all the operations 
 of the dairy ; and this is the basis and fundamental prin- 
 ciple of your business. I would not suppose, for a 
 moment, that you are lacking in this respect. The 
 
CARE AND NEATNESS. 357 
 
 enormous quantities of disgusting, streaky, and tallow- 
 like butter that are daily thrust upon the seaboard 
 markets must be due to the carelessness and negligence 
 of heedless men, to exposure to sun and rain, to bad 
 packing, and to delays in transportation. Many of these 
 evils you may not be able to remove, since you cannot 
 follow the article to the market, and see that it arrives 
 safely and untainted. But you can take greater pains, 
 perhaps, in some of the preliminary processes of 
 making, and produce an article that will not be so liable 
 to injure from keeping and transportation ; and then, if 
 fault is to be found, it does not rest with you. 
 
 I will not suggest the possibility that your ideas of 
 cleanliness and neatness may be at fault ; and that what 
 may seem an excess of nicety and scrubbing to you 
 may appear to be almost slovenliness to some others, 
 whose butter receives the highest price in the market, 
 and always finds the readiest sale. Permit me, however, 
 to refer you to pages 300, 324, and 325, where a detailed 
 account is given of the washings in water and washings 
 in alkali ; of the scrubbings, and the scotirings, and the 
 scaldings, arid the rinsings, which the neat and tidy 
 Dutch dairy- women give all the utensils of the dairy, 
 from the pails to the firkins and the casks, and also to 
 their extreme carefulness that no infectious odor rises 
 from the surroundings. I think you will see that it is 
 a physical impossibility that any taint can affect the at- 
 mosphere or the utensils of such a dairy, and that many 
 of the details of their practice may be worthy of imita- 
 tion in our American dairies. 
 
 And here allow me to suggest that, though we may 
 not approve of the general management in any partic- 
 ular section, or any particular dairy, it is rare that there 
 is not something in the practice of that section that is 
 really valuable and worthy of imitation. 
 
358 LETTER TO A DAIRY-WOMAN. 
 
 On pages 231 and 234 I have called your attention to 
 the use of the sponge and clean cloth for absorbing 
 and removing the butter-milk in the most thorough man- 
 ner ; this I regard as of great importance. 
 
 I have stated on page 234 that, under ordinarily favor- 
 able circumstances, from twelve to eighteen hours will 
 be sufficient to raise the cream ; and that 1 do not believe 
 it should stand over twenty-four hours under any cir- 
 cumstances. This, I am aware, is very different from 
 the general practice over the country. But, if you 
 will make the experiment in the most careful manner, 
 setting the pans in a good, airy place, and not upon the 
 cellar bottom, I think you will soon agree with me that 
 all you get, after twelve or eighteen hours, under the 
 best circumstances, or at most after twenty-four hours, 
 will detract from the quality and injure the fine and 
 delicate aroma and agreeable taste of the butter to a 
 greater extent than you are aware of. The cream which 
 rises from milk set on the cellar bottom acquires an 
 acrid taste, and can neither produce butter of so fine 
 a quality or so agreeable to the palate as that which 
 rises from milk set on shelves from six to eight feet 
 high, around which there is a full and free circulation of 
 pure air. The latter is sweeter, and appears in much 
 larger quantities in the same time than the former. 
 
 If, therefore, you devote your attention to the making 
 of butter to sell fresh in the market, and desire to 
 obtain a reputation which shall aid and secure the quick- 
 est sale and the highest price, you will use cream that 
 rises first, and that does not stand too long on the milk. 
 You will churn it properly and patiently, and not with 
 too great haste. You will work it so thoroughly and 
 completely with the butter-worker, and the sponge and 
 cloth, as to remove every particle of butter-milk, never 
 allowing your own or any other hands to touch it. You 
 
THE TASTE AND THE EYE. 359 
 
 will keep it at a proper temperature when making, and 
 after it is made, by the judicious use of ice, and avoid 
 exposing it to the bad odors of a musty cellar. You 
 will discard the use of artificial coloring or flavoring mat- 
 ter, and take the utmost care in every process of mak- 
 ing. You will stamp your butter tastefully with some 
 mould which can be recognized in the market as yours ; 
 as, for instance, your initials, or some form or figure 
 which will most please the eye and the taste of the 
 customer. You will send it in boxes so perfectly pre- 
 pared and cleansed as to impart no taste of wood to the 
 butter. If all these things receive due attention, my 
 word for it, the initials or form which you adopt will 
 be inquired after, and you will always find a ready and 
 a willing purchaser at the highest market price. 
 
 But, if you are differently situated, and it becomes 
 necessary to pack and sell as firkin-butter, let me sug- 
 gest the necessity of an equal degree of nicety and 
 care in preparation, and that you insist, as one of your 
 rights, that the article be packed in the best of oak- 
 wood firkins, thoroughly prepared after the manner of 
 the Dutch, as stated on page 325. A greater attention 
 to these points would make the butter thus packed 
 worth several cents a pound more when it arrives in 
 the market than it ordinarily is. Indeed, the manner 
 in which it not unfrequently comes to market is a dis- 
 grace to those who packed it; and it cannot be that 
 such specimens were ever put up by the hands of a 
 dairy-woman. I have often seen what was bought for 
 butter open so marbled, streaked, and rancid, that it was 
 scarcely fit to use on the wheels of a carriage. 
 
 If you adopt the course which I have recommended 
 in regard to skimming, you will have a large quantity 
 of sweet skimmed milk, far better than it would be if 
 allowed to stand thirty-six or forty-eight hours, as is the 
 
360 REAPING THE ADVANTAGE. 
 
 custom with many. This is too valuable to waste, 
 and it is my opinion that you can use it to far greater 
 profit than to allow it to be fed to swine. There can 
 be no question, I think, that cheese-making should be 
 carried on at the same time with the making of butter, 
 in small and medium-sized dairies. You have seen, 
 in Chapter XI., that some of the best cheese of Hol- 
 land is made of sweet skim-milk. The reputation of 
 Parmesan a skim-milk cheese of Italy, page 266 is 
 world-wide, and it commands a high price and ready 
 sale. The mode of making these varieties has been 
 described in detail in the ninth and eleventh chapters ; 
 and you can imitate them, or, perhaps, improve upon 
 them, and thus turn the skim-milk to a very profitable 
 account, if it is sweet and good. You will find, if you 
 adopt this system, that your butter will be improved, and 
 that, without any great amount of extra labor, you will 
 make a large quantity of very good cheese, and thus 
 add largely to the profit of your establishment, and to 
 the comfort and prosperity of your family. 
 
 But, if you devote all your attention to the making 
 of cheese, whether it is to be sold green, or as soon as 
 ripe, or packed for exportation, I need not say that 
 the same neatness is required as in the making of but- 
 ter. You will find many suggestions in the preceding 
 pages on the mode of preparation and packing, which 
 I trust will prove to be valuable and applicable to 
 your circumstances. There is a general complaint 
 among the dealers in cheese that it is difficult to get a 
 superior article. This state of things ought not to ex- 
 ist. I hope the time is not far distant when a more 
 general attention will be paid to the details of manu- 
 facture, and let me remind you that those who take the 
 first steps in improvement will reap the greatest advan- 
 tages. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE PIGGERY AS A PART OP THE DAIRY ESTAB- 
 LISHMENT. 
 
 THE keeping of swine is incidental to the well-man- 
 aged dairy, and both the farmer and the dairyman unite 
 it, to some extent, with other branches of farming. 
 
 In the regular operations of the dairy, however eco- 
 nomically conducted, there will always be more or less 
 refuse in the shape of whey, butter-milk, or skim-milk, 
 which may be consumed with profit by swine, and 
 which might otherwise be lost. Dairy-fed pork is dis- 
 tinguished for its fineness and delicacy ; and the dairy 
 refuse, in connection with grains, potatoes, and scraps, 
 is highly nutritious and fattening. 
 
 There is a wide difference between the profit to be 
 derived from the different breeds. Some are far more 
 thrifty than others, and arrive at maturity earlier. But 
 the choice of a breed will depend, to considerable 
 extent, on the locality and the object in view, whether 
 it be to breed for sale as stock, or for pork or bacon. 
 
 To get desirable crosses, some breeds must be kept 
 pure, especially in the hands of stock breeders, or those 
 who raise to sell as pure-bred, even though as puro 
 breeds they may not be most profitable to the practical 
 farmer and dairyman. Those who confine themselves 
 to the pure breeds, therefore, do good service to the 
 community of farmers and dairymen, who can avail 
 themselves of the results of their experience and skill. 
 31 
 
362 SUFFOLKS AND SUBSOILER8. 
 
 I think it will generally be conceded that the size of 
 the male is of less importance than his form, his tend- 
 ency to lay on large amounts of fat in proportion to 
 the food he eats, or his early maturity. Smallness of 
 bone and compactness of form indicate early maturity ; 
 and this is an essential element in the calculations ot 
 the dairy farmer, who generally raises for pork rather 
 than for bacon, and whose profit will consist in fatten- 
 ing and turning early, or, at most, as young as from 
 twelve to fifteen months. A fine and delicate quality 
 of pork is at the present time highly prized in the 
 markets, and commands the highest price. For bacon, 
 a much larger hog is preferred ; but there can be little 
 doubt that the cross of the pure Suffolk or Berkshire 
 boar and the large, heavy and coarse sow, not uncom- 
 mon in the Western States, would produce an offspring 
 far superior to the class of hogs usually denominated 
 " subsoilers," with their long and pointed snouts, and 
 their thin, flabby sides. The principles of breeding, as 
 stated on pp. 70 and 71, and elsewhere in the preceding 
 pages, are equally applicable here, and are abundantly 
 suggestive on many other points. This is the import- 
 ant point, the selection of the proper breed and the 
 proper cross : for there is scarcely any class of stock 
 which varies so much in its net returns as this ; and 
 there is none which, if properly selected and judiciously 
 managed, returns the investment so quickly. 
 
 Those who feed for the early market, and desire to 
 realize the largest profits with the least outlay of time 
 and money, will resort to the Suffolk, the Berkshire, or 
 the Essex, to obtain crosses with sows of the larger 
 breeds, and will breed up more or less closely to these 
 breeds, according to the special object they have in 
 view. The Suffolks are nearly allied to the Chinese, 
 and possess much the same characteristics. Though 
 
EARLY MATURITY. SIZE. 363 
 
 generally regarded as too small for profit except to 
 those who breed for stock, their extraordinary fattening 
 qualities and their early maturity adapt them eminently 
 for crossing with the larger breeds. The form of the 
 well-built Suffolk, when not too closely inbred, is a 
 model of compactness, and lightness of bone and offal. 
 Though often too short in the body, a large-boned 
 female will generally correct this fault, and produce an 
 offspring suited to the wants of the dairy farmer. 
 
 The Berkshire is also mixed in with the Chinese, and 
 owes no small part of its valuable characteristics to that 
 race. The Berkshires, as a breed, often attain consider- 
 able size and weight. 
 
 The improved Essex are the favorites of some, and 
 for early maturity they are difficult to surpass. Some 
 think they require greater care and better feeding than 
 the Berkshire. 
 
 What is wanted is to unite, so far as possible, the 
 early maturity and the facility to take on fat of the 
 Suffolk, the Chinese, or the. Essex, with a tendency at 
 the same time to make flesh as well as fat ; or, in other 
 words, to attain a good growth and size, and to fatten 
 easily when the time comes to put them down. The 
 Chinese or the Suffolk are but ill adapted for hams and 
 bacon ; but, crossed upon the kind of hog already 
 described, the produce will be likely to be valuable. 
 
 The most judicious practical farmers are now fully 
 satisfied, I think, that the tendency, for the last ten 
 years, in the Eastern States more especially, has been 
 to breed too fine ; and that the result of this error has 
 been to cover our swine with fat at a very early age, 
 and before they have attained a respectable size. In 
 other words, the flesh and bone have been too far 
 sacrificed to fat. A reaction has already taken place 
 in the opinions on this point, and perhaps some can- 
 
364 STUDYING THE MARKET. 
 
 tion may be necessary, that it does not lead too far in the 
 opposite direction. 
 
 Some practical dairymen think that with a dairy of 
 twenty or thirty cows they can keep from forty to fifty 
 swine, by turning into the orchard or the pasture, in early 
 spring, and as pigs, where they will easily procure a 
 large part of their food, till the close of fall, when they 
 are taken in and fed up gradually at first, but afterward 
 more highly, and fattened as rapidly and turned as 
 goon as possible. 
 
 Others say there is no profit in working hogs, and 
 that they should be kept confined and constantly and 
 rapidly growing up to the time of turning them for 
 pork, growing steadily, but not laying on too much fat 
 till fed up to it. 
 
 I am inclined to think the farmers of the Eastern 
 States confine their swine too closely ; and that, while 
 still kept as store-pigs, a somewhat greater range in the 
 orchard, or the pasture, would prove to be good econ- 
 omy, particularly up to the age of eight or nine months. 
 
 The judicious dairyman will study the taste and 
 demands of the market where his pork is to be sold. 
 If he supplies a city customer, he knows he must raise 
 a fine and delicate quality of pork ; and to do this he 
 must select stock that will early arrive at maturity, and 
 that will bear forcing ahead and selling young. If he 
 supplies a market where large amounts of pork are 
 salted and packed for shipping, or for bacon, a larger 
 and coarser hog, fed to greater age and weight, will 
 turn to better advantage, though I think a strain of 
 finer blood will even then be profitable to the feeder. 
 In either case, the refuse of the dairy is of considerable 
 value, and should be saved with scrupulous care, and 
 judiciously fed. r Many a little makes a rnickle." 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 THE following is Mr. Thomas Horsfall's statement, referred to on 
 page 138, with the omission of a few passages, relating to matters 
 not immediately connected with the dairy. It is entitled 
 
 THE MANAGEMENT OF DAIRY CATTLE. 
 
 ON entering upon a description of my treatment of 
 cows for dairy purposes, it seems pertinent that I 
 should give some explanation of the motives and con- 
 siderations which influence my conduct in this branch 
 of my farm operations. 
 
 I have found it stated, on authority deserving atten- 
 tion, that store cattle of a fair size, and without other 
 occupation, maintain their weight and condition for a 
 length of time, when supplied daily with one hundred 
 and twenty pounds of Swedish turnips and a small por- 
 tion of straw. The experience of the district of 
 Craven, in Yorkshire, where meadow hay is the staple 
 food during winter, shows that such cattle maintain 
 their condition on one and a half stone, or twenty-one 
 pounds, of meadow hay each per day. These respective 
 quantities of turnips and of hay correspond very closely 
 in their nutritive properties ; they contain a very simi- 
 lar amount of albuminous matter, starch, sugar, etc., 
 and also of phosphoric acid. Of oil an important 
 element, especially for the purpose of which I am treat- 
 ing the stated supply of meadow hay contains more 
 than that of turnips. If we supply cows in milk, of 
 31* 
 
366 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 average size, with the kind and quantity of food above 
 mentioned, they will lose perceptibly in condition. 
 This is easily explained when we find their milk rich in 
 substances which serve for their support when in store 
 condition, and which are shown to be diverted in the 
 secretion of milk. 
 
