STATE REPORTS OF AGRICULTURE. 491 
as dying of murrain are killed by giving them too much salt, particu- 
larly young animals. 
In discussing the subject of dairy stock, Dr. Loring stated that there 
were 150,000 cows in the State, and that nearly $2,000,000 worth of 
milk is annually sold; yet with plenty of good pasture and an increased 
demand for dairy products, there had been but a slight increase in the 
number of cows for ten years, which indicated that the most systematic 
and economical system of producing milk, butter, and cheese has not 
yet been attained. Sufficient care is not exercised in selecting the cows. 
For the climate of the Northern States a medium-sized cow is needed ; 
not too large, too coarse, too thin, nor too fine; but compact, firmly set 
upon her legs, with a lively countenance, and a good straight back. In 
fine, an animal with a clean, well-shaped head, a luxurious mouth, loose 
shoulder, straight quarter, broad back, and great depth of carcass, the 
tail long and the rump level. There should be an increase of the 
number of cows; 300,000 could be sustained in Massachusetts with 
profit; the amount of manure would be doubled, and tlie fields thus 
“made to smile with increased fertility. He considers the feeding of 
oleaginous food, as cotten-seed, injurious to dairy cows. In the course 
of three years he has lost thirty out of fifty Ayrshire cows. He said: 
Their udders are made for work, and they are not to be broken down by a trifle. 
But I found the udders of those cows fed on cotton-seed meal had all got out of condi- 
tion. One teat would go, then another, and at last Thad cows with two teats, cows 
with one teat, and the value of my herd was gone. They lost their appetite, and it 
wns evident that they had been fed on something that did not agree with them, and 
that their lacteal system had been ruined. This little delicate organism had been in- 
flamed, was broken up, and was good for nothing. I supposed it was the cotton-seed 
meal, * * * The nearer you can get to pasture grass for feeding dairy cows, the 
better. Good water, good light, early-cut hay, roots, and shorts are sufficient for any 
cow. It is the cheapest food you can get. 
The Jersey cattle, (known for many years as Alderneys, as vessels 
trading at the Channel Islands usually touch at Alderney last, and 
being reported as from that island, the cows taken on board, though 
really from the Isle of Jersey, are called Alderneys,) are becoming great 
favorites as dairy stock. In the eastern part of the State are many 
herds of the finest animals of this breed. 
Colonel Wilder, in his address on the culture of fruits, urges more 
careful attention to the requirements of different varieties to different 
soils and treatment. Some fruits are suited to one locality, some to 
another, and a very few to a great variety of latitudes. Upon the 
observation and study of these facts depends much of success in fruit 
culture. Some varieties are adapted to a wide extent of territory, as 
the Bartlett pear and the Red Astrachan apple, which succeed through- 
eut our country. The thinning of the apple, pear, peach, plum, and 
grape crop is indispensable for the production of large, fair, and valuable 
fruits. Such fruits command a higher price and a more ready sale than 
those not thinned. By thinning our fruit we also prevent the exhaustion 
of the tree and keep up a regular succession of good fruit. The over- 
bearing of a fruit tree one year almost always occasions barrenness the 
next. In gathering apples they should be packed when perfectly dry, 
not bruised nor chafed. The waxy or greasy secretion observed on 
fruits is a natural provision for the protection of the skin from the effects 
of moisture and air, and should not be removed even by wiping, for 
when the skin is deprived of this protection, or is broken by pressure, 
the oxygen of the air comes in contact with the juices of the fruit and 
fermentation and decay ensue. Colonel Wilder says: 
Summer and early fall pears should be harvested as soon as they commence ripening 
on the tree, and be placed in a dark, cool room until ready for use. This process serves 
