XSXiiJX^ 



CONDUCTED BY ISAAC HILL. 



Tr^J,^^,^ „„„ i,^„oR i:. THE ««TH .VRB THE CHOSEN FEDFLE OF GoD, V^HOil EKEAiTS HE HA3 Mi.DE HU fECULiyLa DEroaiTE FOR .lUBaT^IlTlAL AND OENUINE .IKTDi;.''-^tg»-»C;.. 



VOLUME VI. 



CONCORD, N.H. JANUARY 81, 1844. 



NUMBER 1. 



THE FAUMER'S MOB.rHI.Y VISITOR, 



FUELISIIEU BV 



ISAAC HILL, & SONS, 



ISSUED ON THE LAST DAT OP EVERT MO?)TH, 



At No. 3, Hill's Brick Block. 



Jt5-Gc:.KnAi. A,)Er.Ts.-B. Coo», Kecne, N H. ; Thomas 

 K.'lUM.To«, VVasln.,,to>, U.ly, D. C. ; John »'';■'". ^ash- 

 Ingion SI. Boston, Mass.; Charles \VAREE^, Drinley Kow, 

 VVorcestiT, mass. 



TERMS.— To single subscribers, FiriiJ Ccitt- Tin ver 

 cent, will be allowed to the persoa who shall scntl more in.in 

 one subscrihL-r. Twelve copies will he sent for the ailvance 

 iwncnt u{ Five Dollars ; twenty five copies for Tm UaUara, 

 Biity copies for TwcMtj DulUrs. The payment m every case to 

 be liiade in advance. r ^z. rt f tij^ *«. 



OrrMonctl ami subscriptions, by a reguldUon 0} we fosl jiiasier 

 General, miy 11. M cases be rm-.Ued by the Post Mister, free of 



'"ft^.All eentlemcn who have heretofore acted as Agents are 

 reqlTesled to continue their Agency. Old subscribers who 

 come under the new terms, will please notify us_ot the nara.-s 

 already on our books. 



considered (in Englaiul) indispensahly mcessnry to 1 per, says "one object with cattle is simply tiiat of 



For the Farmer's Monthly Visitor. 

 Imported Cattle. 



Mr. Editor: — In llie Septeinber number of 

 the last veai'.s Visitor aiipeared some remarlis, 

 sifjiied "New Hnnipsliiie," on our own breeds of 

 cattle. They were replete with good sense and 

 obvious and unansw«riihle truth. S|)eaking of 

 the imported cattle known by the name of" Im- 

 proved Sliort Horns" ihe writer says — "Encour- 

 BgpQ by extravagant recoiyniendutions, excite- 



.iiDeiit keeps up care and attention which tend 

 gtill to sustain the acquired reputation." He ad- 

 verts very properly to the history of the specula- 

 tions ill merino sheep several years since, the ex- 

 travagance of which almost equalled the mulber- 

 ry fever of 1839. Your paper,sir, hasseldom con- 

 tained more truth in the same number of lines; 

 1 beg ihe agricultural jmblic to read them, and 

 profit by them. 



On receiving ll.'.s number of your paper, the 

 opinions of " NeV Ham|)shire" coincided so en- 

 tirely w.tii :>Tv 0//11 that I was iiuliiced to add my 

 warning cautit 1 to his. As I never put iien to 

 paper without a deep conviction of the indh of 

 what I write, there is, and I mean there always 

 shall be in my lucubrations, the nerve and enthu- 

 siasm which ever belong to tlie advocacy ol' the 

 right side. Hence, and by calling things by their 

 right names, it seems I have roused the ire of 

 genilemf^n who deal in ihisiiniiortcd sloe;;, and 

 they are rmt vviih assertions which I will disprove 

 by the admissions of some of the veteran (but 

 more candid) breerlers of this very stock. 



And first "Vermont" says, " Actual experiment 

 lias demonstrated that they will thrive on cours- 

 er food in sninincr, and poorer fare in vi inter 

 than the native cattle. « « • Diir- 



; iiift the last winter, they [onu herd of forty head) 



■ UvtdonslraiuC.) on\\, till January." Sober, re- 

 flecting men will scarcely re(]uirfi disproof of 

 this, for it i.< universally knowr) anil admitted by 

 all but dealers, ihnt they require high keep and 

 especial care. 



