114 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



cow. He will, if he follows it long enough, get it up, not to 

 perfection, but to a great improvement over what we have 

 now. Then you will have as good a butter Cow as you have 

 any reason to expect in this world. Then somebody is going 

 to take that butter cow, and breed from her, until you get, 

 not only that good butter cow, but a good cheese cow. I 

 believe that can be done. You can make the butter cow a 

 very good one, and then you can breed her so that she will 

 be a good cheese cow. When }-ou have that, then there is 

 one step farther. I have no doubt that is going to be done ; 

 but it will not be done, probably, until we are all past 

 using it. We never shall see it ; but there is going to be a 

 cow bred that will not only be a good butter and cheese cow, 

 but a good beef cow. That we are going to have that cow 

 some time in the future, I have no doubt. Our posterity 

 will see it, but we never shall. We have seen the perfect 

 cow pictured out here ; but we never expect to realize any 

 thing except the picture. No one can describe here the 

 perfect cow. I may have some ideas in my mind as to what 

 a perfect cow should be ; but, if you asked me to describe 

 her, I should be as dumb, probably, as these other gentlemen 

 were when you asked them. She may be, and probably will 

 be, a great deal better than any conception that anybody 

 forms in his mind at the present time. Every thing is in a 

 state of improvement, the dairy cow among the rest ; and, 

 although I am not sanguine enough to believe that we are- 

 going to reach perfection, I believe that we shall make a 

 great improvement in this direction. 



Mr. Ely (of Holyoke). I would like to ask Mr. Sessions 

 how many pounds of butter his best cows will produce in a 

 year. 



Mr. Sessions. I am unable to answer that question. I 

 hope to be able, when spring comes, to tell how much they 

 have made the past year. I have tried experiments by the 

 week or month occasionally; but such experiments prove 

 very little. I think a good cow ought to make at least three 

 hundred pounds of butter a year. 



Mr. Roberts (of Pittsfield). I have had some experi- 

 ence in breeding and handling cattle, and making milk and 

 butter ; but I am a working-man, and not a talker. I should 

 be pleased to answer any question that may be asked, as far 



