Jerseys

Southland Times, Issue 10197, 1 July 1889, Page 4

Jerseys

+_ Probably no other breed of cattle hM to rapidly risen in public estimation at the Jerseys, nor has the improvement in the animali themselves been less marked, for most competent judges will endorse tke opinion tbat cowi which twenty years ago took high placet, would now be literally nowkere at any o£ our leading shows. Of the increased popularity of the breed, no itroager evidence it needed than a comparison ofe the number of exhibits in the present day with those of fifteen or twenty years ago ; while then they were numbered by tens, we now count them by hundreds. Although associated in name with the Island of Jersey, the origin q£ the breed is lost in obscurity, but there appears good ground for the assumption that it had its rise on the adjacent coast of Brittany. For. generations however, Jersey has been its home, and very great care has been taken by the islanders to maintain its purity. With this object an Act was passed as early as. 1763, prohibiting the^importation of cattle from France; in 1749 another Act, more stringent than the first, came into force, under which any person convicted of introducing into the Island any cow heifer,c»lf, or bull from France wassubjcct to a fiae of £200, and by a subiequent Act, passed in 18:6, with a view to 'preserve the drigfntl breed from all admixture,' this fine was increased to £1000. /, Perhaps the earliest record extant of cattle imported tb England is that of twelve cows and heifers and t*o bulls brougM over in 1747 for the "Duke of Richmond at an average cost of £l 9s per head. In 1811 twenty-three cows and heifers and a bull were brought over for Lord Braybrooke's herd at Audley End, at a cost of nearly £19 each j and it is believed these two herds have been kept pure ever since. About this time through the agency of Mr Michael Fowler, an increased amount of interest was excited in the breed, which has to this day been fostered by his three sons, all of whom still import animals from the island, About 1821 MrDauncey, of Horwood,com. menced a herd which, forty-two years later, wben sold by auction, attracted a large company of noblemen and gentlemen from all parts of the country ; and at this sale was laid the foundation of many other herds. At Lattmer, Whaddon, Hockliffe, and other places herds were founded ma dj years ago, and a decided impetus wa* given co Jersey breeding by the establishment, and some years later by the dispersion of the Hargrave Part herd, in connection with which, bringing to bear upon the task of selecting and blending the various strains of blood keen enterprise and sound judgment, Mr G-ilbey achieved a success which has probably not since been equalled in this particular lioe. The late Mr Cardus, of Southampton, Mr Simpson, of Baigate, and other*, have continued what Mr Gilbey so ably commenced, and at the present time the names of 'over a thousand breeders and owners are registered, many of whom possess first-class herds. It is now a pretty well established fact that the particular characteristic of the Jersey cow is the exceeding richness of her milk, a peculiarity in which she excels all other breeds ; the outward indications of this quality being the rich orange colour of the ears and skin generally, fineness and yellow wavy appearance of the horns and fine mellow texture of the hide. Since the establishment of the English Jersey Cattle Society, the breed has come into considerable greater prominence, and the publication of dairy records in the Herd Book has furnished an amount of valuable information which was previously unattainable. Taking these published records en masse, it is not difficult to estimate the true, or at least approximate, dairy value of the Jersey cow; In attempting this, of course all sensational records must be entirely cast aside, and those results only be dealt with which are arrived »t under the ordinary circumstances of every day life and management ; the mere fact that a cow may, under high pressure, be madeto yield 16 lb or 17 lb of butter a week for a limited period, is simply confusing the issue, and about as much to the point as comparing grape cultivation under glass with the same in the open air. Judging from the data supplied, it is not too much to say that a fairly good Jersey cow may be expected to furnish 300 lb of butter, and a calf , beiiles some 400 gallons of skim-milk every year, from the time phe drops her first calf, probably at the age of two years, until she is ten or twelve years old ; and this at a comparatively less cost for food than a cow of any other breed. Granting that at the end of her career she may be worth for beef considerably less than Snort horn, still calculating the return from the dates of birth until they are finally disposed of, the balance will be found to be considerably in favour of the former.