 In the neighborhood of towns where the dairy prod- 
 uce is disposed of in new milk, and where the aim of 
 dairymen is to produce the greatest quantity, too fre- 
 quently with but little regard to quality, it is their 
 common practice to purchase incalving cows. They 
 pay great attention to the condition of the cow ; they 
 will tell you, by the high comparative price they pay 
 for animals well stored with flesh and fat, that condition 
 is as valuable for them as it is for the butcher ; they 
 look upon these stores as materials which serve their 
 purpose ; they supply food more adapted to induce 
 quantity than quality, and pay but little regard to the 
 maintenance of the condition of the animal. With such 
 treatment, the cow loses in condition during the process 
 of milking, and when no longer profitable is sold to 
 purchasers in farming districts where food is cheaper, 
 to be fattened or otherwise replenished for the use of 
 the dairy keeper. We thus find a disposition in the 
 cow to apply the aliment of her food to her milk, rather 
 than to lay on flesh or fat ; for not only are the ele- 
 ments of her food diverted to this purpose, but, to all 
 appearance, her accumulated stores of flesh and fat are 
 drawn upon, and converted into components of milk, 
 cheese, or butter. 
 
 As I am differently circumstanced, a considerable 
 portion of my dairy produce being intended for butter, 
 for which poor milk is not adapted, and as I fatten not 
 only my own cows, but purchase others to fatten in 
 addition, I have endeavored to devise food for my 
 milch cows adapted to their maintenance and improve- 
 ment, and with this view I have paid attention to the 
 composition of milk. From several analyses I have 
 selected one by Haidler, which I find in publications 
 of repute. Taking a full yield of milk, four gallons per 
 
JUDICIOUS FEEDING. 367 
 
 day, which will weigh upwards of forty pounds, this 
 analysis assigns to it of dry material 5.20, of which the 
 proportion, with sufficient accuracy for my purpose, 
 consists of 
 
 Pure caseine, .......... 2.00 pounds 
 
 Butter, ............ 1.25 " 
 
 Sugar, ............ 1.75 " 
 
 Phosphate oflime, .......... 09 " 
 
 Chloride of potassium, ....... 
 
 Other mineral ingredients, ....... 11 " 
 
 It appeared an object of importance, and one which 
 called for my particular attention, to afford an ample 
 supply of the elements of food suited to the main- 
 tenance and likewise to the produce of the animal ; and 
 that, if I omitted to effect this, the result would be 
 imperfect and unsatisfactory. By the use of ordinary 
 farm produce only, I could not hope to accomplish my 
 purpose. Turnips are objectionable on account of their 
 flavor ; and I seek to avoid them as food for dairy pur- 
 poses. I use cabbages, kohl rabi, and mangold wurzel, 
 yet only in moderate quantities. Of meadow hay it 
 would require, beyond the amount necessary for the 
 maintenance of the cow, an addition of fully twenty 
 pounds for the supply of caseine in a full yield of milk 
 (sixteen quarts) ; forty pounds for the supply of oil for 
 the butter, whilst nine pounds seem adequate for that 
 of the phosphoric acid. You cannot, then, induce a 
 cow to consume the quantity of hay requisite for her 
 maintenance, and for a full yield of milk of the quality 
 instanced. Though it is a subject of controversy 
 whether butter is wholly derived from vegetable oil, 
 yet the peculiar adaptation of this oil to the purpose 
 will, I think, be admitted. I had, therefore, to seek 
 assistance from what are usually termed artificial feed- 
 ing substances, and to select such as are rich in albumen, 
 oil, and phosphoric acid ; and I was bound also to pay 
 regard to their comparative cost, with a view to profit, 
 which, when farming is followed as a business, is a 
 
368 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 necessary, and in any circumstance^ an agreeable 
 accompaniment. 
 
 I think it will be found that substances peculiarly rich 
 in nitrogenous or other elements have a higher value 
 for special than for general purposes, and that the 
 employment of materials characterized by peculiar 
 properties for the attainment of special objects has not 
 yet gained the attention to which it is entitled. 
 
 I have omitted all reference to the heat-supplying 
 elements starch, sugar, etc. As the materials com- 
 monly used as food for cattle contain sufficient of these 
 to effect this object, under exposure to some degree of 
 cold, I have a right to calculate on a less consumption 
 of them as fuel, and consequently a greater surplus for 
 deposit as sugar, and probably also as fat, in conse- 
 quence of my stalls being kept during winter at a tem- 
 perature of nearly sixty degrees. 
 
 The means used to carry out his objects are stated 
 on page 138. 
 
 As several of these materials rape-cake, shorts, 
 bean-straw, etc. are not commonly used as food, I 
 may be allowed some observations on their properties. 
 Bean-straw uncooked is dry and unpalatable. By the 
 process of steaming, it becomes soft and pulpy, emits 
 an agreeable odor, and imparts flavor and relish to the 
 mess. For my information and guidance I obtained an 
 analysis of bean-straw of my own growth, on strong 
 and high-conditioned land ; it was cut on the short side 
 of ripeness, but yielding a plump bean. The analysis by 
 Professor Way shows a percentage of 
 
 Moisture, 14.47 
 
 Albuminous mater, . . 16.38 
 Oil or fatty matter, . . 2.23 
 
 Woody fibre, .... 25 84 
 Starch, gum, etc., . . . 31.63 
 Mineral matters, . . . 9.45 
 
 Total, 100.00 
 
 In albuminous matter, which is especially valuable for 
 milch cows, it has nearly double the proportion con- 
 tained in meadow hay. Bran also undergoes a great 
 
OIL-CAKE. WEIGHING COWS. 369 
 
 improvement in its flavor by steaming, and it is prob- 
 ably improved in its convertibility as food. It contains 
 about fourteen per cent, of albumen, and is peculiarly 
 rich in phosphoric acid, nearly three per cent, of its 
 whole substance being of this material. The properties 
 of rape-cake are well known: the published analyses 
 give it a large proportion (nearly thirty per cent.) of 
 albumen ; it is rich in phosphates, and also in oil. This 
 is of the unctuous class of vegetable oils, and it is to 
 this property that I call particular attention. Chemistry 
 will assign to this material, which has hitherto been 
 comparatively neglected for feeding, a first place for 
 the purpose of which I am treating. If objection 
 should occur on account of its flavor, I have no diffi- 
 culty in stating that by the preparation I have described 
 I have quite overcome this. I can easily persuade my 
 cattle (of which sixty to eighty pass through my stalls 
 in a year), without exception, to eat the requisite 
 quantity. Nor is the flavor of the cake in the least 
 perceptible in the milk or butter. 
 
 During May, my cows are turned out on a rich pas- 
 ture near the homestead ; towards evening they are 
 again housed for the night, when they are supplied 
 with a mess of the steamed mixture and a little hay 
 each morning and evening. During June, when the 
 grasses are better grown, mown grass is given to them 
 instead of hay, and they are also allowed two feeds of 
 steamed mixture. This treatment is continued till 
 October, when they are again wholly housed. 
 
 The results which I now proceed to relate are de- 
 rived from observations made with the view of enabling 
 me to understand and regulate my own proceedings. 
 
 GAIN OR Loss OF CONDITION ASCERTAINED BY WEIGH- 
 ING CATTLE PERIODICALLY. For some years back I 
 have regularly weighed my feeding stock, a practice 
 from which I am enabled to ascertain their doings with 
 greater accuracy than I could previously. In January, 
 1854, I commenced weighing my milch cows. It has 
 been shown, by what I have premised, that no accurate 
 estimate can be formed of the effect of the food on the 
 
 24 
 
370 
 
 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 production of milk, without ascertaining its effect on 
 the condition of the cows. I have continued the prac- 
 tice once a month, almost without omission, up to this 
 date. The weighings take place early in the morning, 
 and before the cows are supplied with food. The 
 weights are registered, and the length of time (fifteen 
 months) during which I have observed this practice 
 enables me to speak with confidence of the results. 
 
 The cows in full milk, yielding twelve to sixteen 
 quarts each per day, vary but little ; some losing, 
 others gaining, slightly ; the balance in the month's 
 weighing of this class being rather to gain. It is com- 
 mon for a cow to continue a yield from six to eight 
 months before she gives below twelve quarts per day, 
 at which time she has usually, if not invariably, gained 
 weight. 
 
 The cows giving less than twelve quarts and down 
 to five quarts per day are found, when free from ail- 
 ment, to gain, without exception. This gain, with an 
 average yield of nearly eight quarts per day, is at the 
 rate of seven pounds to eight pounds per week each. 
 
 My cows in calf I weigh only in the incipient stages ; 
 but they gain perceptibly in condition, and consequently 
 in value. They are milked till within four weeks to 
 five weeks previous to calving. I give the weights of 
 three of these, and also of one heifer, which calved in 
 March, 1855: 
 
 No. I 
 
 1854. 
 
 1855. 
 
 
 
 
 cwt. qr. Ib? 
 
 
 cwt. qr. Ibs. 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 1 
 
 Bought and weighed, 
 
 July. 
 
 10 1 2< 
 
 April. 
 
 11 3 
 
 148 
 
 "2 
 
 H (( 
 
 M 
 
 8 2 1( 
 
 n 
 
 10 2 
 
 '2 L'-t 
 
 3 
 
 <( (( 11 
 
 u 
 
 8 2 
 
 u 
 
 10 
 
 lil 
 
 
 Heifer, which calved also 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 in March, 1855, weighed 
 
 tt 
 
 700 
 
 It 
 
 930 
 
 300 
 
 These observations extend over lengthened periods, 
 on the same animals, of from thirty to upwards of fifty 
 weeks. A cow, free from calf, and intended for fatten- 
 ing, continues to give milk from ten months to a year 
 after calving, and is then in a forward state of fatness 
 
EXTRA FOOD. PERMANENT IMPROVEMENT. 371 
 
 requiring but a few weeks to finish her for sale to the 
 butchers. 
 
 It will thus appear that my endeavors to provide 
 food adapted to the maintenance and improvement of 
 my milch cows have been attended with success. 
 
 On examining the composition of the ordinary focd 
 which I have described, straw, roots, and hay, it appears 
 to contain the nutritive properties which are found 
 adequate to the maintenance of the animal, whereas the 
 yield of milk has to be provided for by a supply of extra 
 food ; the rape-cake, bran, and bean-meal, which I give, 
 will supply the albumen for the caseine ; it is somewhat 
 deficient in oil for the butter, whilst it will supply in 
 excess the phosphate of lime for a full yield of milk. If 
 I take the class of cows giving less than twelve quarts 
 per day, and take also into account a gain of flesh of 
 seven to nine pounds per week, though I reduce the 
 quantity of extra food by giving less of the bean-meal, 
 yet the supply will be more in proportion than with a full 
 yield ; the surplus of nitrogen and phosphoric acid, or 
 phosphate of lime, will go to enrich the manure. 
 
 I cannot here omit to remark on the satisfaction I 
 derive from the effects of this treatment on the fertility 
 of the land in my occupation. My rich pastures are 
 not tending to impoverishment, but to increased fer- 
 tility ; their improvement in condition is apparent. A 
 cow in full milk, giving sixteen quarts per day, of the 
 quality analyzed by Haidlen, requires, beyond the food 
 necessary for her maintenance, six to eight pounds per 
 day of substances containing thirty or twenty-five per 
 cent, of protein. A cow giving on the average eight 
 quarts per day, with which she gains seven to nine 
 pounds per week, requires four to five pounds per day 
 of substances rich in protein, beyond the food which is 
 necessary for her maintenance. Experience of fattening 
 gives two pounds per day, or fourteen pounds per week, 
 as what can be attained on an average, and for a length 
 of time. If we considered half a pound per day as fat, 
 which is not more than probable, there will be one and 
 a half pounds for flesh, which, reckoned as dry material, 
 
372 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 will be about one third of a pound, which is assimilated 
 in increase of fibrin, and represents only one and one 
 third to two pounds of substances rich in protein, 
 beyond what is required for her maintenance. 
 
 If we examine the effects on the fertility of the land, 
 my milch cows, when on rich pasture, and averaging a 
 yield of nine quarts per day, and reckoning one cow to 
 each acre, will carry off in twenty weeks twenty-five 
 pounds of nitrogen, equal to thirty of ammonia. The 
 same quantity of milk will carry off seven pounds of 
 phosphate of lime in twenty weeks from each acre. 
 
 A fattening animal, gaining flesh at the rate I have 
 described, will carry off about one third of the nitrogen 
 (equal to about ten pounds of ammonia) abstracted by 
 the milch cow, whilst if full grown it will restore the 
 whole of the phosphate. 
 
 It is worthy of remark that experience shows that 
 rich pastures, used for fattening, fully maintain their fer- 
 tility through a long series of years, whilst those used 
 for dairy cows require periodical dressings to preserve 
 their fertility. 
 
 If these computations be at all accurate, they tend to 
 show that too little attention has been given to the siip- 
 
 Ely of substances rich in nitrogenous compounds in the 
 >od of our milch cows, whilst we have laid too much 
 stress on this property in food for fattening cattle. 
 They tend also to the inference that in the effects on 
 the fertility of our pastures used for dairy purposes we 
 derive advantage not only from the phosphate of lime, 
 but also from the gelatine of bones used as manure. 
 
 On comparing the results from my milch cows fed in 
 summer on rich pasture, and treated at the same time 
 with the extra food I have described, with the results 
 when on winter food, and whilst wholty housed, taking 
 into account both the yield of milk and the gain of 
 weight, I find those from stall-feeding full equal to those 
 from depasture. The cows which I buy as strippers, for 
 fattening, giving little milk, from neighboring farmers 
 who use ordinary food, such as turnips with straw or 
 hay, when they come under my treatment increase their 
 
RICHNESS OF MILK. 373 
 
 yield of milk, until after a week or two they give two 
 quarts per day more than when they came, and that too 
 of a much richer quality. 
 
 RICHNESS OF MILK AND CREAM. I sometimes observe, 
 in the weekty publications which come under my notice, 
 accounts of cows giving large quantities of butter. 
 These are usually, however, extraordinary instances, and 
 not accompanied with other statistical information re-, 
 quisite to their being taken as a guide ; and it seldom 
 happens that any allusion is made to the effects of the 
 food on the condition of the animals, without which no 
 accurate estimate can be arrived at. On looking over 
 several treatises to which I have access, I find the fol- 
 lowing statistics on dairy produce : Mr. Morton, iu 
 his " Cyclopaodia of Agriculture," p. 621, gives the 
 results of the practice of a Mr. Young, an extensive 
 dairy-keeper in Scotland. The yield of milk per cow is 
 stated at six hundred and eighty gallons per year ; he 
 obtains from sixteen quarts of milk twenty ounces of 
 butter, or for the year two hundred and twenty-seven 
 pounds per cow; from one gallon of cream three pounds 
 of butter, or twelve ounces per quart (wine measure). 
 Mr. Young is described as a high feeder ; linseed is his 
 chief auxiliary food for milch cows. Professor John- 
 ston (" Elements of Agricultural Chemistry v ) gives the 
 proportion of butter from milk at one and a half ounces 
 per quart, or from sixteen quarts twenty-four ounces, 
 being the produce of four cows of different breeds, 
 Alderney, Devon, and Ayrshire, on pasture, and in the 
 height of the summer season. On other four cows of the 
 Ayrshire breed he gives the proportion of butter from 
 sixteen quarts as sixteen ounces, being one ounce per 
 quart. These cows were likewise on pasture. The 
 same author states the yield of butter as one fou - th of 
 the weight of cream, or about ten ounces per quart. 
 Mr. Rowlandson ("Journal of the Royal Agricultural 
 Society," vol. xiii., p. 38) gives the produce of 20,110 
 quarts of milk churned by hand as 1109 pounds of but- 
 ter, being at the rate of fully 14 ounces per 16 quarts 
 of milk; and from 23,156 quarts of milk 1525 pounds 
 32 
 
374 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 of butter, being from 16 quarts nearly 16} ounces of 
 butter. The same author states that the yield of but- 
 ter derived from five churnings, of 15 quarts of cream 
 each, is somewhat less than 8 ounces per quart of cream. 
 Dr. Muspratt, in his work on the " Chemistry of Arts 
 and Manufactures," which is in the course of publication, 
 gives the yield of butter from a cow per year in Hoi- 
 stein arid Lunenburg at 100 pounds, in England at 160 
 pounds to 180 pounds. The average of butter from a 
 cow in England is stated to be eight or nine ounces per 
 day, which, on a yield of eight to nine quarts, is one 
 ounce per quart, or for sixteen quarts sixteen ounces. 
 The quantity of butter derived from cream is stated as 
 one fourth, which is equal to about nine ounces per 
 quart. The richest cream of which I find any record 
 is that brought to the Royal Society's meeting during 
 the month of July, for the churns which compete for 
 the prize. On referring to the proceedings of several 
 meetings, I find that fourteen ounces per quart of cream 
 is accounted a good yield. 
 
