BREEDS OF DAIRY CATTLE 139 



immediate control and personal direction of the work, must have a 

 natural fondness for animals, prompting to generous and kind treat- 

 ment, as well as good judgment in selection, breeding, and care. It is 

 not sufficient that he should be a horseman, or fond of cattle in gen- 

 eral; for best results he should have a special liking for the dairy 

 cow, over and above all other animals. Second, the cattle must be 

 good of their kind and of a variety suited to the work. They must 

 be truly dairy cattle. Third, the farm should be specially adapted to 

 the branch of husbandry in view. A good dairy farm is pretty cer- 

 tain to be good for general farming, but many good farms in general 

 are not suited to dairying. The dairy farm should be carefully 

 selected, all the requirements of the business being well considered. 

 Yet many disadvantages so far as the farm is concerned may be 

 successfully overcome by the skillful dairyman, and dairying in 

 some form is profitably conducted without any farm, so that this 

 condition, important as it is, can not be regarded as essential. Fourth, 

 it is well to study the character of the accessible markets and the 

 means of communication; location and the line of dairying to be 

 followed may be largely controlled by the markets. The first and 

 second of the above qualifications remain as the essential factors 

 the owner and the cow. 



Like almost all other occupations at the present day, dairying 

 has become divided into several distinct and special lines. These 

 differ mainly as to the form of product and the manner of disposing 

 of it. Milk or cream may be produced for delivery to consumers, 

 and this delivery may be direct or indirect. The same products may 

 be delivered to a factory for manufacture into butter or cheese, or 

 the milk product of the herd may be worked up at home and there 

 converted into butter or cheese. The prudent dairyman should first 

 consider which line of business he will pursue. In so doing he must 

 have regard for all his circumstances the location, markets, farm, 

 buildings, water and ice supply, the labor at his command and his 

 own preference, and prospects for profit. Upon his decision as to 

 the particular kind of dairying to be followed should depend the 

 character and composition of his herd of cattle. 



Cattle for the Dairy. Dairymen are divided in opinion as to 

 the kind of cow which is most profitable. Some prefer a "general- 

 purpose cow," which is a member of a specially developed milk-pro- 

 ducing family from one of the beef breeds, or grades of such stock. 

 An animal is thus secured which has a large frame, is easily kept in 

 good flesh, and fattens soon when not milking heavily; such an one 

 also has large calves, profitable for veal or for growing as steers. 

 Even if such animals are not so productive while in the dairy, their 

 meat-making proclivities may make up for it. There are two or 

 three of the established breeds of cattle which claim to possess com- 

 bined qualities for meat and milk. On the other hand, many dairy- 

 men prefer cattle of the distinct class or type especially adapted to 

 dairy purposes alone. This class includes various families and breeds, 

 all having the marked characteristics which distinguish the milk 

 producer. Owners of such cows expect them to be so profitable aa 



