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Total weight for two years, one thousand pounds, worth, at four

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Weight at four years, fourteen hundred pounds, at five cents,

70 00

Loss if kept till four years old,

$32 50

Profit of Short-Horn over scrub, at two years old, .
At four years old,

$30 00

48 75

Important Deductions.

1. It costs much less to make a pound of beef the second year than the first, because it is made upon cheaper food.

2. The profit of selling a Short-Horn at two years old is double that at four years.

3. Feeding and turning Short-Horns at two years old, will make the corn fed net over $1 25 per bushel, and they are turned nearly as soon as hogs. 4. If instead of keeping the same animal to four years old, it should be sold, and another reared, the account would stand: Profit in four years, by selling at two years old, . By selling at four years old,

Gain by selling at two years,

$63 00 16 25

$46 75

5. The above statement is unjust to Short-Horns on the four-year-old exhibit, because they could be made to weigh nearly the same amount at three years old, which would make the account at three years old show a profit of $48 25. For the sake of comparison, the estimate of the ShortHorns is carried to four years old, the age of the maturity of scrub steers, while the Short-Horns, with their characteristic quick growth, mature as well at three years as the scrub at four.

The paper being open for discussion,

Mr. FAHNESTOCK, of Adams. In our county the subject of pure bred cattle has not attracted as much attention as in some other counties in the State, and, therefore, I do not feel like touching upon the question, at any length. In fact, I am not fully competent to discuss this question, for the reason that I have given; but there are a number of gentlemen here who should be heard from, and I trust they will embrace this opportunity. The gentlemen who write these essays, will think that they fall pretty flat, if we try to pick no flaws in them, or give no encouragement to what they have done. These gentlemen certainly have gone to a great amount of trouble, and I hope others will give their views on what has been presented in these papers.

Mr. W. S. ROLAND, of York. I have been very much gratified with the reports that have been made; but as I am not a stock-raiser now, (and never was a very extensive one,) I would sooner have others discuss the question. If there are no members of the Board who feel disposed to speak, I think

an invitation might be extended to gentlemen present who are not members.

The motion was made and agreed to.

Mr. J. C. MORRIS, of Susquehanna. Speaking of fine stock, I have been raising Short-Horns for a number of years. The difference in different breed is, of course, very great. We have an importation from England of two distinct stocks, one called the Dutchess, and the other the Princess, The Dutchess is what we call our milking stock; and the first importation that I remember of was by a man named Hollis, near Cherry Valley, in the State of New York. They are a fine milking stock, and their offspring are much sought after for that purpose. They are also fine butter makers, the quality of the butter being excellent.

Then we have what is called the "Booth" stock, which we get from the West. They are the beef cattle, and are the ones that are exported to England.

One gentleman spoke of sheep. There is a difference between the fine and the coarse wool. The fine wool can be kept in very large flocks, and they are so raised in the northern portion of the state of New York. The coarse wool require more care, and very few can be kept together. Flocks of twenty-five or thirty, say, are quite large enough. Large flocks become diseased. But the fine wool can be raised in flocks of one and two hundred without difficulty. I have bred sheep as far back as I can remember, and have taken the coarse wool in Pennsylvania, because I could make no sales of the finer at remunerative prices-that is in our portion of Pennsylvania.

Mr. M. C. BEEBE, of Venango. Would the gentleman consider it profitable for ordinary farmers, with ordinary means, and with the usual facilities for keeping stock, to embark practically in the stock-raising business?

Mr. MORRIS. I would, so far as the Dutchess and Princess breeds of short-horns are concerned. Of course you cannot import fine Short-Horns for a small price, but you can go to breeders in this country, and get for from ten dollars to twenty-five dollars just as good an animal as one would probably wish to start with.

Mr. BEEBE. For ordinary purposes, say for butter, would ordinary cows, properly kept, be equally as good as thorough-breds?

I

Mr. MORRIS. Yes, sir; thorough-breds are no better. If I were going to start a dairy for myself, I would pick out good milking cows-taking the mothers, and picking out the calves with just the same certainty. I can go into any man's herd, I believe, and pick out his best cows. have done it I suppose hundreds of times. I have seen this thing commented upon in the agricultural papers, to the effect that it is a humbug but I know that it is a fact, that with certain points borne in mind, you can pick out the best cows and the best calves.

Mr. BEEBE. Are you guided by the Guenon theory?
Mr. MORRIS. Not the whole of it.

Any man who is a judge of cows can go into a drove, and taking a cow from the head back can, with the right points, pick the best one out.

