412 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



increases llie tentlency to milk, it is not go favor- 

 able to its excellence of (]uality as grass, if the 

 season will admit of yrazin>i;, or sainfoin hay, 

 which many people consider more economical 

 and productive of prime butter than any other 

 Jbod in winter. Nor is this excellence cilecled by 

 any artificial feedincr, unless hay be considered 

 such, lor, except very partially, beet-root is not cul- 

 tivated (or cattle, and potatoes and inrnips are ne- 

 ver given to those cows whichyield this fine butter. 

 At a numerously ai landed nieeiing of land-pro- 

 prietors and farmers at Bayeux, JVI. de ('haumonl 

 submitted to them a number ol qucslions respect- 

 ing dairy management ; the Ibllowing is a digest 

 of the answers reujrned to some of the inquiries. 

 The application of dung imi)arts in sprint^-timc 

 valuable qualifies to dairy pasiurage, but the 

 grasses in summer give, on dunged land, a rank 

 flavor to butter. 



Dairy-houses should have a northern aspect even 

 in winter, when they require warmth, as a south 

 wind is prejudicial to miiU, and all ollensive smells 

 thould be avoided. Cream should not be lelt in 

 the milk-room on account of the influence which 

 the fermenting milk has upon it, and also because 

 the fire, eo necessary Ibr the milk in cold weather, 

 is injurious to butter. The floor should be flag- 

 ged, and washed in summer to preserve coolness. 

 Some are opposed to washing ; we should say 

 that the French dairy-maids are all so, (br 

 cleanliness is not among their virtues, but ibr what 

 reason we have not ascertained. 



The milk when taken from the cow, is poured 

 into a Btrainer, by turning it upside down into 

 pails, and care is taken in winter that it cools as 

 little as possible before it is changed from the one 

 vessel to the other, while in eunimer the object is 

 to let it become cool belore it is thus poured out 

 into the pans. 



These should be frceh and well scoured, and 

 often put into boiling water Ibr about lialf an hour, 

 and dried in the sun or at a fire. It is considered 

 that the nature of the milk in earthen vessels has 

 a decided effect on the Ibrmation of cream, but as 

 to their shape there does not appear to be any 

 remarkable influence. Cylindrical earthen vessels 

 are prelerred, or those sliaited like an inverted 

 cone, flattened at the bottom, and of considerable 

 depth. Porcelain has been tried, but not found 

 Ko good as the common earthen ware. 



The cream is skimmed twice a-day generally, 

 sometiaies three times, and care is always taken 

 not to leave it too long on the milk. Twenty- 

 four hours (sometimes Ibrty-eighi) in summer 

 elapse belore the first creaming, and the cream is 

 allowed to lie as short a time as possible before 

 churning. 



By day the cows are turned out, and at night 

 Ihey are supplied with hay, oftea of sainlbin, 

 which is admirable for dairy purposes. 



The breed is very varied and nondescript ; the 

 Alderney blood seems very common, especially 

 in the part of Normandy adjacent to Brittany ; 

 yet the people of this latter province deny that 

 any importation of cows from Alderney, Jersey, 

 or Guernsey to the Main is ever made. The 

 parent stock, however, was indisputably identical. 

 Lord Morpeth, a fine Durham bull, of which 

 there is a portrait in Ihe.Iournal of the Association 

 of Normandy, was imported with " Gaudy," a 

 cow of the same breed, to the Hara in 1838. 



There is a heavy coarse breed also, admirably 

 suited to the plough and cart, which, if crossed 

 judiciously with the Ayrshire, would produce a 

 breed with the tendency to fatten, which is much 

 wanted in the Norman stock. Stall-feeding is not 

 understood, and it is rarely the case that a carcass 

 of really liil beef is to be seen. 



Bullocks are much used. Four or five of these 

 generally accompany three or two horses in the 

 teams, which, though com|)oscd of so many 

 individual animals, and, in our judgment, injudici- 

 ously yoked, are possibly well adapied lo the deep- 

 rutted and precipitous lanes through which they 

 have frequently to pass. 



The system of rearing and fattening calven 

 difl'ers much in llie de()arlmenls of the north of 

 France. At Bi^'sin, l()r instance, all heifer calves 

 are usually reared, and the bulls lattened. Ibr the 

 market, to which ihey are taken when two monihs 

 old. In that depanment they are lerd on skim 

 milk only. At Caumont they arc latled on new 

 milk, because in that district the butter is of in 

 fiirior quality, and value, and flavor, and even 

 bread, converted into a kind of pap, is sometimes 

 added to the new milk to accelerate the tatiening, 

 which is considered sufficiently attained at the age 

 of six weeks. This veal averages 120 lbs. a quar- 

 ter, and is sold at 3{d. per lb. 



The swine is of the worst possible description 

 as lo Ibrm ; but the pork in flavor is very good, 

 and the English, wlio cure their own bacon and 

 hams, find the meat firm, and in every respect 



"OOd. 



ON THE USE OF LTME AS MANUUE. (fl.) 



From llie Soulliern AgiiciiUiiiist. 



31r. Editor: — It is unfbrtunately a trait ia the 

 characier of the southern planter that he regards 

 all noveliies with suspicion. Any departure from 

 the practice of his fathers, or his neighboihood, 

 he considers dangerous, and the generality will 

 deride as vain theory, the eflorts of the man who 

 will have the courage to make an innovation upon 

 established preccilente, or lo violate a rule dictat- 

 ed by one of the patriarchs of a neii^hborhood. 



This cautious pjiirit, if united to a liberal enter- 

 prise, is highly commendable ; he who possesses 

 it will incur no rash risks, while he will avail him- 

 self of ail the lights of modern research ; but 

 unfbrumalely we too generally find the caution 

 without the enterprise. The sneer of the prac- 

 tical man withers the energy of the enthusiastic 

 speculator, and the old routine of practice conti- 

 nues to be popular because nolliing short of ab- 

 solute demonstration will convince the man of 

 practice that the theorist is not a madman. 



In your editorial career you have suflered from 

 this prevailing spirit. The practical man will not 

 write, because he has nothing new to communi- 

 cate. His practice is the same now as it was 

 yesterday, and as he thinks it will be to-morrow, 

 and is known to all engaged in the same pursuit. 

 The speculator dare not write, because he knows 

 that the first question which will be a^ked when 

 his essay shall have been read, will be — What 

 sort of planter is he? How does his practice 

 square with his theory? Is he a practical man? 

 If the answer to this question be not saiisli^ctory^ 



