No. 4.] THE PKOFITABLE DAIRY COW. 79 



due to breeding consistently and persistently to that pur})ose. 

 A suitable bull in type and breeding will yield results of no 

 uncertain character, if mated to cows approaching the deep- 

 bodied, fuU-uddered dairy type. I recently read an article 

 by Hark Conistock on improving the dairy cow, in which he 

 expressed some truths that have had much application in the 

 improvement of the Rockdale herd. He says : 'According 

 to the statistics of the Department of Agriculture, the aver- 

 age dairy cow of the country gives 130 pounds of butter a 

 year ; in the dair}' demonstration now in progress on the 

 World's Fair grounds at St. Louis, the entire Jersey team of 

 25 cows has averaged more than that in GO days. Admitting 

 that better care and 1)etter feed have to do with the ques- 

 tion, there yet remains a very wide margin, that can only 

 be credited to the functional capacity of the cows l)red in 

 the bone, ^^'hen farmers began to select their bulls from 

 pure-bred herds, possessing these great dairy values, letting 

 the beef question and all side issues take care of themselves, 

 they began to establish improved machinery in the shape of 

 dairy cows. Nearly 12,000,000 cows are devoted to butter 

 making in the United States, and the product in round num- 

 bers is 1,.') 00, 000, 000 pounds of butter, worth, at 18 cents 

 a pound, $270,000,000. Suppose that each of these cows 

 could produce a heifer calf by a high-class Jersey bull, and 

 the improvement in butter capacity for the new generation 

 was even as little as 5 per cent, which would be an exceed- 

 ingly small estimate, the increased butter output for a single 

 year, assuming that the [)rico was not lowered, would be 

 worth $13,500,000, — a net profit over present income due 

 solely to the use of improved cow machine r3\' This im- 

 proved cow machinery referred to by Hark Comstock is due 

 to the patient and intelligent efforts of a comparatively few 

 breeders, who have developed individuals and families of 

 great productive ca])acity, whereb}^ the mass of breeders 

 may improve their herds. It is due to the work of such 

 men that the imjn-ovement of the Rockdale herd has been 

 possible in so short a time. To them American stockmen 

 owe a deep debt of gratitude. If our herds are not produc- 

 tive and i)rofitable, it is due to neglecting the opportunities 



