120 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



through the year 1872 was twenty-five pounds, — perhaps a 

 trifle over. 



My next move was to take hold of a herd of grade Ayrshires 

 and grade Jerse}*s ; or, rather, they were supposed to be pure- 

 bred Jerseys and pure-bred Ayrshires, and the crosses of 

 each. When I became interested in the herds, and under- 

 took to ferret out their pedigrees, I could not find any pedi- 

 grees : so I might as well call them grades here. There were 

 s^me cross-bred animals that were half Jerseys and half Ayr- 

 shires. I wish I had my figures here, so that I could give 

 you my first experience at Maplehurst, which was with this 

 herd. There were some forty-four animals in the herd when 

 I took charge of it. I think that the amount of milk it took 

 to make a pound of butter during 1873 was about twenty- 

 four pounds. In 1874 I prevailed upon the proprietor to 

 sell out his herds that we could not find pedigrees for, and 

 get a herd of pure-bred Jerseys. We did so, and started 

 with a small herd of pure-bred Jerseys in the spring of 1875. 

 They were mostly young animals. The amount of milk 

 required for a pound of butter has varied from eighteen to 

 twenty-one pounds in this herd of Jerseys. I am speaking 

 now of thorough-bred Jersey milk. 



One of the best cows I ever owned, or ever had any thing 

 to do with, was a Devon. I considered that she was the best 

 cow I ever handled until I took hold of this Swiss cow. I 

 know she would make fourteen pounds of butter a week, 

 week in and week out, for two or three months at a time. 

 She had good feed to do it. 



My first experience with Devons was rather discouraging. 

 I went to an auction, and saw two Devon cows that filled my 

 eye ; and I bought them, paying a large price. One proved 

 to be troubled with the garget, and the other proved to be a 

 hard milker. I kept them a year and a half, and finally 

 worked them into beef. My next experience with the 

 Devon was with a grade cow that I came across near Provi- 

 dence. She suited my eye, and I bought her. She proved 

 to be a remarkably good cow. I kept her between two and 

 three years, and sold her when I left New Hampshire. Com- 

 mon cows sold at the same sale for from eighteen to twenty- 

 two dollars ; but she brought eighty-five dollars, wholly on 

 her reputation. I kept track of her as long as she lived, and 

 she was a good cow as long as she was in use. 



