HOLSTEIN-FRIESIAN CATTLE. 1 5o 



doing at the pail and churn. What Hollander ever dreamed of one 

 of his cows givino; 30,000 pounds of milk in a year? He kept no 

 record except for a few days, perhaps. He knew about the 80, 90, 

 100-pounds business, but that was as far as he cared to go. Then, 

 too, the Americans were the first to establish the herd book. This 

 forced the Hollanders to earl}' copy the example. Improvements 

 have been made from time to time until to-day only those cattle that 

 are black and white in color, recorded in Holland and imported by 

 a member of the Holstein-Friesian Association of America can be 

 recorded upon our books. I have seen recorded cattle in good and 

 regular standing that produced off-colored calves. This is often a 

 great surprise and always a great annoyance to breeders. Such 

 animals, being of very little value to breeders, should be destroyed. 

 But to the man who is thoroughly acquainted with affairs in Holland 

 it simply tells him that some ancestor back several generations was 

 of some other color than black and white. Had there always been 

 herd books in Holland similar to those now existing in this country 

 respecting color there would be little or no trouble with off-colored 

 offspring here. Fortunately this trouble is rare, and there will be 

 less and less of it in years to come. 



For sevi ral reasons the breed, although exceedingly popular, is 

 not so universall}' favored to-day as it might otherwise have been. 

 When the record of the famous cow Aaggie, of 18.00 pounds of 

 milk in one year, was announced to the world all eyes were turned in 

 the direction of the source from whence such a cow could come. 

 Speculators at once commenced importing, and kept it up until 

 1884. when a ver}' large number ol cattle were brought to our 

 shores. So alarmed became our association for the reputation of 

 the cattle and for the protection of the American breeder that in 

 March, 1885, greater restrictions were put upon importations. But 

 much mischief had been done. Many inferior animals had been 

 scattered broadcast over the land, and as men are apt to jump at 

 conclusions, one poor one was enough to condemn the whole breed. 

 It is perhaps safe to say that there is as wide a difference in the 

 milk and butter powers of Holstein-Friesians as there is between 

 the individual powers of all breeds combined. 



Speaking of color I will say that all that our association requires 



is that the cattle shall be black and white. But the prevailing taste 



would seem to require black with star (sometimes a strip) hand over 



shoulders, one over hips, legs, bell}' and two-thirds of tail white. We 



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