202 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



an animal of good constitution — has been bred for two years 

 to her sou, which, I may say, is also an animal of extra- 

 ordinary vigor, and has failed to produce calves that lived. 

 She brought two calves, one of which died within a few days 

 after its birth. The second one was dropped in the pasture ; 

 he was extremely active when we found him, and it was not 

 until we had him at home a couple of days that we found he 

 was stone-blind, and when he was about three weeks old, he 

 died of his own accord, without any assistance on our part. 



I want to say a word in regard to the selection of pigs for 

 breeders. I attach no importance to the suggestion that we 

 should choose the pig that sucks the hind teat. But I have 

 noticed that there is rather a tendency among the stronger 

 pigs to get forward ; and inasmuch as we always select the 

 strongest pig, I am reasonably certain that we select one of 

 the pigs that sucks a forward teat ; especially is that the case 

 with the Chester Whites, and we veiy seldom have a soav that 

 produces less than thirteen. I infer from that, that the theory 

 of the old lady, that a sow pig that sucks one of the forward 

 teats will not produce many pigs herself, does not prevail in 

 all cases. 



Mr. Thatcher. I would like to ask Mr. Harris if he has 

 ever experienced any trouble, in feeding barley-sprouts to 

 cows, from the excitement of their nervous system? 



Mr. Harris. I have never fed them very much to cows, 

 only for about two months, and have never seen any ill effects 

 from them at all. 



Mr. Thatcher. The reason I ask the question is, that 

 one of my neighbors, who produces milk for the New York 

 market, has been successful in that line for four or five years, 

 until last year, when, not having all the feed he wanted for 

 his cows, he bought some of these sprouts. After feeding 

 them some months upon these sprouts, his cows became nerv- 

 ous, and were, apparently, running down. A committee of 

 our farmer's club was appointed to visit the stock of its mem- 

 bers and report upon them. I visited this neighbor's farm 

 and examined his stock while he was feeding these sprouts, 

 and at that time the cows had begun to show a degree of 

 excitement which was causing him a great deal of trouble. 

 Cows that had been gentle before, and always stood perfectly 



