178 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



pollen from the new variety will come onto the old and stim- 

 ulate it to greater production. I am rather inclined to think, 

 Mr. Gold, that there is something in what you have said 

 with regard to animals, — that the first cross is apt to stim- 

 ulate production sometimes more than would appear on 

 either side of the house, in the dam or the sire. 



Now, another point, and then I am through with what Mr. 

 Gold has said. It is quite possible that in all your eftbrts 

 you have not studied the law of the dairy calf; that some- 

 body produced those animals, and produced them fairly well ; 

 then you took them, and as soon as you began to raise calves 

 you broke the law of the dairy calf, and the result was, that 

 the longer you continued the cross the poorer your animals 

 became. That often happens. 



Secretary Gold. I would say that my system of breeding 

 was not quite so wild as you might consider it, because the 

 conditions varied through all this period very much. AVhen 

 we were seeking to breed Shorthorns, beef was a very impor- 

 tant production ; very soon Devon steers were in demand, and 

 Devons suited the market at that time ; then came shipping 

 milk to New York, and the Avrshire came in to meet that 

 demand and call ; and now, making cream for a creamery, 

 we demand still a different class of cattle ; and this is what 

 has led me largely to pursue this course. There are few 

 farmers who can speak from an experience of fifty years, 

 keeping their own stock straight along, as I can ; but these 

 different conditions induced me to look for different classes 

 of animals. 



Mr. Appleton. I feel sometimes a little bad, as if I 

 pitied the United States, and for this reason. We have been 

 talking here to-day about the cattle on our farms as Jerseys, 

 Ayrshires, Holsteins, and so on. I would like to ask the 

 professor, if we continue the system of breeding of which he 

 speaks, when he thinks we can S})cak of " American cattle " 

 or " United States cattle " ? As you referred to sheep in that 

 same way, why should we not in time have something we 

 can call our own? 



Professor Rohekts. I think we will. I have advocated 

 this for a year or two, and have taken hold of it, and you 

 are going to take hold of it. More than one man in this 



