Again, we often hear it said: "I have a Jersey cow ; she is fed 

 on hay and corn meal. She produces milk of which fifteen pounds 

 will make a pound of butter ; my neighbor has a Jersey, but he feeds 

 her ensilage and shorts, and it takes twenty pounds of her milk to 

 make a pound of butter ; therefore I believe ensilage makes poor milk." 

 It is needless for me to point out that such an argument is worth- 

 less. An inspection of the above table shows us that one of our Jer- 

 seys would make a pound of butter from fifteen pounds of milk, 

 while another's milk only gives a pound of butter for twenty-one 

 pounds of milk, and this on the same kind of food. Let me repeat, 

 and emphasize the fact, that breed and individual characteristics are 

 the two great factors that determine the richness of milk. 



PERIOD OF LACTATION. 



Another factor which has appreciable influence is the time since 

 calving. The same cow, on the same kind of food, will yield richer 

 milk after ten months of milking than at the end of one month. 



A cow that gave milk containing 3.5 per cent, of fat in November 

 and December, 1888, on the same kind of food in May, 1889, gave 

 milk with 3.9 per cent, in August, on pasture feed, 4.16 per cent., 

 and in September 4.23 per cent. 



Another cow averaged 3 A) per cent, in December and November, 

 1888, 3.9 per cent in April, 1889, 4.4 per cent, in May. These are 

 only two instances, but it is a fact well known that most cows do so 

 inciease. Now, this bein.q; true, we must not too hastily conclude 

 that a given kind of food has caused increased fat in the milk, since 

 it may be that a part or the whole of the observed change is due to 

 a natural increase due to length of time in milk and not to food 

 at all. 



morning's and night's milk. 



That there is a variation in the richness of the morning's and 

 night's milk of most cows is generally understood, but there are 

 some facts which are brought out by our work that are new, so far as 

 I know, though others may have observed the same thing. 



The morning's milk, in the case of three cows whose milk has 

 been anatyzed night and morning daily for a full year, has been 

 richer than the night's milk during the time that the cows were on 

 pasture feed, but when the same cows were put into the barn the re- 

 verse was true ; that is, the night's milk was the richer. The differ- 

 ence between morning and night's milk is quite marked ; thus, dur- 

 ing June. Jul}' and August a Jersey cow gave milk which averaged 

 as follows : 



Morning's milk, 6.26 per cent., 7 



Night s milk, o./o per cent., ) & l 



Difference, 0.51 per cent., in favor of morning's milk. 



