LECTURES AND ESSAYS EEAD AT INSTITUTES. 291 



stnaller spots, having large frames, with the appearance of vigorous constitu- 

 tions, having straight back, well developed belly, strongly formed legs, with 

 smooth joints, soft and silky hair, upon a mellow handling, movable skin; 

 the cows being possessed of broad and drooping udder, Avell formed teats, the 

 milk and blood vessels on the belly and about the udder broad and vigorous ; 

 general weight of cows about 1,500 pounds, males, of course, being much 

 heavier. I have in my possession at this time a fine male, registered in the 

 herd book (vol. 4, No. 568) Rarus, and purchased of 1. D. Jackson, St. 

 Joseph, county, Indiana, which at two years old weighed 1,782 pounds, and 

 now at the age of three years and three months, in good showing, will, I think, 

 weigh 2,300 pounds. It is claimed by some that the Holsteins as milkers, are 

 rivaled by the Ayrshire, as butter makers by the Jerseys, as beef producers 

 by the Short-horns, Herefords, and Galloways, and as working cattle by the 

 Devous. "Well, what of it? Which of the breeds just mentioned but the 

 Holsteins possesses all of the qualities here listed — milkers, butter and cheese 

 makers, meat producers, and working cattle, in any eminent degree? 



Let us first compare the Jerseys, which if they make no more butter than 

 the Holsteins, it is claimed the flavor is much richer and finer. AV^ho among us 

 have tastes educated to that point that we could tell the difference without / 

 being told? I say, without hesitation, there is not one, and as nature fixes up 

 things to suit herself, we may reasonably conclude that half the issue 

 will be males, which turned off for beef at two years old, will not be large 

 enough to afford any profit; the same, or nearly the same statement 

 will apply to the Ayrshire. While the Short-horns, Herefords, and 

 Galloways possess two of the qualities to be desired by the general farmer 

 — that of beef and working cattle — they are not preeminent for milk, butter, 

 •or cheese. Some of the families of Short-horns, bred for beef and beauty, 

 giving no milk at all, or at most, not enough to raise their own offspring, and 

 it is just this uncertainty about milk that unfits the Short-horns for a dairy 

 breed, some being almost unrivaled for milk, others entirely worthless. 



The first importation of Holsteins to this country, of which I can find any 

 authentic record, was made by the West India Company, in 1625; subsequent 

 importations by the Dutch settlers in the State of New York ; by Consul Jar- 

 vis, of Vermont, in 1810. In 1852 W. W. Chenery made his first importa- 

 tion, and several more importations up to 1861. 



The Holstein Breeders' Association was formed, and the first volume of the 

 herd-book published in 1872, and its pages recorded 61 males and 63 females, 

 which comprised nearly all the full bloods in the United States. The second 

 volume was published in 1875, and showed 171 males and 234 females, and so 

 on ; the numbers have steadily increased until the fourth volume, published iu 

 1879, shows 377 males and 811 females. 



This breed has been thoroughly tested in nearly all parts of this country, 

 from the wooded hills of Maine to the rich pastures of California's fertile 

 vales, and south to the sunny slopes of Virginia, and have given, I believe, 

 unqualified satisfaction. One very important characteristic in the Holstein 

 cow is her tendency to continue long in milk with remarkable steadiness and 

 uniformity. 



There are many good cows of other breeds that give a large yield of milk 

 for a few months, then fall off rapidly and go dry for perhaps three or four 

 months. Not so with the Holstein. 



Crown Princess, the property of G. S. Miller, New York, was in milk 1,821 

 days, and yielded a daily average of 33.56 pounds, that is 61,112 pounds dur- 



