ON DAIRY FARMING,

BY W. K. HULKE, ESQ.

No B.— THE MILK PAIL AND THE COW THAT FILLS IT. No one breed can be recommended for all situations, or the best to suit the wants of all engaged iv dairying. Farms differ widely in their character — some have level surfaces, others are hilly and broken ; some are well sheltered, others exposed to every blast that blows. Soils, too, differ, varying from the richest to the poorest. Again, the object each dairyman has in view differ as widely as do the soil and character of the farms. First, there is the town dairyman, whose object is to get the largest quantity of milk, irrespective of its quality ; secondly, we have the dairyman whose farm being situated within a few miles of a large town, or in the vicinity of a railway station, forwards the milk for sale wholesale to the retailer in town, and here again quantity ranks before quality; thirdly, we have in the butter dairy quality counting before quantity ; and fourthly, in the cheese dairy quantity and quality combined are tho requisites. It will, therefore, be at once seen that no one breed will suit the requirements of each of these dairies. Having pointed out the requirements of the various dairymen, let us ask this question— What is the most desirable quality of a good dairy cow of any breed? and I think the answer will be tkat a good dairy cow should

3'ield a large quantity of milk in proportion to the quantity of food it consumes, that the milk should be rich in fat (butter) and cascine (cheese), and that when dry she should feed quickly. Bearing in mind that a dairy cow is simply a machine for the production of milk, just as a steam boiler is a machine for the production of steam, and food is fuel to the cow exactly as coal is fuel to the boiler, two-thirds of the food a cow eats goes first to keep it in fair condition previous to the formation of milk. This has been proved and tested over and over again, and to secure a full merit of success the dairy farmer must devote as much care to the feeding and treatment of his cow as he does to his breeding for milk production and to the improvement of his land for the same end. We will now notice those breeds of cattle chiefly used in the daily. Amongst these we find the Dutch or Holsteinfor quantity, irrespective of quality, of milk ; the Jersey for butter; Grade Shorthorn for milk and butter ; and the Ayrshire for milk, butter, and cheese; whilst the little Kerrys and Bretons are for their height (38 inches) wonderful milking machines. First we have in the Dutch, or as some call it the Holstein, cow, the deepest milker known. This cow was largely imported from Holland for the London dairies, but lately, owing to the restriction passed by the British Government on the importation of foreign cattle into England, Grade Shorthorns have taken their place. The Holstein is a large, loose-jointed cow, feeding to a heavy weight at seven to eight years old. Its milk is thin, and consequently poor in comparison with the Jersey, Ayrshire, and other dairy breeds ; but its large yield makes up for this deficiency in the eyes of the town dairymen. The following copied from the Agricultural Gazette, is both instructive and interesting. It is furnished by Mr. Amersfordts, whose milk reccords for the year 1877 shows the average of his dairy herds of forty-nine pure Holstein cows to be 730 gallons for the year, each cow being on an average dry ten-and-a-half weeks during the year. Mr. Amersfordt's dairy farm is situated on Lake Harlem, and a milk record of each cow has been kept for years. The average of 750 gallons per cow is a large one, particularly as amongst the forty-nine cows were heifers and old cows, and few dairies elsewhere can show its equal. In America the Holstein cow is a favorite, and its milk record totals up well. As yet, I believe, none have been imported into New Zealand or the Australian Colonies. The Holstein, like its accredited relative the Shorthorn, requires rich and abundant food to keep up its milk supply. Secondly, for the supply of those dairies the milk of which is forwarded for sale to the large centres of population, we have, besides the Holstein, the cow known as the Shorthorn Grade. These cattle are the results of oft-repeated shorthorn crosses, on old longhorn stock chiefly, as well as other races of cattle. Grade Shorthorn are as a rule good milkers ; the milk although not so rich as the Jersey or Ayrshire, is of a fan- quality, and the cow when di-y feeds quickly, feeding to a heavy weight. In a well-managed dairy their average ought to reach from 500 to 600 gallons per year, but a great deal will depend upon the food, which must be generous to bring it up to this quanlity. Beginning with good average milkers, a far higher milk record will be achieved by the rest of pedigree bulls, from a family known to be good milkers, and whose ancestors bore the same character ; remembering always to keep pegging on, never resting satisfied with a partial success, and if you cannot get at the top of the tree, get as near to it as you can. It is in this way herds now showing such large milk and butter records have been built up in Holland and America. Thirdly, for the butter dairy. We have the Yorkshire (or milky shorthorn), Jersey, and Ayrshire cows. Each of these have their particular advocates, and each possess qualifications necessary to constitute them good dairy cows. We will take the Yorkshire (or milky shorthorn) first, it beiug at the present time most widely known by the fabulous sums given for its fashionable relative, the pedigree shorthorn. It must not be supposed that the non-registered shorthorn is not a pure-bred beast, for it often happened in the early days of shorthorn history that the owner of a pure-bred herd never thought anything about recording how his cattle were bred, and the record, if any, was only some memo, in an old pocket-book of date of service and name of bull. Afterwards, when ' the first shorthorn book (Coates') was started many breeders of pure cattle neglected to register, others grudged the entrance fee, and it was only in

> after years that the great benefits of a recorded pedigree iv a herd book was recognized. It was then, and only then, those who neglected registering in its commencement saw their error, and felt the loss, for during the shorthorn mania pedigree, many a beast, irrespective of quality, sold at a high figure. Amongst the old uncertified pedigree shorthorns were heavy milkers and splendid butter cows, which is a noted fact. All works on shorthorn cattle show this. They had grand constitutions, and were regular breeders. A few families of these having fortunately escaped being ruined by the caprice of fashion are yet to be found in some herds in all their early grandeur, for undoubtedly the shorthorn is a grand beast. Look at the symmetrical proportions of a Eoyal Agricultural Society's prize beast. Its great bulk in a comparatively small structure, the offal being light and the limbs small and fine. No other breed exhibits the same marvellous efficacy for in crossing and improving other breeds, giving them earlier maturity and greater weight. Would I could say the same of pedigree shorthorns as regards milk and butter. In these qualities, which are so essential to the success of the dairy, we find the great bulk of pure-bred shorthorns sadly deficient. Too much attention has been paid to symmetry and quality, heavy weights being sought far more than milk or butter; and judges at shows, even in the dairy class, give a preference to condition and quality instead of true dairy properties. If a combination of milk, butter, and beef could be secured in one beast, then we might congratulate ourselves on hoving won the fight. I doubt, however, if such success will ever be achieved, even by the most careful and skilful of breeders. A beefy cow cannot be a heavy milker and good for butter — one or other of these qualities must be sacrificed for the gain of the other. Milking shorthorns require rich and abundant food, or a poor result must be expected. An Ayrshire would give abundant milk on pasture, as regards quality and quantity, that would hardly support a shorthorn. Shorthorns are therefore ill adapted for other than level and well-grassed pastures, and on such would be the best cow for providing a moderate quantity of milk, and butter of good average quality.