 I have frequently tested the yield of butter from a 
 given quantity of my milk. My dairy produce is partly 
 disposed of in new milk, partly in butter and old milk, 
 so that it became a matter of business to ascertain by 
 which mode it gave the best return. I may here remark 
 that my dairy practice has been throughout on high 
 feeding, though it has undergone several modifications. 
 The mode of ascertaining the average yield of butter 
 from milk has been to measure the milk on the churning- 
 day, after the cream has been skimmed off, then to 
 measure the cream, and having, by adding together the 
 two measurements, ascertained the whole quantity of 
 milk (including the cream), to compare it with that of 
 the butter obtained. This I consider a more accurate 
 method than measuring the new milk, as there is a con- 
 siderable escape of gas, and consequent subsidence, 
 whilst it is cooling. The results have varied from 
 twenty-four to twenty-seven and a quarter ounces from 
 sixteen quarts of milk. I therefore assume in my cal- 
 culation sixteen quarts of milk as yielding a roll (twen- 
 ty-five ounces) of butter. 
 
PROPORTION OP CREAM AND BUTTER. 375 
 
 As I have at times a considerable number of cows 
 bon glit as strippers, and fattened as they are milked, 
 which remain sometimes in my stalls eight or nine 
 months, and yield towards the close but five quarts per 
 day, T am not enabled to state with accuracy and from as- 
 certained data the average yield per year of my cows kept 
 for dairy purposes solely. However, from what occurs 
 at grass-time, when the yield is not increased, and also 
 from the effects of my treatment on cows which I buy, 
 giving a small quantity, I am fully persuaded that my 
 treatment induces a good yield of milk. 
 
 As the yield of butter from a given quantity of cream 
 is not of such particular consequence, I have not given 
 equal attention to ascertain their relative proportions. 
 I have a recollection of having tested this on a former 
 occasion, when I found fourteen to sixteen ounces per 
 quart, but cannot call to mind under what treatment this 
 took place. 
 
 On questioning my dairy-woman, in December, 1854, 
 as to the proportion of cream and butter, she reported 
 nearly one roll of twenty-five ounces of butter to one 
 quart of cream. I looked upon this as a mistake. Ou 
 its accuracy being persisted in, the next churning was 
 carefully observed, with a like proportion. My dairy 
 cows averaged then a low range of milk as to quantity 
 about eight quarts each per day. Six of them, in a for- 
 ward state of fatness, were intended to be dried for 
 finishing off in January ; but, owing to the scarcity and 
 consequent dearness of calving cows, I kept them on in 
 milk till I could purchase cows to replace them, and it 
 was not till February that I had an opportunity of 
 doing so. I then bought four cows within a few days 
 of calving ; they were but in inferior condition, and 
 yielded largely of milk. Towards the close of February 
 and March, four of my own dairy cows, in full condi- 
 tion, likewise calved. During March, three of the six 
 which had continued from December, and were milked 
 nearly up to the day of sale, were selected by the 
 butcher as fit for his purpose. Each churning through- 
 out was carefully observed, with a similar result, vary- 
 
376 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 ing but little from twenty-five ounces of butter per 
 quart of cream ; on Monday, April 30, sixteen quarts 
 of cream having yielded sixteen rolls (of twenty-five 
 ounces each) of butter. Though I use artificial means 
 of raising the temperature of my dairy, by the applica- 
 tion of hot water during cold weather, yet, my service- 
 pipes being frozen in February, I was unable to keep 
 up the temperature, and it fell to forty-five degrees. 
 Still my cream, though slightly affected, was peculiarly 
 rich, }aelding twenty-two ounces of butter per quart. 
 Throughout April the produce of milk from my fifteen 
 dairy cows averaged full one hundred and sixty quarts 
 per day. 
 
 My cows are bought in the neighboring markets with 
 a view to their usefulness and profitableness. The 
 breeds of this district have a considerable admixture of 
 the short-horn, which is not noted for the richness of 
 its milk. It will be remarked that during the time 
 these observations have been continued on the propor- 
 tion of butter from cream, more than half of my cows 
 have been changed. 
 
 Having satisfied myself that the peculiar richness of 
 my cream was due mainly to the treatment of my cows 
 which I have sought to describe, it occurred to me that 
 I ought not to keep it to myself, inasmuch as these 
 results of my dairy practice not only afforded matter 
 of interest to the farmer, but were fit subjects for 
 the investigation of the physiologist and the chemist. 
 Though my pretensions to acquirements in their 
 instructions are but slender, they are such as enable 
 me to acknowledge benefit in seeking to regulate my 
 proceedings by their rules. 
 
 In taking off the cream I use an ordinary shallow 
 skimmer of tin perforated with holes, through which 
 any milk gathered in skimming escapes. It required 
 care to clear the cream ; and even with this some 
 etreakiness is observable on the surface of the skimmed 
 milk. The milk-bowls are of glazed brown earthen 
 ware, common in this district. They stand on a base 
 of six to eight inches, and expand at the surface to 
 
BUTTER AND BUTTER-MILK. 377 
 
 nearly twice that width. Four to five quarts are con- 
 tained in each bowl, the depth being four to five inches 
 at the centre. The churn I use is a small wooden one, 
 worked by hand, on what I believe to be the American 
 principle. I have forwarded to Professor Way a small 
 sample of butter for analysis ; fifteen quarts of cream 
 were taken out of the cream-jar, and churned at three 
 times in equal portions : 
 
 The first five quarts of cream gave . . 127 ounces of butter. 
 Second five " " " " . . 125 " " " 
 Third five " " " " . . 120 " " " 
 
 372 
 Equal to 24| ounces per quart. 
 
 At a subsequent churning of fourteen quarts of 
 cream, 
 
 The first seven gave 7 rolls, or . . . 175 ounces of butter. 
 Second seven gave 7 rolls 2 oz., or . . 177 " " " 
 
 352 
 Equal to 25| ounces per quart. 
 
 On testing the comparative yield of butter and 'of 
 butter-milk, I find seventy per cent, of butter to thirty 
 per cent, of butter-milk, thus reversing the proportions 
 given in the publications to which I have referred. An 
 analysis of my butter by Professor Way gives : 
 
 Pure fat or oil, 82.70 
 
 Caseine or curd, 2.45 
 
 Water, with a little salt, 14.85 
 
 Total, . * V' /.-'' 1- . . . . 100.00 
 
 The only analyses of this material which I find in the 
 publications in my hand are two by Professor Way, 
 " Journal," vol. xi., p. 735, " On butter by the common 
 and by the Devonshire method ; " the result in one 
 hundred parts being: 
 
 Raw. Scalded. 
 
 Pure butter, 79.72 79.12 
 
 Caseine, &c., 3.38 3.37 
 
 Water, 16.90 17.51 
 
 Total, 100.00 100.00 
 
 32* 
 
378 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 The foregoing observation of dairy results was con 
 tinned up to grass time in 1855. In April and May the 
 use of artificial means was discontinued, without dimi- 
 nution in the yield of butter or richness of cream, the 
 natural temperature being sufficient to maintain that of 
 my dairy at 54 to 56. 
 
 I now proceed to describe the appearances since that 
 time. In the summer season, whilst my cows were 
 grazing in the open pastures during the day and housed 
 during the night, being supplied with a limited quantity 
 of the steamed food each morning and evening, a 
 marked change occurred in the quality of the milk and 
 cream ; the quantity of the latter somewhat increased, 
 but, instead of twenty-five ounces of butter per quart 
 of cream, my summer cream yielded only sixteen ounces 
 per quart. 
 
 I would not be understood to attribute this variation 
 in quality to the change of food only. It is commonly 
 observed by dairy-keepers that milk, during the warm 
 months of summer, is less rich in butter, owing probably 
 to the greater restlessness of the cows, from being teased 
 by flies, etc. I am by no means sure that, if turning 
 out during the warm months be at all advisable, it 
 would not be preferable that this should take place 
 during the night instead of during the day time. 
 Towards the close of September, when the temperature 
 had become much cooler, and the cows were supplied 
 with a much larger quantity of the steamed food, results 
 appeared very similar to those which I had observed 
 and described from December to May, 1855. During 
 the month of November the quality was tested with the 
 following result : 
 
 From two hundred and fifty-two quarts of old milk 
 were taken twenty-one quarts of cream, of which twenty 
 were churned, and produced four hundred and sixty- 
 eight ounces of butter, which shows : 
 
 27.50 ounces of butter from 16 quarts of new milk. 
 23.40 " " " " each quart of cream. 
 
 During May, 1856, my cows being on open pasture 
 
ELEMENTS OP NUTRITION. 379 
 
 during the day were supplied with two full feeds of the 
 steamed mixture, together with a supply of green rape- 
 plant each morning and evening. 
 
 The result was that from three hundred and twenty- 
 four quarts of old milk twenty-three quarts of cream 
 were skimmed, of which twenty-two were churned, and 
 produced five hundred and fifteen ounces of butter, 
 which shows : 
 
 24 ounces of butter from 16 quarts of new milk. 
 22.41 " " " " each quart of cream. 
 
 There is, doubtless, some standard of food adapted to 
 the constitution and purposes of animals, combining with 
 bulk a due proportion of elements of respiration, such 
 as sugar, starch, <fcc., together with those of nutrition, 
 namely, nitrogenous compounds, phosphates, and other 
 minerals; nor can we omit oil or fat^forming substances ; 
 for, however we may be disposed to leave to philosophy 
 the discussion as to whether sugar, starch, <fcc., are con- 
 vertible into fat, yet I think I shall not offend the 
 teacher of agricultural chemistry by stating that the 
 more closely the elements of food resemble those in the 
 animal and its product, the more efficacious will such 
 food be for the particular purpose for which it is used. 
 
 Sugar, starch, <fcc., vary very considerably in form and 
 proportion from vegetable oils, which closely resemble 
 animal fat's. 
 
 When we consider that plants have a two-fold function 
 to perform, namely, to serve as food for animals, and 
 also for the reproduction of the like plants, and that, 
 after having undergone the process of digestion, they 
 retain only one half or one third of their value as ma- 
 nure, the importance of affording a due but not excess- 
 ive supply of each element of food essential to the 
 wants and purposes of the animal will be evident. If 
 we fall short, the result will be imperfect; if we supply 
 in excess, it will entail waste and loss. 
 
 Linseed and rape-cake resemble each other very closely 
 in chemical composition ; the latter is chiefly used for 
 manure, and its price ranges usually about, half that of 
 
380 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 linseed-cake. In substances poorer in nitrogen, and with 
 more of starch, gum, oil, &c., the disparity in value as 
 food and as manure will be proportionately greater. 
 
 During the present season, Mr. Mendelsohn, of Ber- 
 lin, and Mr. Gausange, who is tenant of a large royal 
 domain near Frankfort on the Oder, on which he keeps 
 about one hundred and fifty dairy cows, have been my vis- 
 itors. These gentlemen have collected statistics in dairy 
 countries through which they have travelled. I learned 
 from them that in Mecklenburg, Prussia, Holland, &c., 
 fourteen quarts of milk yield, on the average, one pound 
 of butter ; in rare instances twelve quarts are found to 
 yield one pound. Both attach great importance to the 
 regulation of the temperature. Mr. Mendelsohn tells 
 me that the milk from cows fed on draft' (distillers' 
 refuse) requires a higher temperature to induce its yield 
 of butter than that from cows supplied with other 
 food. 
 
 On inquiry in my own neighborhood, I find it is com- 
 puted that each quart at a milking represents one pound 
 of butter per week. Thus, a cow which gives four 
 quarts at each milking will yield in butter four pounds 
 per week, or from fifty-six quarts sixty-four ounces of 
 butter, or from fourteen quarts of milk one pound of 
 butter. Taking the winter produce alone, it is lower 
 than this ; the cream from my neighbors' cows, who 
 use common food, hay, straw, and oats, somewhat resem- 
 bles milk in consistence, and requires three to four 
 hours, sometimes more, in churning. On one occasion, 
 a neighboring dairy-woman sent to borrow my churn, 
 being unable to make butter with her own ; I did not 
 inquire the result. If she had sent her cow, I could in 
 the course of a week have insured her cream which 
 would make butter in half an hour. These dairy people 
 usually churn during winter in their kitchen, or other 
 room with a fire. Each of them states that from bean or 
 oat meal used during winter as an auxiliary food they 
 derive a greater quantity of butter, whilst those who 
 have tried linseed-oil have perceived no benefit from it. 
 
 My own cream during the winter season is of the 
 
SUMMER BUTTER IN WINTER. 381 
 
 consistence of paste, or thick treacle. When the jar is 
 full, a rod of two feet long will, when dipped into the 
 cream to half its length, stand erect. If I take out a 
 teacupful in the evening, and let it stand till next 
 morning, a penny-piece laid on its surface will not sink; 
 en taking it oft', 1 find the under side partially spotted 
 with cream. The churnings are performed in a room 
 without fire, at a temperature in winter of forty-three 
 to forty-five degrees, and occupy one half to three 
 quarters of an hour. 
 
 Several who have adopted my system have reported 
 similar effects an increase in the quantity with a com- 
 plete change as to richness of quality. 1 select from 
 these Mr. John Simpson, a tenant farmer residing at 
 Ripley, in Yorkshire, who, at my request, stated to the 
 committee of the Wharfdale Agricultural Society that 
 he and a neighbor of his, being inconvenienced from a 
 deficient yield of milk, had agreed to try my mode of 
 feeding, and provided themselves with a steaming appn- 
 ratus. This change of treatment took place in February, 
 1855. I quote his words : 
 
 " In about five days I noticed a great change in my 
 milk ; the cows yielded two quarts each, per day, more; 
 but what surprised me most was the change in the qual- 
 ity. Instead of poor winter cream and butter, they as- 
 sumed the appearance and character of rich summer 
 produce. It only required twenty minutes for churning, 
 instead of two to three hours ; there was also a consid- 
 erable increase in the quantity of butter, of which, how- 
 ever, I did not take any particular notice. My neigh 
 bor's cow gave three quarts per day in addition, and her 
 milk was so changed in appearance that the consumers 
 to whom he sold it became quite anxious to know the 
 cause." 
 
