FARM NOTES.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 10270, 13 February 1899, Page 2

FARM NOTES.

»l "Weekly Press and Referee."* The Queen's Action Regarding Tuberculosis. A private meeting Avas held at Marlborough House recently, under the presidency of H.R.H the Prince of Wales, to further the objects of the National Association for the Prevention of Consumption and other forms of tuberculosis. Addresses Avere given by Lord Salisbury, Sir. Wm. Broadbent and others. In the course of his remarks, the Prince of Wales said: "The way in which much can be done is to extinguish tubercle in cattle. I agree Avith Lord Salisbury that to try to pass a law which AA-ould force farmers to perform operations on their cattle AA-ould possibly be unpopular; but still, if people would sometimes sacrifice their cattle Avhich are suffering from tuberculosis, they Avould do more by good example in stamping out this complaint. I mention the matter because I have been informed that Her Majesty the Queen gave authority that thirty-six of her dairy cows at her home farm, which, on being tested by tuberculin were found tuberculous, were to be destroyed." The English Butter Market. In their mail circular dated December 16th Messrs W. Weddel and Co. report: —There have been duller markets this Aveek for all classes of Continental butters, and owing to the high prices ruling just now, buyers appear to bo leaguing themselves together so as to bring about a reduction. Nevertheless, the fact that trade is exceptionally good all over the country, must cause a good consumptive demand. Last year at this time the engineers' strike threw many thousands out of work, and there was a very large quantity of butter in cold store. Noav the cold stores are practically empty, and the imports of butter are short. For the eleven months ending November 30th this year, the imports are 600 tons less than for the same period last year, Avhile then the imports were nearly 10,000 tons in excess of the year before. These facts seem to indicate that there are substantial grounds for prices remaining firm" A week later the firm reported: "The quality and quantity of Danish butter is improving weekly, but complaints are made of Dutch falling off in quality. French is still very scarce, and Irish supplies have almost become non-existent. These gaps are being filled by Colonial sorts which Avill soon amount to one-third of the total imports, and thus become an important factor in the settlement of future values." How They Feed For Milk Production In Canada. The great difference between Britain and any of her colonies as regards dairy produce is not a question of coav agency in manufacturing fodder into milk, writes W. Brown, in the Live Stock Journal, but one of obtaining that fodder in sufficient quantity and variety throughout the particular season. The limitation of dairying in Britain is hardly a'known thing in these respects on an average of seasons, nor have the producers to study the whole problem of appropriate food for that purpose as Canada must rioAV do to maintain the high place she has achieved in cheese and butter. This is necessitated by the two \-ery distinct periods of the year—one of them being entirely house-feeding. Ever since 1870 Canada has boldly and thoroughly grappled with the most practical bearings of coav life in its economy, and as there has ne,ver been any drawback on the part of nature Avhen properly handled, in what to grow for both seasons, the question of maintenance all the year round only resolved itself into—what to give, in what form to give, and hoAv much to give the coav per day. Consequently Canada is to-day as systematic and scientific in her method of feeding for milk production as she had to be twenty years ago in asking for light through the chemistry of a tip-top cheddar, and now in the AAinter as Avell as the summer making of a piece of gilt-edged butter —the one and the same thing Avhen properly understood. So then, in anticipation of an influence wider than her OAvn area, Canada began at the beginning by teaching her yeomen and their sons what it was the'cow wanted in order to give the best milk, and also whether there was likely to be much —if any—difference between one class of cow and others. Along with this enquiry the country at the same time added to its knowledge of the possible influence of food both by chemical enquiry and specially by practical testing of variety of rations with cows of distinct types Avhich were obtained for the special purpose as likely to best influence those of her own natives called grades. Experiments Made And Their Result. The Canadians found by repeated observation throughout summer and winter, that the four standard dairy breeds had this position in milk quality : —Ayrshires gave 43.411b of butter from 1001b of cream; Holstein gave 30.871b of butter from 1001b of cream ; Jersey gave 52.171b of butter from 1001b of cream : and Shorthorn gave 47.801b of butter from 1001b of cream. This at once cleared the Avay for a business recognition of cream bulk not being a reliable thing as between the producer and the factory that purchased the milk"" or the cream. Here stood a remarkable circumstance —previously known, of course, but not definitely—that cows equal in age, time after calving, and precisely alike in treatment, should vary so much as from 4.37 to 21.30 per cent, in the

