SELECTION OF A BREED 59 



known fact that among the cattle and horses the 

 strongest takes the herd and remains at its head until 

 a stronger conquers him. 



In thus closely inbreeding, care should be used. 

 The direct result is concentration of the qualities of 

 the sire, bad as well as good. If the sire be possessed 

 of a marked weakness in any direction, this quality 

 is likely to appear in the offspring in an increased 

 degree. When found objectionable, inbreeding should 

 be stopped, and another bull selected possessing as 

 far as possible the same breed characteristics, and the 

 breeding continued on the same line. This is called 

 breeding in line, arid is the only safe manner in which 

 to develop a herd. By discarding the poorest and 

 selecting the best, by the time fifteen-sixteenths 

 bloods are obtained the owner will have a herd which 

 will serve his purpose quite as well as full bloods. 



Except as a matter of necessity, no cow that has 

 been in milk should be purchased unless the buyer 

 has a thorough personal knowledge of her. Intelli- 

 gent dairymen do not part with their best cows for a 

 price below what they regard them to be worth. 

 They know the animals' qualities, peculiarities, faults, 

 and characteristics. They know whether an animal is 

 nervous, a poor feeder, uncertain, likely to dry off 

 too easily, and all the other conditions affecting her 

 value. If the buyer does not know these things he is 

 at a disadvantage. If, however, he can learn the 

 qualities of the dam and the sire and their ancestors 

 he has a better knowledge of the conformation of the 

 dairy cow than the man from whom he is buying; he 

 has in the purchase of heifers that have never been in 

 milk at least an equal footing with the man from 



