190 BOARD OP AGRICULTURE. 



My case is a little exceptional. My animals are breeding 

 animals. I do not expect to get very much profit in the way 

 of milk or butter. If I were running my cows for milk or but- 

 ter, as a great many farmers do, and wanted to produce a large 

 quantity of milk, I should perhaps feed them oftener and give 

 them more ; but, taking cows as they are ordinarily kept, we 

 get through with them about November or December, and then 

 the only point is to take care of them until they come in in the 

 spring, and I think they would do just as well if they had but 

 two meals a day, — giving them regularly what they want, and 

 letting them lie quiet the rest of the time. Then, if we are 

 careful about keeping them clean, and feeding them regularly, 

 not over-feeding, I do not believe we shall have any trouble 

 from garget. 



I apprehend that whatever may be said of the influence of 

 this Board, in other directions, — and it has been very extensive 

 in many ways, — it will be admitted that its efforts for the 

 improvement of the bovine species have been eminently suc- 

 cessful. If there is one thing that can be pointed to as having 

 vindicated the wisdom of those men who are called scientific 

 farmers, it is the increased care which, during the last fifteen 

 years, has been bestowed on the stock of the State. Any man 

 who has paid any attention to that subject, who will look back 

 during that period, will recollect that there were but very few 

 parts of the State where he could find thoroughbred animals. 

 Our ancestors may have had as good stock as was ever put 

 upon any country, — our native stock, a conglomeration of all 

 the breeds of Europe. Yet by want of proper care and proper 

 feeding and attention, and, above all, by the use of what were 

 called scrub bulls, we had so reduced the quality of our stock, 

 that it had become decidedly inferior. But some gentlemen took 

 hold of that matter, and imported thoroughbred male animals, 

 and from that time to this, our stock has been steadily improving 

 in quality ; and although it is said statistics show that the num- 

 ber of animals is not so large as it was some years ago, yet that 

 reduction in quantity is made up by the improvement in quality ; 

 we have such far superior animals that we do not want so many 

 of them. Farmers in my region, who formerly found it nec- 

 essary to keep a dozen or fifteen animals for the production of 

 the milk and butter they wanted, now get along with seven or 