Mr. EDGE, (the secretary.) Could Mr. Morris go among a number of dairy cows, all covered except certain parts, and tell the best animals? * Mr. MORRIS. You may cover a cow, all but the tail and back part of

*The Guenon commission (appointed by the Governor) have since been submitted to this test. The cows were carefully blanketed, so that the Guenon marks alone were visible. The result of this test is fully set forth in the report of the commission, and confirms the opinion of Mr. Morris.

her. I have gone through a stable and picked out six, and kept whittling down to one, and said: " Gentlemen, that is the cow," and done that several times. I have had experience in breeding cattle ever since I was eight years of age, but it has ruined me for anything else. I was intended for something else when six years old; but going to a sale with an uncle I rode with him in the sulky. While he was buying, or while these cattle were being sold, I walked around the yard and saw a bright yearling, or two-year old. I bought her at the sale for eighty dollars. When I came around holding my uncle's hand, he said: "Johnny, you have bought that heifer; who is going to pay for her?" I looked up into his face very calmly, and said "You!" He said "The devil I am!" but he gave his check and sent her home. That is what made me a farmer. I have had cows, and good cows, ever since.

Mr. BEEBE. Could you not give us the good points of a good cow? Mr. MORRIS. I would commence with her muzzle; give her a long, thin, fine head, with a fine, clear eye, with a fine, clear horn, with a low foreshoulder, with a heavy heart-because there is where the machinery is at work, for she is nothing anywhere but machinery-and then run back with a broad hip. I do not care whether the bones on the side of her tail are droopy or not. Then with the average milk-bag, and large vein, you are very sure of having a good cow, if well kept up. You do not need to look as you look for beef. When you look for beef, you want to get a strong head and good veins, the whole running well through the body. You will find that a poor milker has very small veins. A large milker has very large veins. The veins are large, running back. That is one point. The color of her skin indicates very much the richness of the milk. Guenon, I do not think, says anything about the richness of milk in the cow. It is the amount of milk she gives. I use the Durham cows for milk.

As to the quantity of milk, if you feed your cows on hay alone, and you have a lazy fellow for the winter to take care of them, he will dry them up quick enough. I believe it depends upon the man who does the milking. I believe there is one grade of Short-Horns which can be milked until they are about ready to come in again. I do not say there is no difference in the different bloods. The Booth blood are no milkers at all. They are very much like a horn for dryness. When I first came into the State of Pennsylvania from the State of New York, I came down to the Wyoming fair, and bought some Booth heifers, (not knowing exactly what they were for milking,) and took them into Susquehanna county. They were very large, very beautiful in appearance; the heifers having fine heads and faces, and all alike. After their arrival home I went down into the field, singled out a three-year old heifer, but found she was of no service for milking, for she did not give as much milk as many a sheep would. I then fattened them up and shipped them out of the State. I then bought

Short-Horns.

Mr EDGE, (the secretary.) Has the gentleman ever paid much attention to the Guenon theory, as applied to fattening cattle?

Mr. MORRIS. No, sir; that is a thing I have yet to look up. Mr. EDGE, (the secretary.) While I do not pretend to fully understand the theory, yet I have given it some attention for years. When in the dairy business, I noticed that a good butter cow was (when dried off for beef) a good feeder. It had been assumed that the milk was but fat turned into another channel, and hence I adopted the theory that the system, if good when applied to cows for milk, should be equally good when applied to feeding cattle. My observation has convinced me that this

theory is correct, and I am glad to know that the experience of Mr. Blight (president of the Guenon commission) and that of Colonel Young fully support the theory.

Mr. KELLER, (of Schuylkill.) Are there two kinds of Short-Horn cattle, one for milk, and one for beef?

Mr. MORRIS. Yes, sir. There are three different kinds that I am certain of; but two of them are good for milk, as far as I have had them. I believe that any thorough-bred can be made to do very well; but for myself I would get a fine, Short-Horn bull, from good milking stock, and then cross on to anything, and I would improve it.

It is exactly so with Devons. They are beautiful. But the only thing is their size. I think, though, as far as I have seen them, that they are as fine cattle for fattening as any you have. Although the Devons are not considered good dairy cows, they are good cows, but not good for cheese. They are good for butter. We have as fine Devons in Susquehanna county as there are in the United States. They are just as well bred. We have a great many of them. Of course, proper care, even with the Devon or Short-Horns, will increase the milk. But they cannot make the amount of cheese that is made from some other breeds.

Mr. J. S. KELLER, (of Schuylkill.) I would like to hear an explanation given of the kinds of cattle from those different islands-one is called the Guernsey, one the Alderney, and one the Jersey. Are they one or different breeds?

