76 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



A fifth, who living nearer a milk market, sells his milk at 12 cts. 

 per gallon at the door, estimated the yield as follows : 



During April and May, 10 qts. per day, GO days, . . 600 



June and July, 13 " " . . . 780 



August and Sept., 9 " " . . . 510 



October and Nov., 9 " " . . , 540 



December and Jan., 6 " " . . . 360 



705 gallons, ..... 2,820 



It is proper to add that the last named farmer is in the habit of i 

 feeding pretty liberally roots and sometimes meal to his cows in ^ 

 autumn and winter to increase the flow of milk. 



The average of these estimates is a little over seven hundred ^ 

 gallons of milk, supposed to be yielded by a good productive cow, j 

 well fed, during twelve months. v 



I have no doubt there are many cows in the State which yield 

 this amount, but I believe there are more which yield considerably j 

 less ; and what wonder is it if such be the case, when we reflect , 

 that for many years so little attention has been j^ciid to milHng quali- j 

 ties in the breeding of our stock ? The fact is unquestionable that ^, 

 they have been sadly neglected, and the effect of such neglect has 

 been greatly detrimental. 



Although I see no propriety, in an attempt to estimate the 

 profit or income which may be gained from keeping cows, in taking 

 the yield of an unproductive one as a basis for our calculations, 

 yet in order that our attempted comparison may be fairly within, 

 rather than beyond the fact, let us, for this purpose, strike off no 

 less than two-sevenths, and call the yield of a cow for twelve 

 months five hundred gallons only, instead of seven hundred, as 

 estimated by practical, observing, intelligent farmers with whom I 

 conversed upon their own premises, with every facility for knowing 

 the facts, and with no inducement whatever to over-state or to 

 misrepresent them. 



It was further estimated by all the above persons that a cow 

 could be well supported during twelve months upon two-thirds the 

 food required by the young animal from its birth up to the age 

 named, allowing, of course, an equivalent of forage to the cow, in 

 place of the milk consumed by the calf. Assuming the correctness 

 of this estimate, we might have the yield of a cow and a half for a 

 year, or seven hundred and fifty gallons of milk as the product 

 obtained from the food required to rear an animal up to two and a 

 half years old. If we estimate the yield of this amount of milk in 