 My dairy is but six feet wide by fifteen long and 
 twelve high. At one end (to the north) is a trellis win- 
 dow ; at the other, an inner door, which opens into the 
 kitchen. There is another door near to this, which opens 
 into the churning-room, having also a northern aspect ; 
 both doors are near the south end of the dairy. Along 
 
382 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 each side, and the north end, two shelves of wood are 
 fixed to the wall, the one fifteen inches above the other; 
 two feet higher is another shelf somewhat narrower, 
 but of like length, which is covered with charcoal, 
 whose properties as a deodorizer are sufficiently estab- 
 lished. The lower shelves being two feet three inches 
 wide, the interval or passage between is only one foot 
 six inches. On each tier of shelves is a shallow wooden 
 cistern, lined with thin sheet-lead, having a rim at the 
 edges three inches high. These cisterns incline down- 
 wards slightly towards the window, and contain water 
 to the depth of three inches. At the end nearest the 
 kitchen each tier of cisterns is supplied with two taps, 
 one for cold water in summer, the other with hot for 
 winter use. At the end next the north window is a 
 plug or hollow tube, with holes perforated at such an 
 elevation as to take the water before it flows over the 
 cistern. 
 
 During the summer the door towards the kitchen is 
 closed, and an additional door is fixed against it, with an 
 interval between well packed with straw ; a curtain of 
 stout calico hangs before the trellis window, which is 
 dipped in salt water, and kept wet during the whole 
 day by cold water spirted over it from a gutta-per- 
 cha tube. On the milk being brought in, it is emp- 
 tied into bowls. Some time after these bowls (of 
 which a description is given in a former part of this) 
 have been placed on the cistern, the cold-water taps 
 are turned till the water rises through the perforated 
 tube, and flows through a waste pipe into the sewer. 
 The taps are then closed, so as to allow a slight trick- 
 ling of water, which continues through the day. By 
 these means I reduce the temperature, as compared 
 with that outside the window, by twenty degrees. I am 
 thus enabled to allow the milk to stand till the cream 
 has risen, and keep the skimmed milk sweet, for which 
 1 obtain one penny per quart. 
 
 Having heard ccmplaints during very hot weather 
 of skimmed milk, which had left my dairy perfectly 
 sweet, being affected so as to curdle in cooking oil 
 
LOWERING INTO A WELL. 383 
 
 being carried into the village, I caused covers of thick 
 calico (the best of our fabrics for retaining moisture) to 
 be made ; these are dipped in salt water, and then 
 drawn over the whole of the tin milk-cans. The con- 
 trivance is quite successful, and is in great favor with 
 the consumers. I have not heard a single complaint 
 since I adopted it. 
 
 Finding my butter rather soft in hot weather, I un- 
 covered a draw-well which I had not used since I intro- 
 duced water-works for the supply of the village and my 
 own premises. On lowering a thermometer down the 
 well to a depth of twenty-eight feet, I found it indicated 
 a temperature of forty-three degrees that on the sur- 
 face being seventy degrees. I first let down the butter, 
 which was somewhat improved, but afterwards the 
 cream. For this purpose I procured a movable windlass 
 with a rope of the required length ; the cream-jar is 
 placed in a basket two feet four inches deep, suspended 
 on the rope, and let down the evening previous to churn- 
 ing. It is drawn up early next morning, and imme- 
 diately churned. By this means the churning occupies 
 about the same time as in winter, and the butter is of 
 like consistence. 
 
 The advantage I derive from this is such that, rather 
 than be without it, I should prefer sinking a well for 
 the purpose of reaching a like temperature. 
 
 When winter approaches, the open trellis window to 
 the north is closed, an additional shutter being fixed 
 outside, and the interval between this and an inner 
 shutter closely packed with straw, to prevent the access 
 of air and cold ; the door to the kitchen is at the same 
 time unclosed to admit warmth. Before the milk is 
 brought from the cow-house, the dairymaid washes the 
 bowls well with hot water, the effect of which is to take 
 off the chill, but not to warm them. The milk is brought 
 in as milked, and is passed through a sile into the bowls, 
 which are then placed on the cistern. A thermometer, 
 with its bulb immersed in the milk, denotes a tempera- 
 ture of about ninety degrees. The hot water is applied 
 immediately, at a temperature of one hundred degrees 
 
384 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 or upwards, and continues to flow for about five min- 
 utes, when the supply is exhausted. The bowls being 
 of thick earthen ware. a slow conductor, this does 
 not heighten the temperature of the milk. The cooling, 
 however, is thereby retarded, as I find the milk, after 
 standing four hours, maintains a temperature of sixty 
 degrees. This application of hot water is renewed at 
 each milking to the new milk, but not repeated to the 
 same after it has cooled. The temperature of the dairy 
 is momentarily increased to above 60, but speedily 
 subsides, the average temperature being 52 to 56. 
 
 It will be observed that the churnings in summer and 
 winter occupy half an hour or upwards. By increasing 
 the temperature of the cream I could easily churn in 
 half the time, but I should thereby injure the quality 
 of the butter. When the butter has come and gathered 
 into a mass, it is taken, together with the butter-milk, 
 out of the churn, which is rinsed with water; the but- 
 ter is then placed again in the churn with a quantity of 
 cold spring water, in which salt has been dissolved, at the 
 rate of one ounce per quart of cream ; after a fe\v min- 
 utes' churning, the butter is again taken out; the water 
 in which it has been washed assumes a whitish appear- 
 ance. By this process the salt is equally diffused 
 through the butter, which requires little manipulation, 
 and is freed from a portion of caseous matter. A recent 
 analysis of my butter shows only 1.07 instead of 2.45 
 per cent, of caseine, as before. That it ranks as choice 
 may be inferred when I state that my purchaser will- 
 ingly gives me a penny per roll more than the highest 
 price in Otley market, and complains that I do not sup- 
 ply him with a greater quantity. 
 
 In this dairy of the small dimensions I have described, 
 my produce of butter reaches at times sixty to seventy 
 pounds per week. Though the size may appear incon- 
 veniently small, yet I beg to remark on the greater 
 facility of regulating the temperature of a small in com- 
 parison with a large dairy. This difficulty will be found 
 greater in summer than in winter, as it is far easier to 
 heighten than depress the temperature. 
 
STEAMING FOOD. BEAN-VINES. 385 
 
 I have cooked or steamed my food for several years. 
 It will be observed that I blend bean-straw, bran, and 
 malt-combs, as flavoring materials, with oat or other 
 straw and rape-cake ; the effect of steaming is to vola- 
 tilize the essential oils, in which the flavor resides, and 
 diffuse them through the mess. The odor arising from 
 it resembles that observed from the process of malting ; 
 this imparts relish to the mess, and induces the cattle to 
 eat it greedily ; in addition to which, I am disposed to 
 think that it renders the food more easy of digestion 
 and assimilation. I use this process with advantage for 
 fattening, when I am deficient in roots. With the same 
 mixed straw and oat-shells, three to four pounds each 
 of rape-cake, and half a pound of linseed-oil, but with- 
 out roots, I have fattened more than thirty heifers and 
 cows free from milk, from March up to the early part 
 of May ; their gain has averaged fully fourteen pounds 
 each per week, a result I could not have looked for 
 from the same materials, if uncooked. This process 
 seems to have the effect of rendering linseed-oil less of 
 a laxative, but cannot drive off any portion of the fat- 
 tening oils, to volatilize which requires a very high 
 temperature. My experience of the benefits of steam- 
 ing is such that if I were deprived of it I could not 
 continue to feed with satisfaction. 
 
 I have weighed my fattening cattle for a number of 
 years, and my milch cows for more than two years. 
 This practice enables me at once to detect any defi- 
 ciency in the performance of the animals ; it gives also 
 a stimulus to the feeders, who attend at the weighings, 
 and who are desirous that the cattle intrusted to their 
 care should bear a comparison with their rivals. An- 
 other obvious advantage is in avoiding all cavils re- 
 specting the weight by my purchasers, who, having 
 satisfied themselves as to the quality of the animal, now 
 ask and obtain the most recent weighing. The usual 
 computation for a well-fed but not over fat beast is, 
 live to dead weight, as 21 to 12, or 100 to 59f, with 
 such modifications as suggest themselves by appear- 
 ances. 
 
 33 25 
 
386 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 Though many discussions have taken place on the 
 fattening of cattle, the not less important branch of 
 dairy treatment has hitherto been comparatively neg- 
 lected. I therefore venture to call attention to con- 
 siderations which have arisen from observations in my 
 own practice affecting the chemist^ and physiology, 
 or, in other words, the science of feeding. That I am 
 seeking aid from its guidance will be apparent, and I 
 have no hesitation in admitting that, beyond the satis- 
 faction from the better understanding of my business, 
 I have latterly derived more benefit or profit from 
 examination of the chemical composition of materials 
 of food than from the treatment or feeding experiments 
 of others which have come under my notice. So per- 
 suaded am I of the advantage of this, that I do not feel 
 satisfied to continue the use of any material, with the 
 composition of which I am not acquainted, without 
 resorting to the society's laboratory for an analysis. 
 
 To one leading feature of my practice I attach the 
 greatest importance the maintenance of the condition 
 of my cows giving a large yield of milk. I am enabled, 
 i>y the addition of bean-meal in proportion to the 
 greater yield of milk, to avert the loss of condition in 
 those giving sixteen to eighteen quarts per day ; whilst 
 on those giving a less yield, and in' health, I invariably 
 effect an improvement. 
 
 When we take into consideration the disposition of a 
 cow to apply her food rather to her milk than to her 
 maintenance and improvement, it seems fair to infer 
 that the milk of a cow gaining flesh will not be deficient 
 either in caseine or butter. 
 
 I have already alluded to the efficiency of bean-meal 
 in increasing the quantity of butter : I learn, also, from 
 observant dairymen who milk their own cows and carry 
 their butter to market, that their baskets are never so 
 well filled as when their cows feed on green clover, 
 which, as dry material, is nearly as rich in albumen as 
 beans. I am also told, by those who have used green 
 rape-plant, that it produces milk rich in butter. From 
 this we ma}' infer that albuminous matter is the most 
 
BEAN AND LINSEED MEAL 387 
 
 essential element in the food of the milch cow, and that 
 any deficiency in the supply of this will be attended 
 with loss of condition, and a consequent diminution in 
 the quality of her milk. 
 
 I am clearly of opinion that you can increase the pro- 
 portion of butter in milk more than that of caseine, or 
 other solid parts. From several, who have adopted 
 my treatment, I learn that on substituting rape-cake 
 for beans they perceive an increased richness in their 
 milk. Mr. T. Garnett, of Clitheroe, who has used bean- 
 meal largely as an auxiliary food for milch cows during 
 the winter season, tells me that when rape-cake is sub- 
 stituted, his dairymaid, without being informed, per- 
 ceives the change irom the increased richness of the 
 milk. Mr. Garnett has also used linseed-cake in like 
 quantity ; still his dairy people prefer rape-cake. 
 
 Mr. Whelon, of Lancaster, who keeps two milch cows 
 for his own use, to which he gave bean-meal and bran 
 as auxiliaries, has recently substituted rape-cake * for 
 bean-meal ; he informs me that in a week he saw a change 
 in the richness of milk, with an increase of butter. 
 
 The vegetable oils are of two distinct classes : the 
 drying or setting represented by linseed, the unctuous 
 represented by rape-oil. They consist of two proximate 
 elements, margarine and oleine ; in all probability they 
 will vary in their proportion of these, but in what 
 degree I have not been able to ascertain. Though the 
 agricultural chemists make no distinction, as far as I 
 am aware, between these two classes of oils, the prac- 
 titioners in medicine use them for distinct purposes. 
 Cod-liver oil has been long used for pulmonary com- 
 plaints ; latterly, olive, almond, and rape oils are being 
 employed as substitutes. These are all of the unctuous 
 class of oils. Mr. Rhind, the intelligent medical prac- 
 titioner of this village, called my attention to some 
 experiments by Dr. Leared, published in the Medical 
 Times, July 21st, 1855, with oleine alone, freed from 
 
 * The analysis of cotton-seed cake, in comparison with rape and linseed 
 eake, in a former chapter of this work, will show the comparative value 
 of that as food for milch cows. 
 
388 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 margarine, which showed marked superiority in the 
 effect ; and I now learn from Mr. Rhind that he is at 
 present using with success the pure oleine, prepared by 
 Messrs. Price & Co., from cocoa-nut oil, one of the 
 unctuous class. That linseed and others of the drying 
 oils are used in medicine for a very different purpose, 
 it seems unnecessary to state. 
 
 The oleine of oil is known to be more easy of con- 
 sumption and more available for respiration than mar- 
 garine a property to which its use in medicine may 
 be attributable. If we examine the animal fats, tal- 
 low, suet, and other fat, they are almost wholly of the 
 solid class, stearine or margarine, closely resembling or 
 identical with the margarine in plants ; whilst butter is 
 composed of oleine and margarine, combining both the 
 proximate elements found in vegetable oils. 
 
 It seems worthy of remark that a cow can yield a far 
 greater weight of butter than she can store up in solid 
 fat ; numerous instances occur where a cow gives off 
 two pounds of butter per day, or fourteen pounds per 
 week, whilst half that quantity will probably rarely be 
 laid on in fat. If you allow a cow to gain sixteen 
 pounds per week, and reckon seven for fat, there will 
 only remain nine pounds for flesh, or, deducting the 
 moisture, scarcely three pounds (2.97) per week, equal 
 to .42, or less than half a pound per day, of dry fibrin. 
 
 The analyses of butter show a very varying propor- 
 tion of oleine and margarine fats : summer butter usually 
 contains of oleine sixty and margarine forty per cent., 
 whilst in winter butter these proportions are reversed, 
 being forty of oleine to sixty of margarine. By ordi- 
 nary treatment the quantity of butter during winter is 
 markedly inferior. The common materials for dairy 
 cows in winter are straw with turnips or mangel, hay 
 alone, or hay with mangel. If we examine these mate- 
 rials, we find them deficient in oil, or in starch, sugar, 
 etc. If a cow consume two stones or twenty-eight 
 pounds of hay a day, which is probably more than she 
 can be induced to eat on an average, it will be equal in 
 dry material to more than one hundred pounds of 
 
CONSTITUENTS OF BUTTER. 389 
 
 young grass, which will also satisfy a cow. That one 
 hundred pounds of young grass will yield more butter, 
 will scarcely admit of a doubt. The twenty-eight 
 pounds of hay will be equal in albuminous matter and 
 in oil to the one hundred pounds of grass ; but in the 
 element of starch, sugar, etc., there is a marked differ- 
 ence. During the growth of the plant, the starch and 
 sugar are converted into woody fibre, in which form 
 they are scarcely digestible or available for respiration, 
 [t seems, then, not improbable that, when a cow is sup- 
 plied with hay only, she will consume some portion of 
 the oleine oil for respiration, and yield a less quantity 
 of butter poorer in oleiue. 
 
 If you assume summer butter to contain of oleine, . . 60 per cent. 
 " " " " " ' " of margarine, 40 " " 
 
 100 " " 
 If the cow consume of the oleine, 36 " ** 
 
 The quantity of butter will be reduced from 100 to . 64 " " 
 
 And the proportions will then be, of oleine, . . . 40 " " 
 " " " " " " of margarine, . . 60 " " 
 
 100 " " 
 
 If you supply turnips or mangel with hay, the cow 
 will consume less of hay ; you thereby substitute a 
 material richer in sugar, .etc., and poorer in oil. Each 
 of these materials, in the quantity a cow can consume, 
 is deficient in the supply of albumen necessary to keep 
 up the condition of an animal giving a full yield of 
 milk. To effect this, recourse must be had to artificial 
 or concentrated substances of food, rich in albuminous 
 matter. 
 