Mr. MORRIS. They are the same, although from different islands. I have bought Jerseys and Guernseys both, but they were playthings. My wife wanted a Jersey cow, and I got one; and from that experience I say this. Mr. JAMES YOUNG, (of Dauphin county.) I have had them, and I have had the Durhams; and I can say of the Jerseys that they are the best My experience has been that there is a difference in cattle, even of the same breed. One cow will give a large flow of milk, and another of the same breed a small flow. I cannot agree with the gentleman as to the Durhams, and consequently I now have the Jerseys. With me they are great milkers. All I have got are thorough-bred cattle, and in connection with them I have a dairy.

cows.

As to selection, I agree with the gentleman. I can go into the stable and pick out the best milkers without a great deal of trouble. But with all breeds you will find some giving a very large flow of milk, and some a very small quantity. I think if my friend will give the Jerseys a thorough trial, he will find them the best. I have a couple of Durhams now. Then I have one which is not a thorough-bred, but a cross, that beats them all in quantity, having repeatedly given "a bushel" of milk a day.

I believe it applies to steers as well as to milkers. I have gone through the stables, and I find the same rule applies.

If you make the same test with Short-Horns or Devons that you do with Jerseys, they are no milkers at all. They are fine feeders. I have the two kinds in the stable now; but when it comes to Jerseys, I will not back down on them.

Mr. MORRIS. A few years after I came into this, my adopted State, I came to this State capital to attend a fair. While here, I looked at the stock, and saw but two fine animals; two which I would have taken as a gift. The others I would not have taken home. The two heifers that I saw belonged to a man by the name of Young, who lived then down towards Lancaster. They were the only two really fine animals there. The balance of the stock was bad; in other words, mighty poor.

Mr. YOUNG. I live within nine miles of this place, east; and I have

some forty head of cows there. I would be much pleased to have the gentleman come down there. I am satisfied he could learn me. But as to the milking qualities of the Jersey, I think I can convince him, not only as to quality, but quantity.

Mr. BEEBE. Is not the Ayrshire a better cow?

Mr. MORRIS. No, sir; I would not give a three pence for any of them. The Holstein is a good cross, but she is not fancy enough for me. I want something fancy, as well as good.

Mr. JAMES YOUNG, of Dauphin. I have bred these Jersey cattle until I have got to believe that the man who has a drove of them is well off. When I first brought them home my sister, who has charge of the milking department, would not have anything to do with them. I asked her to try them. Now she is a warm friend of the Jerseys. Jersey cows are little, but they are good. Some of the number that I have give milk so freely that they ought to be milked three times a day.

Prof. J. HAMILTON, of Centre. Will they continue to give milk in this way?

Mr. YOUNG. A No 1 milker will wear out like a good machine.
Prof. HAMILTON. What do you do with them then?

Mr. YOUNG. Some I kill and some I sell.

Mr. MORRIS. I suppose the gentleman has reference to their disposal for beef?

Prof HAMILTON. How do you get your money out of them?

Mr. MORRIS. You get your money out of them in the first place. One cow gives eight pounds a week and another ten pounds. You can milk a cow from three years until eleven. But say there is only two pounds difference a week. Estimate, and you can readily see the profit in keeping a good cow. You could give her away at the end of her usefulness and make money out of the entire transaction.

Mr. YOUNG. The same rule will apply to a good horse. Take a twelve or fifteen-year old mare, what do you do with her?

Prof. D. WILSON, of Juniata county. Are they more remarkable for quantity than quality?

Mr. MORRIS. Quantity.

Prof. WILSON. What seems to be the average quantity of milk?

Mr. MORRIS. I would not keep a cow, unless she gave twenty to twentyfour quarts a day; that is in season, running along up to the time that cows dry up-you might say in July. Then let the amount dwindle off, until she gave ten to twelve quarts.

Set the machine to work,

A MEMBER. How much in the month of March? Mr. MORRIS. Just as much as you feed her. and she will give in proportion to the feed given her.

Mr. YOUNG. It will take one third more to keep a Short-Horn cow than to keep a Jersey. I have had them both. The Short-Horns are great big animals, and will weigh enormously; but when placed side by side with the Jersey, the difference in keeping is very marked. Take two horses, you will often get as much out of a small one as a larger of the same species.

Mr. MORRIS. I do not undertake to say that the Short-Horn cow will make more butter.

Mr. YOUNG. You know that some cows will start off with a great flow of milk, and then they will dry up. I will say that when it comes to beef, then I prefer the Short-Horn, and I am feeding a large number of them now; but when I want milk, and to keep the cows in the most economical manner for the quantity received, give me the Jerseys.

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