THOMAS BATES AND THE DUCHESSES. 77 



of the lease. Not satisfied with this sort of a 

 situation he bought a portion (1,000 acres) of 

 the manor of Kirklevington, near Yarm, in 

 Yorkshire, for 30,000, of which 20,000 was 

 paid in cash. This property, then as now, pre- 

 sented no very nattering prospect to a good 

 farmer. The land is a cold clay, fairly good for 

 grass, but requiring careful management for 

 tillage. 



Mr. Bates always had regard for the milking 

 trait in his cattle, and conducted extended ex- 

 periments to determine the relation between 

 quantity and quality of milk and butter. It is 

 related that the cow Duchess, by Daisy Bull, 

 "gave 'on grass alone without other food in the 

 summer of 1807 at Halton fourteen quarts of 

 milk twice a day. Each quart of milk, when 

 set up and churned separately, yielded one and 

 one-half ounces of butter or forty-two ounces 

 a day. The butter was made up for the New- 

 castle market in ten and one-half-ounce pack- 

 ages, which were sold at one shilling each. The 

 skim-milk was bought by the laborers at a penny 

 a quart, and allowing two shillings for the sub- 

 traction of the cream this made 14s. 4d. a week. 

 Altogther, therefore, the cow brought in more 

 than two guineas a week,'' He insisted that 

 many breeders were making a mistake in dis- 

 regarding the dairy qualities of their cattle,* a 



* "On a certain occasion Mason of Chilton called to breakfast at Halton 

 Barbara Giles, the housekeeper, had just put the week's butter in readiness 