 It can scarcely be expected, nor is it desirable, that 
 practical farmers should apply themselves to the attain- 
 ment of proficiency in the art of chemical investiga- 
 tions ; this is more properly the occupation of the pro- 
 fessor of science. The following simple experiment, 
 however, seems worth mentioning. On several occa- 
 sions, during winter, I procured samples of butter from 
 my next neighbor. On placing these, with a like quan- 
 tity of my own, in juxtaposition before the fire, my 
 33* 
 
390 
 
 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 butter melted with far greater rapidity by no means 
 an unsafe test of a greater proportion of oleine. 
 
 The chemical investigation of our natural and other 
 grasses has hitherto scarcely had the attention which it 
 deserves. The most valuable information on this sub- 
 ject is in the paper by Professor Way, on the nutritive 
 and fattening properties of the grasses, in vol. xiv., p. 
 171, of the Royal Agricultural Society's Journal. 
 These grasses were nearly all analyzed at the flowering 
 time, a stage at which no occupier of grass-land would 
 expect so favorable a result in fattening. We much 
 prefer pastures with young grass not more than a few 
 inches high, sufficient to afford a good bite. With a 
 view to satisfy myself as to the difference of compo- 
 sition of the like grasses at different stages of growth, 
 I sent to Professor Way a specimen of the first crop of 
 hay, cut in the end of June, when the grass was in the 
 early stage of flowering, and one of aftermath, cut 
 towards the close of September, from the same meadow, 
 the analyses of which I give : 
 
 AFTERMATH HAY. 
 
 Moisture, ..... 11.87 
 
 Oil and fatty matter, . . 6.84 
 
 Albuminous matter, . . 9.84 
 
 Starch, gum, sugar, . . 42.25 
 
 Woody fibre, .... 19.77 
 
 Mineral matter, ... 9.43 
 
 100.00 
 
 A comparison between these will show a much 
 greater percentage of woody fibre, 27.41 in the first 
 crop to 19.77 in the aftermath. The most remarkable 
 difference, however, is in the proportion of oil, being 
 2.68 in the first crop to 6.84 in the aftermath. 
 
 On inquiry from an observing tenant of a small dairy 
 farm of mine, who has frequently used aftermath hay, I 
 learn that, as compared with the first crop, he finds it 
 induce a greater yield of milk, but attended with some 
 impoverishment in the condition of the cow, and that he 
 uses it without addition of turnips or other roots, which 
 
 HAY, FIRST CROP. 
 
 12.02 
 
 Albuminous matter, . 
 Oil and fatty matter, . 
 Starch, gum, sugar, 
 Woody fibre, . . . 
 Mineral matter, . . 
 
 9.24 
 2.68 
 39.75 
 27.41 
 8.90 
 
 
 100.00 
 
NUTRITIVE QUALITIES OF GRASSES. 391 
 
 he gives when using hay of the first crop an answer 
 quite in accordance with what might be expected from 
 its chemical composition. 
 
 It is likewise to be presumed that the quickness of 
 growth will materially affect the composition of grasses, 
 as well as of other vegetables. Your gardener will tell 
 you that if radishes are slow in growth they will be 
 tough and woody ; that asparagus melts in eating, like 
 butter, and salad is crisp when grown quickly. The 
 same effect will, I apprehend, be found in grasses of 
 slow growth : they will contain more of woody fibre, 
 with less of starch or sugar. The quality of butter 
 grown on poor pastures is characterized by greater 
 solidity than on rich feeding pastures. The cows, having 
 to travel over more space, require a greater supply of 
 the elements of respiration, whilst the grasses grown on 
 these poor pastures contain, in all probability, less of 
 these in a digestible form available for respiration. The 
 like result seems probable as from common winter treat- 
 ment a produce of butter less in quantity, and con- 
 taining a greater proportion of margarine, and a less of 
 oleine. 
 
 It is well known that pastures vary greatly in their 
 butter-producing properties ; there is, however, as far 
 as I am aware, no satisfactory explanation of this. If 
 you watch cows on depasture, you observe them select 
 their own food ; if you supply cows in stall alike with 
 food, they will also select for themselves. I give rapo- 
 cake as a mixture to all, and induce them to eat the 
 requisite quantity ; yet some will select the rape-cake 
 first, and eat it up clean, whilst others rather neglect it 
 till towards the close of their meal, and then leave 
 pieces in the trough. Two Alderneys, the only cows 
 of the kind I have as yet had, whose butter-producing 
 qualities are well known, are particularly fond of rape- 
 cake, and never leave a morsel. May not these animals 
 be prompted by their instinct to select such food as is 
 best suited to their wants and propensities ? If so, it 
 seems of the greatest importance that the dairyman 
 should be informed of the properties of food most suit- 
 
392 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 able for his purpose, especially whilst in a stall, where 
 they have little opportunity of selecting. 
 
 It appears worth the attention of our society to make 
 inquiries as to the localities which are known as pro- 
 ducing milk peculiarly rich in butter. When travelling 
 in Germany, I well recollect being treated with pecu- 
 liarly rich milk, cream, and butter, on my tour between 
 Dresden and Toplitz, at the station or resting-place on 
 the chaussee or turnpike-road, before you descend a 
 very steep incline to the valley in which Toplitz is situ- 
 ated. I travelled this way after an interval of several 
 years, when the same treat was again offered. It was 
 given as a rarity, and can only be accounted for by the 
 peculiar adaptation of the herbage of the country for 
 the production of butter. 
 
 COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT METHODS OF FEEDING 
 DAIRY Cows. Being desirous of comparing the result 
 of my method of feeding dairy cows with the system 
 usually practised in this locality, it occurred to me that, 
 as my cows had been accustomed to savory steamed 
 food, a change to ordinary food would be attended with 
 less favorable results than if they had been previously 
 treated in the common mode ; and that, under these cir- 
 cumstances, it would be better to institute comparisons 
 with two near neighbors, Mr. Smith and Mr. Pawson, 
 whose practice and results I had the opportunity of 
 inspecting. 
 
 Mr. Smith's cow was of rather small frame, but noted 
 for her usefulness as a good milker. At the time of 
 calving her third calf, about the 12th of November, she 
 was in good condition, and gave, soon after, seventeen 
 quarts of milk per day. Her owner states that in the 
 first three weeks (up to the time this comparison was 
 begun) her condition sensibly diminished a result 
 which I apprehend will be invariable with cows giving 
 this quantity of milk when fed on meadow hay only, 
 with which Mr. Smith's cow was supplied ad libitum, 
 and of which she consumed twenty-eight pounds per 
 day. Mr. Pawson's was a nice heifer, three years old 
 at the time of calving her first calf, October 6th, in 
 
MODES OF FEEDING DAIRY COWS, 
 
 393 
 
 more than ordinary condition, and gave abort sixteen 
 quarts per day. Her owner states that on the first of 
 January her condition was much diminished. This is 
 corroborated by Mr. Myers, a dealer in the village, who 
 tells me that, previous to her calving, he was desirous 
 of purchasing her, and would have given from seven- 
 teen pounds ten shillings to eighteen pounds, and 
 describes her as being at that time full of beef. Her 
 weight on the first of January, 7 cwt. 2 qrs., bespeaks 
 her condition as much lowered. 
 
 During the month of October, and till late in Novem- 
 ber, she was turned out in the daytime to graze on 
 aftermath, and housed during the night, where she was 
 supplied with turnips. From the close of November 
 till the first week in February, her food consisted of 
 
 Meadow hay of inferior quality, ... 18 Ibs. per day. 
 
 Swedish turnips, 45 " " " 
 
 Ground oats, 9 " " " 
 
 After this the ground oats were discontinued, and 
 meadow hay of good quality was given ad libitum, with 
 forty-five pounds of turnips. 
 
 For comparison I selected a cow of my own, which 
 calved about the 8th of October, and gave soon after 
 eighteen quarts of milk per day ; she was also of small 
 size. At the time of calving her condition was some- 
 what higher than that of Mr. Smith's. When the 
 experiment was begun, on the first of January, no per- 
 ceivable difference was found in the yield of milk of 
 Mr. Smith's cow and my own, each giving fifteen and a 
 half quarts per day. 
 
 The following table gives the dates of calving of the 
 three cows, together with their weights and yield of 
 milk at the commencement and termination of the 
 experiment : 
 
 When calved. 
 
 
 January 1. 
 
 March 5. 
 
 Yield at 
 calving. 
 
 Weight. 
 
 Yield. | Weight. 
 
 Yield. 
 
 Quarts. | Cwt. | qrs. 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 Qts. 
 
 Cwt. 
 
 qrs. | Ibs. 
 
 Qta. 
 
 Mr. Smith's Nov. 12. 
 Mr. Pawson's Oct. 6. 
 My own Oct. 8. 
 
 17 
 16 
 
 18 
 
 8 
 7 
 9 
 
 3 
 2 
 3 
 
 U 
 
 
 
 15* 
 12 
 15* 
 
 8 
 7 
 10 
 
 
 
 1 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 9* 
 6* 
 
 m 
 
394 
 
 Mr. Smith's cow lost in weight in nine weeks 84 
 pounds, being 9J pounds per week, with an average 
 yield of 12 J quarts per day. Mr. Pawson's lost 28 
 pounds. This loss, together with the diminished yield 
 of milk, occurred almost wholly after the oats had been 
 withdrawn ; her weight on the 6th of February being 
 still 7 cwt. 2 qrs., and her yield of milk 11 quarts per 
 day. 
 
 My cow has gained in the nine weeks 56 Ibs., being 
 6i pounds per week, with an average yield of 14 quarts, 
 the diminution being regular. January 1st, 15^ ; Feb. 
 4th, 14; March 4th, 12J ; making an average yield of 
 14 quarts per day. The whole loss and gain of weight 
 will be in flesh and fat, the cows having kept up their 
 consumption of food and their bulk. 
 
 The weekly account of profit and loss will stand as 
 follows : 
 
 Mr. Smith's cow, average yield for 9 weeks, 12^ quarts s. d. 
 
 per day, at Zd. per quart, 14 7 
 
 Deduct loss in flesh, 9 Ibs., at 6</., 4 8 
 
 9 11 
 Cost of 14 stones hay, at 6rf. per stone, 7 
 
 Profit, 2 11 
 
 Mr. Pawson's cow, average during the first five weeks, ll s. d 
 
 quarts per day, at 2d. per quart, 13 5 
 
 Cost of 9 stones inferior hay (at 4d. per stone), per 
 
 week, 3s. Qd. 
 
 Cost of 63 Ibs. ground oats, 4*. Sd. ; turnips, Is. 6<f., 6292 
 
 Profit, 4 3 
 
 My cow, average yield for 9 weeks, 14 quarts per day, at s. d. 
 
 2d. per quart, 16 4 
 
 Gain of flesh, 6i Ibs per week, at 6rf., 3 L| 
 
 19 5 
 Cost of food: 
 Hay, 63 Ibs. , at Qd. per stone ; straw and shells s. d. 
 
 of oats, 1*. 3d. ; mangel, Is., 4 6<fc 
 
 Rape-cake, 35 Ibs. ; bran, 10 Ibs. ; malt-combs, 
 
 IQh Ibs. ; bean-meal, 10 Ibs., 4 8 7 
 
 Profit 10 10 
 
QUALITY OF THE MANURE. 
 
 395 
 
 The richer quality of the manure will probably com- 
 pensate for the extra labor, cooking, and attention 
 bestowed upon my cow. 
 
 With a view of extending the comparison, I give par- 
 ticulars of the whole of my cows the weights of which 
 were registered on the 8th of October, and which were 
 still on hand, free from calf, and in a state admitting of 
 comparison. These were bought at a neighboring 
 market in but moderate condition, and were young, 
 having had two or three calves each. A cow in full con- 
 dition attains her maximum yield in a week or so after 
 calving ; whilst those in lower condition continue, by 
 my treatment, to increase their quantity up to about a 
 month after calving. 
 
 TABLE. 
 
 
 
 
 
 February 4. 
 
 
 No. 
 
 Calved. 
 
 Greatest 
 yield per 
 day. 
 
 October 8. 
 Weight. 
 
 Weight. 
 
 Yield 
 per 
 day. 
 
 
 
 Quarts. 
 
 Cwt. qrs. Ibs. 
 
 Cwt. qrs. Ibs. 
 
 Qts. 
 
 1. 
 
 July 28. 
 
 12 
 
 920 
 
 10 
 
 8 
 
 2. 
 
 Aug. 25. 
 
 18 
 
 10 
 
 11 1 
 
 14 
 
 4. 
 
 July 28. 
 
 18 
 
 820 
 
 10 1 
 
 15 
 
 6. 
 
 Sept. 8. 
 
 16 
 
 10 2 
 
 10 2 
 
 14 
 
 7. 
 
 Sept. 8. 
 
 16 
 
 10 2 
 
 11 
 
 10 
 
 11. 
 
 Aug. 25. 
 
 16 
 
 9 1 
 
 y 2 o 
 
 11 
 
 Avemjre 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 
 
 TABLE CONTINUED. 
 
 
 March 4. 
 
 
 
 
 Gain 
 
 No. 
 
 Weight. 
 
 Yield per 
 day. 
 
 Computed average 
 per day during 
 
 Qain, 
 Oct. 8 to 
 Feb. 4. 
 
 in 
 weigh! 
 per 
 week 
 
 
 Cwt. qrs. Ibs. 
 
 Quarts. 
 
 Weeks. Qts. 
 
 Lbs. 
 
 Lbs. 
 
 1. 
 
 10 1 
 
 8 
 
 29 10 
 
 84 
 
 4 
 
 2. 
 
 11 1 
 
 14 
 
 27 16 
 
 140 
 
 6| 
 
 4. 
 
 10 
 
 15 
 
 31 15 
 
 168 
 
 8 
 
 6. 
 
 10 3 
 
 14 
 
 25 15 
 
 28 
 
 1ft 
 
 7. 
 
 11 
 
 10 
 
 25 13 
 
 56 
 
 2! 
 
 11. 
 
 920 
 
 11 
 
 27 13* 
 
 28 
 
 H 
 
 Average, 
 
 
 12 
 
 27J 14 
 
 . . 
 
 .^. 
 
396 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 My cows, during the period under consideration, 
 were treated as follows : During August and Septem- 
 ber they were on open pasture by day and housed by 
 night; evening and morning they were supplied with 
 mown grass, and two feeds of steamed mixtuie. 
 Towards the close of September green rape was sub- 
 stituted for the mown grass, with the same allowance 
 of steamed mixture ; from the 8th of October, when 
 they were wholly housed, they were supplied with 
 steamed food ad libitum three times per day. After 
 each meal ten to twelve pounds of green rape-plant 
 were given, and nine pounds of hay per day till No- 
 vember ; from that time steamed food with cabbages or 
 kohl rabi till the early part of February, when mangold 
 wurzel was substituted. It will be observed that I 
 give hay and roots in limited quantities, and the steamed 
 food ad libitum. I prefer this to apportioning the cake 
 and other concentrated food in equal quantities to each, 
 as this steamed mixture contains more of the elements 
 essential to milk, and each cow is thus at liberty to 
 satisfy her requirements with it. Nos. 2 and 4, which 
 have given the greatest quantity of milk, have eaten 
 more than their share ; whilst No. 1, which has given 
 the least milk, has scarcely eaten more than half the 
 quantity of steamed mixture consumed by 2 or 4. 
 The yield of milk and the live weights on the 4th of 
 February and the 4th of March scarcely vary. During 
 February thirty-four pounds of mangold were substituted 
 for kohl rabi ; with this change the cows became more 
 relaxed. My experience in weighing, extending over 
 several years, has shown me that when animals, from 
 change of food, become more relaxed or more costive, 
 their weighings in the former state denote less, whilst 
 in the latter they denote more, than their actual gain in 
 condition. I have known instances in which a month's 
 weighing, accompanied by relaxation, has shown no 
 gain, whilst, with restored consistency, the gain doubled. 
 