material from which butter is made : nor did tiie country omit to recognise that individuality may have had to do with the result; but"still there, above all other influences, no doubt, was that of breeding source—in other words the difference of the machine which manufactured the like food into butter-fat. Then came tests of feeding for milk by a process of gradual increase ef quantity and quality, and from these tests we gather that properly constituted cows respond immediately to scientific treatment, that a real milker never goes dry, that age does not limit, or rather does not always impair the milking qualities, that an unpedigreed, or j what is called a crossbred or grade cow is as dominant in her milking powers as others, that a heavy milker must be a heavy eater and that practical facts agree with science in cow feeding, and that there is clearly such a thing as training a cow in her milking properties. A Cow's Individuality. We cannot, maybe, change the individuality by feeding; if a cow will lay her food on her ribs, she will always do so no matter what may be done in training, and there are such individuals in all herds and breeds, but given individuality as a milker, and almost anything can be done with the cow in regard to quantity, quality, and endurance. Training for this has to be done before, and during the closing of the maturity from three to four years old ; it is then "that the system can be affected, and the functions intensified for the particular object in life. It is not proposed to change the individual character, but to make it more responsive and of a higher type. The early maturing, tflen, of heifers as milkers has been part of the Canadian system, and lengthened experience is proving it, but just only in those cases that have had the individuality; their individuality can only be ascertained by use and testing, but it may be risked in families when once thoroughly studied. Being secure of su,ch character, Canada is now proving it by raising the dormant qualities by incitement of food to make permanent the several channels of milk production by giving them work, and to keep them working, as properly they should never cease working—indeed they never do in the first-class cow. A Canadian- Winter Ration-. For ten years the Dominion gave wide and steady practical demonstration to milch cow selection and their rations, so that according to the nature of the bulky fodders by districts which, of course, regulates the cost of milk production, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Dairying has to date recommended the following as a standard guide per cow per day while,in the house : — Kouph fodders, such as hay, ensilage and straw 60 lb. Pulped roots, turnips, mangels, beet, and carrots 15 ~ Mixed grain .. .. .. ..8,, In this connection it is worth remembering that the cow—the best manufacturing sort —while on grass always consumes at the rate of 1101b per day. Trixg Park Milkixg Records. The milking records of the noted Tring Park herd of dairy cattle for the year ended September 24th last have been published, and they show that 29 Jersey cows that had bean in the herd all the year yielded 180,0701bs of milk, an average 'of 62091bs per cow. The cows of tne same breed that had been bought and heners that had come into milk during the year, to the number of 22, had produced 41,4821bs of milk, or an average of 18851b for each cow. Thirty-six red polled cows that had been in the herd all the year yielded 271,5931bs of milk, or an average of 75441b per cow. Fifteen red-polls that had been bought or had come into milk during the year yielded 58,9861b5, or an average of 39321bs per cow. One Jersey cow, having her fourth calf, had produced no less than 11,7231bs of milk in 349 days, an average of 33.991bs per day. The highest record by a red-poll was 12,2331bs of milk in 290 days, an average of 42.181bs per day. Pure Cultures v. Home-Made Starters. The members of the Stewartry Dairy Association, Scotland, are in no little perplexity as to what system they should now pursue in the making of Cheddars. Prior to 1897 the Canadian system of dispensing with a fermentation starter and developing acidity by means of heat had "held the field" till the plague of discolouration had become so serious that the said system had to be abandoned. The introduction at Kilmarnock Dairy School of the "new system entirely" of using as fermentation starters pure bac-, terial cultures, prepared by Professor Conn in America, caused a great proportion of Scottish Cheddar-makers to adopt that plan; and the investigations conducted by Professor Campbell for tne Stewartry Dairy Association into the use of pure cultures caused a good many others to follow suit, though in a tentative and experimental way. During the past two seasons the pure culture system has been fully tested by Scottish Cheddarmakers, and it is not too much to say that, after being Aveighed in the balance, this system has been found wanting. It was stated that there had never been more poor cheese in the Glasgow Bazaar than at the end of last year, and within one month at least 100 tons of cheese were sold in the Glasgow market at from 40s to 44s per cwt., which was characterised as so much waste. The Stewartry Cheddar-makers are not quite clear in their own minds, therefore, as to whether they will not require to change their system again, and go back to the old-fas-hioned plan of using the home-made starter. The expert, whom they engaged to conduct their own investigations, has spoken o\it with no uncertain voice on this point. In hie letter to the Association, Professor Campbell says: —"The results of the experiments of this year go to confirm what I suspected last year, namely, a home-made starter may yield equally good results to that produced by an artificially-prepared culture ; in fact a home-made starter, prepared in the manner I describe, comes in a very few days, if carefully handled, to be nothing more or less than a pure culture. .... I would strongly advise the members of the Association to proceed with their% schools in the usual way, using a home-made starter where it is necessary, and it is necessary where there is difficulty i n getting the curd sufficiently acid at the stage at which it is properly dry."