46 BRITISH DAIRYING. 



the butcher, it would be false policy to let them lose their 

 " calf-flesh," as it is termed : that is, these young animals ought 

 to be kept steadily and rapidly progressing toward obesity from 

 their birth. And when female calves are reared for the dairy 

 herd, it is also advisable to keep them steadily progressing, but 

 not so rapidly as in the other case. There is and can be no 

 advantage whatever deserving the name in letting young store 

 animals down into the lean, half-starved, unprogressive con- 

 dition which is far too common in the land. The true and 

 sound policy is to keep them thriving all the time, rapidly 

 when they are for the butcher, and slowly when they are for 

 the herd. 



Purchasing Cows. 



A new beginner will, as a rule, be well advised to buy roomy, 

 healthy, promising young cows of the district in which he 

 decides to settle, providing they are of a good sort. It is 

 understood that cattle bred in the district, if of a good sort, 

 will do quite as well as, if not better than, cattle of equal merit 

 coming from a distance. There are, however, plenty of cases 

 where it is advisable to fetch them from a distance, from sound 

 land and a bracing climate. To buy them in high condition 

 and at high prices is seldom a wise thing to do ; for he should 

 aim to make condition, not buy it ; and this he will do success- 

 fully enough if the cattle come from land not so good as his 

 own. In this way he may, at a moderate cost, lay down the 

 foundation of a herd which, in a few years' time, ought to be 

 greatly improved. This improvement will be brought about 

 by the use of superior bulls and by careful management. To 

 do this and do it well ought to be not only profitable but 

 deeply interesting ; for what greater pleasure can a dairy farmer 

 have in his business than that of seeing his herd obviously 

 improve on his hands year after year ? But if he buys first- 

 class cows to begin with, he deprives himself of this one great 

 interest and pleasure. In any case, it is a blunder to buy low- 

 class cattle, and to go on breeding such, for they are of no 

 account when bred ; moreover, it is just as easy to breed good 