 I now proceed to examine the materials of food, 
 their composition, and the probable changes they 
 undergo in the animal economy. 
 
FOOD AND ITS COMPOSITION. 
 
 397 
 
 Quantity and description of food supplied to six cows during twenty* 
 seven and a third weeks, and its composition in proximate elements 
 and minerals. 
 
 
 Per day. 
 
 Total weight of 
 food given. 
 
 Cost per ton. 
 
 Total cost 
 
 Weight of food 
 when dried. 
 
 
 HJS. 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 a. d. 
 
 s. d. 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 Meadow hay, 
 
 56 
 
 10,715 
 
 400 
 
 19 2 9 
 
 9,420 
 
 Rape-cake, . 
 
 30 
 
 5,740 
 
 6 10 
 
 16 12 I 
 
 5,456 
 
 Malt-combs, 
 
 9 
 
 1,722 
 
 590 
 
 430 
 
 1,660 
 
 Bran, . . . 
 
 9 
 
 1,722 
 
 6 10 
 
 500 
 
 1,500 
 
 Beans, . . . 
 
 9 
 
 1,722 
 
 968 
 
 736 
 
 1,500 
 
 Green food, 
 
 204 
 
 39,032 
 
 10 
 
 8 14 6 
 
 5,740 
 
 Oat-straw, . 
 
 50 
 
 9,566 
 
 1 15 
 
 790 
 
 8,407 
 
 Bean-straw, 
 
 12 
 
 2,296 
 
 -i 15 o 
 
 7 16 
 
 1,964 
 
 Total, . . 
 
 379 
 
 72,515 
 
 
 70 9 
 
 35,647 
 
 
 Albumen. 
 
 Starch. 
 
 Oil. 
 
 Fibre. 
 
 Minerals. 
 
 Meadow hay, 
 Rape-cake, 
 Malt-combs, 
 Bran, . . . 
 Beans, . . . 
 Green food, 
 Oat-straw, . 
 Bean-straw, 
 
 Total, . . 
 
 Ibs. 
 990 
 
 1,803 
 411 
 246 
 464 
 
 862 
 287 
 376 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 4,257 
 2,177 
 791 
 800 
 774 
 3,074 
 3,066 
 725 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 287 
 611 
 51 
 96 
 34 
 115 
 100 
 51 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 2,933 
 494 
 320 
 258 
 176 
 1,148 
 4,526 
 594 
 
 Ibs. 
 953 
 
 171 
 
 88 
 100 
 53 
 541 
 428 
 217 
 
 5,439 
 = Nitrogen 
 888 Ibs. 
 
 15,664 
 
 1,345 
 
 10,449 
 
 2,551 
 
 ANALYSIS OF MILK BY HAIDLEN. 
 
 Water, 873. 
 
 Butter, 30. 
 
 Caseine, 48.2 
 
 Milk sugar, 43.9 
 
 Phosphate of lime, 2.31 
 
 Magnesia, 42 
 
 Iron, 07 
 
 Chloride of potassium, 1.44 
 
 Sodium and Soda, 66 
 
 1000.00 
 
398 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 Production of milk by 6 cows, average 14 quarts per 
 day each, for 27J weeks = 16,072 quarts, which at 41 
 oz. per quart = 41,184 Ibs. 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 When dry or free from moisture, 5230 
 
 Butter in 16,072 quarts, at 30 per 1000 = 1235 
 
 Caseinein " " " 48.2 per 1000, =1977 
 
 Sugar of milk, = 1804 
 
 M . , (Phosphate of lime, 99 \ ,. 
 
 9rals 10ther, 115 } ' 
 
 5230 
 
 Gain of weight 500 Ibs., of which I compute 300 Ibs. as fat. 
 
 200 Ibs. as flesh. 
 
 500 
 
 Nitrogen, 316 Ibs. 
 
 Phosphate of lime 99 
 
 Phosphoric acid, = 45.50 
 
 Cost of food per cow per week, . 8*. 6e?. 
 When the yield of milk is less, the cost of food is reduced to 7*. 8rf. 
 per week. 
 
 s. d. 
 
 Gross return in milk, 16 4 
 
 " " " weight, 16 
 
 " " " manure, 28 
 
 20 6 
 
 ANALYSIS OF EXCREMENT BY PROFESSOR WAY. 
 
 Per cent. 
 
 Moisture, 84.85 
 
 Phosphoric acid, .39 
 
 Potash, 58 
 
 Soda, 22 
 
 Other substances, .... 13.96 
 
 100. 
 
 Nitrogen, 41 
 
 Ammonia, 49 
 
 Manure, 88 Ibs. per cow per day. 
 
 For 6 cows per day 528 Ibs. = 3696 Ibs. per week. 
 " " " for 27 weeks 101,028 Ibs., containing of 
 
 Nitrogen, 414 Ibs. 
 
 Phosphoric acid, 393 
 
 Potash, 585 
 
ANALYSES OP INGREDIENTS. 399 
 
 Nitrogen incorporated in food, 888 Ibs 
 
 Caseine, 316. 
 
 Fibrin, 7.35 
 
 Manure, 414. 
 
 Balance consumed in perspiration, .... 150.65 
 
 888.00 
 The materials of food are shown to have cost . . 70 0$ 9rf. 
 
 . 5. d. 
 
 Gross value 16,072 quarts of milk, at 2d. per quart, . 133 18 8 
 Gain of weight 500 Ibs., at Qd. per lb., 12 10 
 
 Nitrogen in manure 414 Ibs. = Ammonia . s. d. 
 
 4941bs.,at6rf., 12 7 
 
 Phosphoric acid 3 ( J3 Ibs., at l^d. per lb., . 291 
 Potash 585 Ibs., at 3rf. per lb., .... 763 
 
 
 22 2 
 
 4 
 
 
 168 11 
 
 
 
 Manure per cow per day 88 Ibs. , per week 616 Ibs. 
 Containing ammonia 3 Ibs., . . 
 
 s. d. 
 
 . 1 6 
 
 
 Phosphoric acid 2.40 Ibs., . . . 
 
 o 34 
 
 
 Potash 3.57 Ibs., 
 
 . 104 
 
 
 Value of a cow's excrement, per week, .... 2 8 
 
 The analyses of the chief ingredients of my own 
 produce, or such extra materials as I usually purchase, 
 have been made by Professor Way ; for other materials 
 I have had recourse to a very useful compilation by Mr. 
 Hemming (vol. xiii., p. 449, of the Society's Journal), 
 and to Morton's " Cyclopaedia of Agriculture." The 
 analysis of straw is that of oat-straw ; that of green food 
 is derived from the analysis of rape-plant, cabbages, and 
 kohl rabi. During February and March I have been 
 using wheat and barley straw with mangold, and, as these 
 materials contain less oil, I give in the steamed lood 
 three ounces of linseed-oil per day to each animal. For 
 the composition of milk I adopt that by Haidlen, whose 
 method of analysis is reputed to be the most accurate, 
 the proportion of butter in my milk being this season 
 very similar to that given by him. 
 
 It will be observed that this is the gross return for 
 twenty-seven and one third weeks from the time of 
 
400 APPENDIX. HORSFALI/S SYSTEM. 
 
 calving, from which will have to be deducted expense 
 of attendance, etc. 
 
 . 5. d. 
 The materials used for food are found to have cost . . 70 9 
 
 The value of these materials as manure consists of 888 
 
 Ibs. nitrogen = 1061 Ibs. ammonia, at Qd., . . . 26 10 6 
 Phosphoric acid and potash, 3 15 4 
 
 Value of food if employed as manure, . . . 36 5 10 
 
 The 16,072 quarts of milk, at 2d. per quart for new 
 milk, at which price it enters largely into con- 
 sumption as food for man, amount to ... 133 18 8 
 
 The nitrogen in the milk 316 Ibs. = ammonia . s. d. 
 
 3781bs.,at6rf. per Ib. 990 
 
 Phosphoric acid in ditto. 45 Ibs. , at l^d. per Ib. , 58 
 
 9 14 8 
 
 From these statements it will be seen that materials 
 used as food for cattle represent double the value they 
 would do if used for manure, whilst that portion con- 
 verted into food fitted for the use of man represents a 
 value thirteen to fourteen times greater than it woull 
 as manure. 
 
 It then appears clear that it is for the feeder's profit 
 to use his produce as much as possible as food for 
 cattle, with the view to convert it with the utmost 
 economy into food for man, and thus increase rathe? 
 than enrich his manure-heap. 
 
 The calculation of caseine in milk is based upon the 
 supposition that my milk is equal in its proportion of 
 that element to that analyzed by Haidlen. Several 
 analyses by other chemists show a less percentage, 4 to 
 4.50. As my cows are adequately supplied with 
 albuminous matter, I have a right to presume on their 
 milk being rich in caseine. 
 
 The loss of nitrogen by perspiration, 150.65 Ibs., is 
 nearly 17 per cent. Boussingault found a loss of 13.50 
 of nitrogen in a cow giving milk. 
 
 The abstraction of nitrogen in the milk is computed at . 5. d. 
 
 316 Ibs., value, 990 
 
 The abstraction of phosphoric acid in the milk is com- 
 puted at 48^ Ibs. , 058 
 
COMPOSITION OF MANURE. 
 
 401 
 
 Either the rape-cake or bran alone suffices for the 
 restoration of the phosphoric acid. 
 
 The amount of phosphoric acid in the manure is 393 
 pounds, being about sixteen per cent, of the whole ash 
 or mineral matter. The ash of meadow hay contains 
 about 14 per cent., that of rape-cake 30 per cent., bran 
 50 per cent., malt-combs 25 per cent., and turnips, &c., 
 10 per cent, of phosphoric acid. 
 
 The amount of potash in the excrement is 616 
 pounds, being about 25 per cent, of the whole ash or 
 mineral matter. The ash of meadow hay contains about 
 20 per cent. ; rape-cake, 21 per cent. ; malt-combs, 37 
 per cent. ; turnips (various), 44 per cent. ; from which 
 it may be inferred that the sample of excrement sent to 
 Professor Way for analysis did not contain more than a 
 fair proportion of these ingredients. 
 
 To ascertain the quantity of excrement, the contents 
 of the tanks into which the cows had dropped their 
 solid and liquid excrement during five weeks were 
 weighed, and found to be 500 cwt. 2 qrs. Ibs , from 
 18 cows, being 88 Ibs. per cow per day. The sample 
 for analysis was taken from that which the cows had 
 deposited within the preceding 24 hours. This was 
 collected in the mud-cart, well blended, and sent off 
 quite fresh. 
 
 It is sufficiently proved, by the experience of this 
 district, that 20 pounds of meadow hay suffice for the 
 maintenance of a cow of fair size in store condition ; a 
 like result is stated to be obtained from 120 pounds of 
 turnips per day. The six cows will have then required, 
 during the 27J weeks, for their maintenance, only 
 
 
 Per day. 
 
 Weeks. 
 
 Total 
 Weight. 
 
 containing of 
 
 
 Albumi- 
 nous mat. 
 
 Oil. 
 
 Starch, 
 &c. 
 
 9130 
 9100 
 
 Ibs. 
 120 
 150 
 
 of hay or for 
 of turnips, or for 
 
 27 ^ 
 27J 
 
 Ibs. 
 22,960 
 137,760 
 
 2127 
 2295 
 
 616 
 
 306 
 
 They will further have required adequate food 
 34* 26 
 
402 
 
 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 
 Albuminous 
 matter, fibrin, 
 and caseine. 
 
 Oil and but- 
 ter. 
 
 Starch and 
 sugar of 
 milk. 
 
 For the production of 
 And for maintenance by turnips, . . 
 
 2,116 
 
 2,295 
 
 1,235 
 
 306 
 
 1,894 
 
 9,100 
 
 The food supplied is computed do 
 have contained 
 
 4,411 
 5 459 
 
 1,541 
 1 345 
 
 10,994 
 15 664 
 
 
 
 
 
 I omit the minerals, which are observed to be in 
 excess of the requirements. 
 
 For the maintenance of a fair-sized cow, for one day, 
 in a normal state, the following elements seem ade- 
 quate : 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Mineral in- 
 
 
 Albumen. 
 
 Oil. 
 
 Starch, &c. 
 
 Lime. 
 
 gredients. 
 Phosphoric 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 acid. 
 
 In 20 Ibs. of hay, . 
 
 1.85 
 
 .536 
 
 7.95 
 
 .90 
 
 1.11 
 
 In 120 " " turnips, 
 
 1.98 
 
 .26 
 
 7.82 
 
 .97 
 
 1.9 
 
 When cows are in milk, there occurs a much greater 
 activity of the functions ; they eat and drink more, 
 evacuate more excrement, and, in all probability, spend 
 considerably more food in respiration. Whilst the 
 17.60 Ibs. per day dry matter in 20 Ibs. of hay are found 
 adequate for the maintenance of a cow in a store state, 
 the six cows in milk have eaten on the average 21.37 
 Ibs. solid matter per day during the 27| weeks. When 
 I have fattened cattle together with a number of milch 
 cows of similar size, which gave on an average eight 
 quarts of milk per day, the whole being fed with moist 
 steamed food, and receiving the same allowance of 
 green food, I have found the fattening cattle refuse 
 water, whilst the milch cows on the average drank 
 upwards of 40 pounds per day of water given sepa- 
 rately. The eight quarts of milk contain only about 
 17.58 Ibs. of water ; still, in several analyses of excrement, 
 I have noticed little difference in the percentage of 
 moisture in that from the fattening animals as compared 
 with that from cows giving milk. 
 
ELEMENTS REQUIRED TO FORM BUTTER. 403 
 
 These facts would seem to show that upwards of 20 
 Ibs. more water were given off from the lungs and pores 
 of the skin of a milking than of a fattening animal. 
 
 The excrement of the six milch cows, 88 Ibs. per day 
 on the average, is found to contain of nitrogen 36, 
 equal to that in 2.25 Ibs. of albumen; whilst 1.85 of 
 albumen in the 20 Ibs. of hay is found adequate for 
 maintenance. 
 
 On comparing the supply of the food to the six milch 
 cows with their requirements and production, there 
 seems an excess in the albuminous matter, a deficiency 
 in the oil for the fat and butter, an excess in the starch, 
 &c. Taking, however, the increased activity of the 
 animal functions, and consequent consumption of food 
 by the milch cow, I am not encouraged to lower my 
 standard of food. That it has sufficed is abundantly 
 proved, as each of the six cows under observation has 
 gained in condition during 27 weeks. 
 
 My observations on nutrition tend to the conclusion 
 that if you supply animals with starch, sugar, <fcc., to 
 satisfy their requirements for respiration, you enable 
 them to convert the oil of their food into butter or fat 
 to such extent as their particular organism is fitted for 
 effecting it. 
 
 On the 12th of March I purchased Mr. Smith's cow 
 (see p. 392) for twelve pounds ten shillings, being more 
 than her market value, for the purpose of trying her on 
 my food ; her yield of milk had then diminished to 8 
 quarts per day. On the 31st of March, four weeks from 
 the former weighing, and nineteen days after being 
 treated with my food, her yield of milk had increased to 
 9J quarts per day, and her weight to 8 cwt. 1 qr., being 
 28 Ibs. increase. 
 