In llie winter of 1841, meetings of fanners 

 10 the numberl of ten, were held at the Slate 

 House, in Boston. They were very numerously 

 attended, and the discussions elicited much in- 

 formation on a variety of topics connected with 

 ngrituhure. The fourth or llfih evenings were 

 devoted to cattle, and incidentally to "Improved 

 Short Horns." 



Jlr. Lalhro|) of Springfield, an enthusiastic 

 breeder of Short Horns, addresseiJ the meeting 

 lit lenglh. He admitted ilistinctly tho necessity 

 of sood keep lo make them e.\cel. ■ 



G. \V. reatliursttmbaiigh, a well known tanner, 

 in a letter lo Col. J. li. Powell (TVanaadiona q/'i price it commands, has caused the eujierior ap- 

 Penn. >3gri. Soc, Vol. I, 30) says " that to keep up preciation of the Short Horn breed in that cotiii- 

 tlieit pival qiiuiitip" we must remember that il i;" ' try ; tho N'pw Fiirmer'i rnleiid'. r, at; English pa- 



/teep them extremehj well, and in a very difl'erent 

 manner from the general custom prevailing here, 

 which i.", in summer, to leave the cattle to help 

 themselves to what they can find, end in winter 

 to give them a moderate quantity of hay and 

 straw. It is certain, he cotitiniies, that the breed 

 will degenerate if not kept in high condition. I 

 am sorry that the Improved Short Horns, requir- 

 ing all this care and attention, seem not 10 re- 

 ceive a greater share tha.ii the common cows, get- 

 ting some hay twice or three times a day, and no- 

 thing else, iliit, sir, I am sure your readeis will 

 think 1 mean to insnlt them if 1 attempt further 

 jiroof of a truth so self evident as that this stock 

 demands, imperatively, high keep. 



but suppose it were admitted that they would 

 subsist on the same quantity of food as the na- 

 tive breeds, why, even in that event should they 

 he preferred ? JDo they make better oxen ? I de- 

 ny that they make as good, and will bring to- 

 gether a few authorities in support of my posi- 

 tion, 



Mr. Featherstonbaugh says "The Devon blood 

 appears to produce the best oxen," and also that 

 " these oxen make as good beef as any other 

 blood." 



John Hare Powell, the very apostle of Im- 

 proved Short Horns, himself says", he "should 

 not select Short Horns expressly for draught 

 alone." And he hea|)s praise upon praise, Pelion 

 upon Ossa, on the vigorous ami si)irited hullocks 

 of Massachusetts and Maine. "A New England 

 ox, like a New England man, is exposed to exer- 

 tion ; the hills upon which he must generally 

 seek his food give health to his lungs and vigor 

 to his niusoles, nourishing the frame without 

 loading it suddenly or producing sluggishness un- 

 der the yoke." {Transactions Penn. -'igri. Soc. I, 

 52.) 



"The Devons are the speediest working oxen 

 in England, but Herefordshire oxen are the 

 strongest draught cattle we have." (Lawrence on 

 Calth:) 



The truth is, sir, that the Improved Short 

 Horns are too sluggish for the yoke. The only 

 claim they have to our consideration is their dis- 

 position to take on fat, and this unfits them for 

 active labor. Let us consider their claims lo be 

 considered first rate milkers. 



iMajorRudd, one of the most cel.'jbrated breed- 

 ers of Short Horns in England, paying at Col- 

 ling's saile, in 1810, 800 guineas (about $4000) for 

 two old cows, says " If cows of the deep milking 

 kind sire wanteil, they must be sought for amongst 

 the old hrecd. An Inijiroved Short Horn will 

 yield about eight or nine pounds of butter per 

 week : an<! this very ordinivry yield I beg you to 

 observe, sir, is in the fertile vale of Teeswater, 

 and in the hands of un amateur." 



At the agricultural meetings before alluded to, 

 Mr. Coleman said "he had owned several Siiort 

 Horned cows, but they had failed to meet his ex- 

 pectations, and were at best ordinary cows." 



Mr. Buckminstor, of the Boston Ploughman, 

 " was of o|)inion that our native cows arc belter 

 milkers than any that are injported." 



Mr. Lathrop, the gentlemauiy and candid 

 breeder before referred to, admitted the "necessi- 

 ty of good keep to give the breed sii|)eriority over 

 other breeds." And he distinctly clmitted the 

 imcertaiiuy of ihe breed for milk in these words, 

 which i quote froai the N. E. Farmer of Feb'y 

 17, 18U. " Some families are \ci-y superior deep 

 rich niilk;;rs, whilst others are fit alone for their 

 readine.ss lo take on tat." 