 Mr. Pawson's cow, which was continued on the same 
 food, namely, meadow hay ad libitum, and a more 
 limited supply of turnips, reduced her yield of milk to 
 less than 5 quarts per day, without alteration in her 
 weight. 
 
 My cow first placed on trial with those of Mr. Smith 
 and Mr. Pawson gave a yield of milk of 12 quarts per 
 
404 
 
 APPENDIX. HORSFALL S SYSTEM. 
 
 day, and gained 28 Ibs. in the four weeks, her weight 
 on the 31st of March being 10 cwt. 2 qrs. 
 
 The weight and the yield of milk of the six, on the 
 31st of March, were : 
 
 
 March 4. 
 
 Yield of 
 milk 
 per day. 
 
 March 31. 
 
 Yield of 
 milk 
 per day. 
 
 Gain in 
 4 weeks. 
 
 Weight of No. 1. 
 " " 2. 
 
 cwt. qr. Ibs. 
 
 10 26 
 11 1 
 
 quarts. 
 8 
 
 14 
 
 cwt. qr. Iba. 
 
 10 3 
 11 3 
 
 quarts. 
 
 8.9 
 14.9 
 
 Ibs. 
 58 
 
 56 
 
 4.^ 
 
 10 
 
 14* 
 
 10 1 
 
 13 
 
 28 
 
 " 6. 
 
 10 3 
 
 14 
 
 11 2 
 
 12 
 
 84 
 
 '' 7 1 
 
 11 
 
 10 
 
 11 3 
 
 10 
 
 84 
 
 " 11. 
 
 920 
 
 11 
 
 10 1 
 
 12 
 
 84 
 
 On referring to the previous weighing, there was 
 little or no gain from Feb. 4th to March 4th, the cows 
 being at that time in a somewhat more relaxed state. 
 During March they wholly regained their consistency. 
 The gain shown in the weighing, March 31, by the six 
 cows, appears therefore unusually great. It should, 
 however, be computed as made during the eight weeks 
 from Feb. 4th to March 31, being with an average yield 
 of nearly 12 quarts (11.66) per day each, at the rate 
 of 8g Ibs. each per week on the average. 
 
 No. 11, it will be observed, is stated as giving more 
 milk on the 31st than on the 4th of March. It 
 occasionally happens that cows drop their yield of milk 
 for a day or two, and then regain it, especially when in 
 use. The whole of these six cows were kept free from 
 calf till February, when Nos. 2 and 4 were sent to bull. 
 I had some hesitation in regard to No. 4, from her hav- 
 ing suffered from pleuro. Her milk, tested by a lac- 
 tometer, denoted a less than average proportion of 
 cream ; still, in quantity, and keeping up its yield for a 
 length of time, being of more than ordinary capability, 
 I decided to retain her. 
 
 Nos. 1 and 7, which are giving respectively 8 and 10 
 quarts per day, are in a state of fatness ; they will 
 probably be sold in June as prime fat, when their yield 
 of milk will probably be 6 and 8 quarts per day each. 
 
PROPORTION OF CREAM. 405 
 
 They may be expected to fetch twenty pounds to 
 twenty-three pounds. No. 6 is also in a state of for- 
 wardness. No. 11, which suffered considerably from 
 pleuro, is in comparatively lower condition. 
 
 During the season from the close of October to the 
 close of January, I avoid purchasing near-calving cows, 
 which are then unusually dear, my replenishments being 
 made with cows giving a low range of milk, and 
 intended for fattening. I find them more profitable 
 than those which are quite dry. The present season I 
 had additional grounds for abstaining from buying high- 
 priced cows, from the recent presence of pleuro. 
 
 On the 2d of March I had occasion to purchase a 
 calving cow, which was reported to have calved on the 
 28th of February. Her weight on the 4th of March was 
 9 cwt. 1 qr. I supplied her with 35 Ibs. of mangold, and 
 hay ad libitum, of which she ate 22 Ibs. per day. The 
 greatest yield she attained was somewhat more than 13 
 quarts per day. On the 31st of March her weight was 
 9 cwt., being a loss of 28 Ibs. in four weeks. Her 
 yield of milk had diminished to 11J quarts per day. A 
 week after this her milk, during six days, was kept 
 apart, and averaged 10 quarts per day ; being at first 
 rather more, at the close rather less, than this. The 
 cream produced from these 60 quarts was 9 pints, the 
 butter 63 oz. The butter from each quart of cream 
 was 14 oz. The proportion of butter to milk was 63 
 oz. from 60 quarts rather more than 1 oz. per quart. 
 
 An equal quantity of milk from a cow (calved Oct. 
 8th) treated with steamed food, and set apart for com- 
 parison, gave less than 7 pints of cream, which pro- 
 duced 79 oz. of butter. 
 
 In quality and agreeableness the butter from steamed 
 food and cake was decidedly superior to that from hay 
 and mangold. 
 
 Mr. Stansfeld, of Chertsey, has supplied me with the 
 following interesting particulars of two Alderney cows 
 which were treated as follows : 
 
 From Dec. 1st to Jan 15th ; with Swedes and meadow 
 bay. 
 
406 
 
 APPENDIX. HOKSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 From Jan. 15th to Feb. 17th, pulped and fermented 
 Swedes, meadow hay, and 3 Ibs. rape-cake, 2 Ibs. bean- 
 meal, 2 Ibs. bran, 2 Ibs. malt-combs. 
 
 From Feb. 17th to May 1st, 5 Ibs. rape-cake, 2 Ibs. 
 bran, 2 Ibs. malt-combs. 
 
 Results : 
 
 December 1st to January 15th, yield of butter from 
 each quart of cream, 10J oz. 
 
 January 15th to February 17th, yield of butter from 
 each quart of cream, 14 oz. 
 
 February 17th to May 1st, yield of butter from each 
 quart of cream, 18 oz. 
 
 The yield of butter in proportion to milk, Dec. 1st to 
 Jan. 15th, is described as unsatisfactory. 
 
 The yield of butter in proportion to milk, Feb. 17th 
 to May, as 2 oz. per quart, which is their maximum pro- 
 portion. 
 
 Soon after calving the two cows gave 18 quarts of 
 rnilk per day ; on the 15th of May, 15 quarts per day. 
 
 Mr. Stansfeld has completely satisfied himself that 
 by the process of fermentation the turnip loses its 
 disagreeable taste, and that his butter is of excellent 
 quality. 
 
 If I take the supply of turnips, 120 Ibs. per day, as 
 requisite for the maintenance only of the cow, the 
 nutritive elements will be : 
 
 Albumen. 
 
 1.79 
 
 on. 
 .264 
 
 Starch and sugar. 
 
 7.92 
 
 Reckoning the oil as used for respiration, and computing it 
 
 in proportion of 5 to 2 as compared with starch = . .66 
 
 8.58 
 
 The food supplied to the cow consists of: 
 
 
 Lbs. 
 
 Water. 
 
 Dry. 
 
 Albu- 
 men. 
 
 Oil. 
 
 Starch 
 and 
 sugar. 
 
 Fibre. 
 
 Mine- 
 
 nils. 
 
 Phos- 
 phoric 
 acid. 
 
 Hay, . . . 
 
 Stored mangold, 
 
 22 
 35 
 
 2i 
 28.0 
 
 19.36 
 7. 
 
 2.03 
 1.05 
 
 .59 
 
 8.74 
 4.20 
 
 6.05 
 1.05 
 
 1.95 
 
 .70 
 
 .30 
 .05 
 
 
 
 
 26.36 
 
 3.08 
 
 .59 
 
 12.94 
 
 7.10 
 
 2.65 
 
 .35 
 
OIL OF THE BUTTER. 407 
 
 The 13 quarts of milk yielded of butter, .... 13.60 
 Deduct for moisture, &c., 1 / 2.28 
 
 11.32 
 Butter in the skimmed milk estimated as 68 
 
 12.00 oz. 
 12 ounces of pure oil in the butter are | Ib. =* . . .75 
 
 The oil in the food, 59 
 
 The starch and sugar, 12.94 
 
 Used for animal respiration. 8.58 
 
 4.36 
 
 There appears, then, in this supply of food, .59 Ibs. oil 
 and 4.36 Ibs. starch for the production of .75 in the 
 butter from 13 quarts per day, the cow's greatest yield. 
 At the time the milk was tested, aftermath hay was sub- 
 stituted for first-crop hay, in equal quantity. This, it 
 will be observed, is decidedly richer in oil. Her prod- 
 uce had lessened to 10 quarts per day ; her production 
 of butter was 10.50 oz. per day, or of pure oil about 9 
 oz. ; for the supply of oil the aftermath hay alone would 
 be much more than adequate. 
 
 On examining the adequacy of the food for the sup- 
 ply of albumen for the caseine, 
 
 Ibs. 
 
 I find this to be, 3.08 
 
 I assume that in 120 Ibs. of turnips, as required for 
 
 maintenance, in a normal state, 1.98 
 
 1.10 
 
 Which, according to Haidlen's analysis, will be adequate 
 to the supply of 8.60 quarts per day. The supply of 
 mineral substances is in excess. 
 
 The cow, under this treatment, gave, 
 
 Soon after calving, fully 13 quarts per day. 
 
 Five weeks after calving, 11 " " " 
 
 In less than 8 weeks after calving, . . 9 " " " 
 
 And with this there occurred also a loss of weight. 
 We find this cow supplied with food amply rich in 
 
408 APPENDIX. HORSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 every element suited to her wants and purposes, with 
 the exception of the nitrogenous principle only, lower- 
 ing her condition, and likewise her yield of milk, till it 
 approaches a quantity for which her food enables her 
 to supply a due proportion of caseine. 
 
 About the 20th of April, the cow's yield being re- 
 duced to 9 quarts per day, her food was changed to 
 steamed mixture. Soon after this her yield increased 
 to 11 quarts per day. Her weight, April 28th, 9 cwt. j 
 May 16th, 9 cwt. 14 Ibs.: yield of milk, 11 quarts. 
 
 I now introduce the dairy statistics of Mr. Alcock, of 
 Aireville, Skipton, who has for some time been prac- 
 tising my method of treatment, with such modifications 
 as are suited to his circumstances. 
 
 During the winter season, Mr. Alcock's food consisted 
 of mangold, of which he gave 20 Ibs. per day to each, 
 uncooked, together with steamed food ad libitum, con- 
 sisting of wheat and bean straw, and shells of oats. 
 
 Carob bean and Indian meal, for each, . . 3 Ibs. per day. 
 
 Bran and malt-combs, ....... 1 " " " 
 
 Bean-meal, .......... 3 " " " 
 
 Rape-cake,* .......... 3 " " " 
 
 Of extra food, 
 
 From March 19, when his store of mangold was ex- 
 hausted, he increased his supply of Indian meal to 4 
 Ibs. per day, and omitted the carob bean. 
 
 During the month of January, Mr. Alcock obtained 
 from 759 quarts of milk 1323 oz. of butter, being from 
 each 16 quarts 26| oz. ; during February and March, 
 from 7368 quarts of milk 12,453 oz. of butter, or from 
 each 16 quarts fully 27 oz. : so that rather less than 
 9J quarts of milk have produced 16 oz. of butter. 
 The average produce from each quart of cream was 
 20J oz. 
 
 Mr. Alcock fattens his cows whilst giving milk, and 
 sells them whilst giving 4 to 6 quarts per day. He 
 
 * The rape-cake used by Mr. Alcock was of foreign manufacture, evi- 
 dently rich in oil, but containing mustard, and on this account supplied in 
 less proportion. 
 
QUALITY OP THE BUTTER. 409 
 
 quite agrees with me that it is far more profitable to 
 buy far-milked cows for fattening; and obtains, from a 
 change to his food, 2 to 3 quarts per day more than the 
 cow had given previously. 
 
 Though Mr. Alcock's cream is not so rich as what I 
 have described on pp. 377 and 378, it is more than 
 ordinarily so. His mode of separating his milk from 
 his cream differs from my own, his milk being set up in 
 leaden vessels, from which, on the cream being formed, 
 the old milk is drawn, by taking a plug from a hollow 
 tube, with perforated holes in the centre of the vessel. 
 To this difference I am disposed in some degree to 
 attribute the less richness of Mr. Alcock's cream. On 
 examining the cream with a spoon, after the dairy- 
 keeper had drawn off the milk, I observed some portion 
 of milk, which would have escaped through my per- 
 forated skimmer. 
 
 Mr. Alcock's proportion of butter from milk, which is 
 the matter of practical importance, is greater than what 
 I have shown on a preceding page, being from each 16 
 quarts of milk 27 oz. of butter. 
 
 QUALITY OF BUTTER. In January, 1857, samples of 
 about 56 oz. each, of butter of my own, and also of 
 Mr. Alcock's, were sent to the laboratory of Messrs. 
 Price & Co.'s candle-works, at Belmont. 
 
 My butter was found to consist of (taking the pure 
 fat only), 
 
 Hard fat, mostly margarine, fusible at 950, . . . 45.9 
 Liquid, or oleine, 54.1 
 
 100.0 
 Mr. Alcock's, 
 
 Hard fat, mostly margarine, fusible at 10, . . . 36.0 
 Liquid, or oleine, 64.0 
 
 100.0 
 
 For these analyses of butter the agricultural public 
 
 is indebted to the ' good offices of Mr. George Wilson, 
 
 director of Messrs. Price & Co.'s manufactory. It will 
 
 be observed that Mr. Alcock's milk is richer in butter 
 
 35 
 
410 APPENDIX. HOKSFALL'S SYSTEM. 
 
 and that his butter is also richer in proportion of oleine 
 to margarine than my own. 
 
 Professor Thompson ("Elements of Agricultural Chem- 
 istry," 6th edition, p. 317) states that winter butter 
 consists more of solid, and summer more of liquid or 
 oleine fat. 
 
 An analysis of butter made in Yosges gives : 
 
 Summer. Winter. 
 
 Solid or margarine fat, 40 65 
 
 Liquid (or oleine) fat, 60 35 
 
 100 100 
 
 In Lehmann's "Physiological Chemistry" (Leipsic 
 edition, vol. ii., p. 329), an analysis of butter by Bromus 
 gives : 
 
 Margarine, 68 
 
 Oleine, 30 
 
 Special butter-oil, 2 
 
 100 
 
 It will be observed that my butter may be classed as 
 summer butter, and that Mr. Alcock's is the richest in 
 the proportion of oleine. Both were produced in the 
 month of January. 
 
 These results are important, and completely establish 
 the conclusion I had previously formed, that the quan- 
 tity and quality of butter depend essentially on the 
 food and treatment; and that by suitable means you 
 can produce as much and as rich butter in winter as in 
 summer. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Aiton'8 opinion of dairy stock, 13, 14, 19 
 
 Albuminous substances, value of as food, 122-128 
 
 American cattle, origin of, 50, 51, 53, 64. 55, 60 
 
 American cheese, 260 
 
 Analysis of milk, 216, 397 
 
 '" butter, 239, 379, 409 
 
 " cheese, 268, 269 
 
 " hay and grasses 390,379 
 
 " " cotton-seed cake, 127, 128, 197 
 
 " and value of manure 198,398,401 
 
 Animals, large and small, 10, 111 
 
 Annatto for coloring, 250, 251, 328 
 
 Artificial shades in pastures, 1 35 
 
 Ayrshires, as dairy cows, 11,17,19,22,25,75,77 
 
 origin and points of, 11, 12, 14, 16, 22, 23, 25 
 
 yield of, 18,19.20,25 
 
 Barn, plan of a, 150, 151, 153 
 
 '* cellar, convenience of, 154 
 
 " temperature of for cows, 154 
 
 Bean-vines, value of, 139,370,371 
 
 Beauty of stock, 28, 36, 41, 72, 73, 104 
 
 Berkshire swine, crosses of the, 362, 363 
 
 Boussingault's equivalents, 125, 126 
 
 Breed, meaning of the term, 49 
 
 Breed, an element in judging dairy cows, 91,92 
 
 Breeds, some must be kept pure, 361 
 
 Bull, selection of for breeding 62, 63, 66, 75, 77 
 
 Butter, origin of, 217 
 
 ** not made by the early Jews, 217 
 
 ** from cream first skimmed the best, 218 
 
 " making of, .... 220, 221, 228, 220, 230, 232, 302, 309, 320 
 " modes of churning, .... 225, 226, 228, 232, 309, 311, 318 
 
 " salting of, 238, 321, 386 
 
 " composition of, 121, 239, 379 
 
 producing localities, . . 392 
 
 ** quantity of milk to make a pound of, 382 
 
 " qualities of, 239,391,409 
 
 " worker, 226, 231, 235, 236 
 
 " from poor and rich pastures, 391 
 
 " use of the sponge to remove butter-milk, 231 , 234 
 
 " fat or oil of, 239, 240 
 
412 INDEX. 
 
 Butter, in winter, 233,385,410 
 
 in lumps, 238, 323, 327 
 
 time of churning 229, 236, 319, 386 
 
 cleansing the casks for, 324, 325 
 
 mode of packing, 237, 238, 323, 326 
 
 coloring of, 328, 359 
 
 made by burying cream, 239 
 
 Butter-milk, use of, 329, 345, 361 
 
 proportions of, 379 
 
 Buying dairy stock, HI 
 
 Calves, raising of, 155, 156, 157, 160, 162, 165, 167 
 
 value of Guenon's method of judging, 102,110,155 
 
 feeding of by hand, 157, 159, 160, 163 
 
 diseases of, 290,291,292 
 
 " must have the first milk, 157, 159, 290 
 
 immediately taken from the cow 158,159 
 
 " starving and over-feeding, 161,167,168 
 
 " feeding hay-tea to, 165 
 
 " food required, 167, 168 
 
 Calving, treatment of the cow at, . . . 13,130,131,275 
 
 Cattle, importance of weighing, 387,396 
 
 " fattening of, 388 
 
 Cheddar cheese, mode of making, 261 
 
 * analysis of, 269 
 
 Cheese, early history of, 241 
 
 " composition of, 121, 122, 268, 269 
 
 '* made of cream, 242 
 
 " " " skim-milk, 243, 266, 331 
 
 " making of, 243, 245, 247, 252, 360 
 
 " breaking the curd, 245, 247, 253, 350 
 
 ' new and sweet milks 246,339,345,348 
 
 " pressing of, . . 247, 251, 252, 254, 264, 268, 270, 334, 336, .341: 
 
 " salting, 254, 258, 261, 338, 342 
 
 " varieties of, 254, 255, 330, 348 
 
 coloring of, . 250, 353 
 
 " Cheshire, how made, 256, 257, 258 
 
 " Stilton, " " 259 
 
 Gloucester, " ' 260, 269 
 
 " Cheddar, " 261, 269 
 
 " as a digester, 269, 270 
 
 " Dutch, making of, . 330,331,339,345 346 
 
 ' Gouda, " 330, 331, 339, 344 
 
 " Edamer, " " 349 
 
 " moulds, 335, 337, 342, 351 
 
 Cheshire cheese, mode of making, 256,257,258 
 
 Choking, cure for, 283, 284 
 
 Churn, forms of the, 226,227,228,310,312,315 
 
 Churning, 225, 228, 232, 236, 309, 383, 385 
 
 " temperature for, 383,385 
 
 by lever . . . 311, 313 
 
 " by dog-power, ' 317 
 
 " by horse-power, 225, 318 
 
 Cleanliness the Srst requisite, .... 146, 221, 255, 300, 324, 330, 357 
 
INDEX. 413 
 
 Climate and its effect on stock, 16, 37 
 
 Clover, value of for milch cows, 183, 184, 187 
 
 Constitution, indications of, 86, 104 
 
 Cool-bath, use of the, 803,304 
 
 Costiveness in calves, treatment of, 291,292 
 
 Cotton-seed meal, analysis and use of, 127, 128, 197 
 
 Cows, in the natural or wild state, '. 9,68,136 
 
 " " calf, treatment of, 130,131 
 
 " classification of, 102, 106, 108, 10J 
 
 Cream, treatment of, ' 236,378,385 
 
 " difference in quality 377, 38J 
 
 Cream-pots, 34, 2'.)8, 308 
 
 Crosses and their results, 23, 54, 55, 58, 62, 63, 74, 77 
 
 Dairy cows, management of, . . 113, 116, 117, 119, 123, 140, 367, 392 
 
 " too many for the food 113,116 
 
 " regularity of feeding, 117,119,120,133,137 
 
 ' room, 233, 237, 383, 384, 386 
 
 " utensils, treatment of, 296, 2i)7, 299, 322, 347 
 
 Dairy-fed pork, excellence of, 361 
 
 Dairyman's motto, 117, 120 
 
 Dairy-woman , letter to a, 355 
 
 Denmark cattle, 53 
 
 Diarrhoea, cause and treatment of, 287, 291 
 
 Digestive organs, 22, 86, 10D, 130, 277 
 
 Diseases of dairy stock, 271, 279, 286, 2;>0 
 
 Dunlop cheese, 261,262,264 
 
 " " analysis of, 269 
 
 Dutch cattle, . . .* 14, 15, 32, 37, 52, 104, 107 
 
 Dysentery, symptoms and treatment of, 288 
 
 Early maturity, importance of, 23, 36, 362, 304 
 
 Elements of food, 116,120,122,125,138,397 
 
 Escutcheon, form of the, 24, 65, 66, 69, 91, 93, 95, 97, 99, 101, 103, 105 
 
 transmission of the, 65,66,67,68,70 
 
 " of calves 102,110,155 
 
 Exceptional and characteristic qualities, 9, 59, 68 
 
 External signs of milkers 80,87,88,89,110 
 
 False presentations in calving, 274, 275 
 
 Fat of animals, how formed, 120,121,127,374 
 
 " forming elements, 120, 122, 128, 381 
 
 Feeding, course of, . . 118, 123, 124, 127, 129, 131, 133, 138, 140, 168 
 
 Food and shelter, 10,56,113,116,117,119,136,168 
 
 ' to produce quantity, 117,122,127,136,139,387 
 
 " adapted to the animal, 381, 396 
 
 " economy of, 400 
 
 " bulk of, 144, 381 
 
 variety of required, 121, 143, 144 
 
 " steaming the, 387, 396 
 
 Foul in the foot, treatment of, 284 
 
 Garget, symptoms and treatment 271, 272 
 
 Gentleness in the care of stock 147,148,164 
 
 35* 
 
414 INDEX. 
 
 Gloucester cheese, mode of making, 260, 261 
 
 analysis of, 209 
 
 Grade and native cattle, 49, 54, 55, 60, 74 
 
 Grasses, culture of the, 169,170,172,176,180 
 
 " varieties of pasture, 169,170,184,185 
 
 * cutting and curing of, 186, 187 
 
 Grass-fed cows, 123, 124, 133, 137 
 
 Great milkers, form of, 28, 72, 104 
 
 Guanon's method of judging cows, 24, 64, 90, 91, 92, 109 
 
 " " explanation of, . . 65, 91 
 
 Hafting and its results, 21 
 
 Harley's experience, 20, 137 
 
 Hay cut and moistened, value of, 117,122,127 
 
 Hereditary qualities, 24, 6S 
 
 Herefords, origin and characteristics of, 38, 40, 43 
 
 Hornless cattle, 78 
 
 Hoove, cause and cure of, 282, 283, 292 
 
 Hoose, treatment of, 286 
 
 Horsfall's system of feeding, 138,365,370,380,383 
 
 Hubback, fame of, 32, 33 
 
 Hungarian cattle, 78 
 
 Ice, use of in the dairy, 236,240,244 
 
 Ice-creams, modes of making, 214,215 
 
 Inflammation of the glands, treatment of, 286 
 
 " " lungs', " " 286 
 
 Indian corn, culture arid curing for fodder 188, 189 
 
 Jersey cattle, origin and characteristics of, 26, 27, 29, 30 
 
 " " Haxton's opinion of, 27 
 
 " cows, milk of, 30, 76, 391 
 
 Lactometer, use of, 149,210,211 
 
 Letter to a dairy-woman, 355 
 
 Lice on cows, how to get rid of, 289 
 
 Linseed-meal, value and use of, 128, 197, 381 
 
 London dairies, 35, 74, 136 
 
 Loss of cud, cure for, 290 
 
 Male, selection of the, 62, 66, 75, 77, 362 
 
 Mange, symptoms and cure of, 288 
 
 Manures, economy and use of, 154, 198, 400, 401 
 
 Medicine chest, importance of, 293, 294 
 
 easily procured, 293, 294 
 
 Milch cows, yield of, 18, 20, 25, 116, 133, 301, 372 
 
 " selection of, ........ 10, 61, 64, 67, 71, 79, 80, 86 
 
 " teeth of, 81, 83, 85, 86 
 
 M k, nature and composition of, 199, 200, 201, 203, 216, 369 
 
 oily parts of, 200, 204, 216, 217, 218, 239, 389 
 
 cheesy parts of, 200,204,216,241,369,389,400 
 
 temperature for raising cream, . . . 200, 201, 205, 212, 228, 233 
 
 " curdling, 244, 245, 246, 253, 267 
 
 * intoxicating liquor from, . . . 201, 202 
 
 ' difference in quality, 203, 207, 209, 219, 375, 383 
 
INDEX. 415 
 
 Milk, specific gravity of, 203, 209, 210 
 
 setting for cream, . . 205, 207, 222, 223, 225, 228, 232, 234, 308 
 
 effect of climate on the quantity, 207 
 
 treatment of, .... 207, 208, 212, 219, 221, 223, 295, 302, 308 
 
 adulterating, 208, 209 
 
 ice-creams from, 214 
 
 of spayed cows, 215 
 
 measures for, 216, 296 
 
 room, 221,222,231,383 
 
 testing the quality of, 149,209,211,376,397 
 
 feeding fur, 66, 114, 115, 117, 123, 127, 129, 131, 132 
 
 greatest yield of on grass, 123, 124, 132, 137 
 
 Milk-fever, symptoms and treatment of, 275, 276, 277, 278 
 
 Milking, manner of affects the yield, 145, 146, 147 
 
 ** women best adapted for, 149, 295 
 
 in the Dutch dairies, 295 
 
 qualities, artificial, 9,68,136,148 
 
 Milk-mirror, transmission of the, 66,67,68,70 
 
 form of the, . 24, 65, 66, 67, 69, 90, 91, 93, 96, 97, 99, 101 
 
 " explanation of the, 65 
 
 Milk-pans, forms of, 223, 224, 296, 306 
 
 Milk-yoke, use of the, 295,296 
 
 Milk- veins, size of the, 88,104,106,110 
 
 Millet, culture and value of, 189 
 
 Mixed food, conducive to health 121, 143 
 
 Moist and succulent food, .... 117, 122, 127, 133, 136, 139, 144, 387 
 
 Native or grade cattle, 14, 49, 50, 64, 56, 60, 61 
 
 Nitrogenous substances, value of, 122, 128, 381 
 
 North Devons, origin and qualities of, 44, 45, 47, 76 
 
 Nutritive value of articles of food 125,126 
 
 Oakes cow, yield of, 72, 73 
 
 Oil-cake, value of, 127 129, 381 
 
 Origin of breeds and races, 9 
 
 Parmesan cheese, mode of making, 266, 360 
 
 Parturition, treatment at, 131,273,274 
 
 Pastures, different qualities of, 391 
 
 Patton stock, 35 
 
 Philadelphia butter, quality of, 230, 234 
 
 Points of a dairy cow, 21, 22, 47, 61, 64, 73, 80, 86, 88, 110 
 
 Pork, best quality of, 362 
 
 Practice in judging stock, 80 
 
 Principles of breeding 23, 32, 58, 61, 62, 69, 71, 74 
 
 Puerperal fever, treatment of, 275, 276 
 
 Purgatives in use for cattle, 281 
 
 Rape-cake, value of as food, 381,391 
 
 Red water, treatment of, 285 
 
 Regularity, importance of, 117, 119, 133, 137, 143 
 
 Relative size of male and female 16,62,70,71,862 
 
 Rennet, how prepared, 247, 248, 249, 259, 332, 349 
 
 use of, 255, 257, 332 
 
 Rings on the horns, 81 
 
416 INDEX. 
 
 Roots for stock, 118,119,122,127,137,138,39(5 
 
 " culture of, 191,192,193,196 
 
 Rye, culture and use of, 190 
 
 Scours in calves, treatment of, 291 
 
 Selection of cows, 10,61,71,79,80,86,110,111 
 
 Shaving the milk-mirror, 95 
 
 Short-horns, origin and characteristics of, 31,33,35 
 
 " influence on American cattle, 34, 35, 74 
 
 " beef of the, 36,42,43 
 
 Simple fever, symptoms and treatment, 279, 280 
 
 Size of animals, relative, 10, 70, 111 
 
 Skim-milk cheese, 243, 266, 331, 360 
 
 Slinking the calf. 274 
 
 Soiling, plants for, 132, 135, 142, 143, 144 
 
 " advantages of, 141, 142, 143 
 
 Sponge and cloth, use of the, 231,232,234,358 
 
 Spring, treatment of cows in, 131,133,137 
 
 Square box the best churn, 228 
 
 Stamping of butter, 323, 359 
 
 Stilton cheese, mode of making, 259, 260 
 
 Stock, improvement of, 57,58,60,63,71,168 
 
 " selection of, 10,58,60,64,66,71,86 
 
 " age of, 80, 81 
 
 Suffolk swine, crosses with, 362, 363 
 
 Surfeited cows, treatment of, 138, 290 
 
 Swill-milk, how produced, 144, 208, 209, 216 
 
 Swine, the kind of wanted, 362, 363 
 
 " treatment of, 364 
 
 Symptomatic fever, treatment of, 280 
 
 Teeth, indicative of age, 81,83,85,86 
 
 The piggery, 361, 364 
 
 Time a cow should run dry, 130,131,273 
 
 " ofc-dving, 131,272,273 
 
 Treatment of dairy stock, 56, 130, 131, 133, 134, 136, 138, 140, 148, 168 
 Typhoid fever, treatment of, 281 
 
 Udder, attention to the, 43, 88, 89, 104, 108, 272 
 
 structure of the, 145,146,202 
 
 Vegetable oils, 379, 389, 409 
 
 Virginia, importation of cattle to, , 35,50 
 
 Warbles, injure the hide, 290 
 
 Warmth and ventilation requisite, 136, 149 
 
 Whey, use of the, 344, 354 
 
 Willowbank dairy, 20, 137 
 
 Winter food for cows, 127, 131, 134, 186, 139 
 
 Wood for butter casks and firkins, S24 
 
 Yorkshire cattle, notice of, 30, 32, 35, 74 
 
 Youatt's opinion 18, 47, 272, 277 
 
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