I could quote other oi)inioiis, but those I pre^ 

 sumo will he siiiju/ieiit to satisfy iiiiprtjudicud 

 men, for whom alone I write. 



The demand in England for beol* and the high 



fattening their carcasses." 



"If a breed of cattle is wanted for the general 

 purposes of farming in countries where hetf is in 

 great demand, the Improved Short Horns are the 

 best." (Major Rudd to John Hare Powell, 18:24.) 



On the rich pastures of New Hampshire and 

 Vermont, Short Horns, raised especially for beef, 

 may do well. On poor lands, Pharaoh's lean 

 kine would be a better stock. I .-igree in opinion 

 fully with the following gentleman : 



"This breed is not fitted for us in Now Eng- 

 land." (Mr. Coleman, Agriculturul Commissioner 

 of Massachusetts, Feb. 17, 1841.) 



"The Devonshire stock brought over here ear- 

 ly would probably prove the best stock for us. 

 (.Mr. Webster^s speech at ihe first agricultural meet- 

 ing in Boston, Jan. 14, 1840.) 



" The best breed of cattle decidedly for all pur- 

 poses are the fine red cattle of Hampshire and 

 Worcester counties, Massachusetts. (Genesee 

 Farmer, 1832.) 



"New England cattle are entirely suited to tho 

 character of the country." (A. B.JUlen, Esq., of 

 Buffalo JV. Y. in the Albany Cultivator.) 



And now, sir, having as I think established the 

 superior fitness for New England of our own 

 breed, I will consider the adaptation of that breed 

 in its various sizes to tho predicament of soil and 

 climate. 1 contend thai the smaller varieties of 

 our own breed are to be preferred on all soils 

 below the very rich. 



"A horse, cow or hogof inedinm size is better 

 than a large one." (Mr. Buckminster, .V. E. Far- 

 mer, Feb. 17, 1841.) 



" Large cows in good feed do give more milk, 

 hut in sliort feed the small ones do as well." (Col. 

 Sheldon, Ohio.) 



Mr. Weld, a inember from Sturbridge, confirm- 

 ed Col. Sheldon's statement. 



"If a man has ordinary grass, or intends to 

 shift on a common he must make choice ofsniall 

 stock which are not too heavy to labor through 

 the day to fill themselves." (Mowbrai/^s Treatise, 

 Bost. Ed. 18a,3.) 



"By an immutable law of nature, the animal 

 not less than the vegetable will be accommodat- 

 ed (in size) to the food given for its support. (Col. 

 Powell, Trans. Penn. Ag. Sue.) 



It is in my recollect ioti, but I have not the au- 

 thority ut hatid to support il, thj'.t London cow 

 keepers prefer email animals. Sure I am that 

 pul.'lic ojiinion is undergoing a great change in 

 England as respects the size of cattle. The Liv- 

 erpool European of September 24, 1842, now be- 

 fore me, says — "The Balavia Steam Ship from 

 IJolterdam landed on Wednesday thirteen cows, 

 not for slaughter bul for breeding. The cows nro 

 of the Siiort Horned breed, and very small." 



I admit at once the great b.^auty of the Short 

 Horn breed. Nothing adds a greater charm to 

 park pcetiery than the sheeted and pied cattle of 

 this r.ace. I have seen them in England fteding 

 in large herds under tii>3 majestic oak which per- 

 ha[)s witnessed the struggles of the Sftxoii and 

 Norman, or "grouped on the breezy knoll, or by 

 the potlern door," and the effect is delighifn! in- 

 deed. I make no doubt that this was one of the 

 causes of their great p<ii)tilarity. '• Their beauti- 

 fully variegated colors, spotted, striped, some- 

 iirnes sheeted red and vvhite,80inctimes black and 

 white," rendered them tiio chief ornament of 

 .i^liy a nohlo seat, 'i'hey became the fashion. 

 Wo all know what fashion will do in England. 

 Lord Taiikorvilio's famous wild ciitllo at Chil- 

 iinghani Casilc, which no man can approach with 

 safety, would, to-morrow, bring a higher price 

 ihaii'tho best yhort lIoriLs in llie realm, from the 

 single circuii):<tancu that no man can buy them 

 alive .'Vniij llieir imhlo ownSr for money, and 

 there are none oihci- in the vvholo kingdom. 



I reiterate (dl I said in my liirmer article, "Tbai 

 w'« wtitit nil imported stock, but iii'iiplv improve- 



