DAIRY. 



DAIRY. 



and consistency are remarkable ; and in com 

 pany with several gemlemen of the legislature, j 

 I saw a portion of it converted into butter with 

 a spoon in one minute. The colour of Mr. 

 Jaques's stock is a deep red, a favourite colour 

 in New England. They are well formed, and 

 thrifty upon common feed; and, if they conti- 

 nue' to display the extraordinary properties by 

 which they are now distinguished, they promise 

 to prove themselves, for dairy purposes, the 

 most valuable race of animals ever known 

 among us, and as remarkable as any of whi-jh 

 we have any information. They have now 

 reached the third generation, and maintain 

 their high character. 



"From six cows taken promiscuously in a 

 dairy of improved short-horn stock, in England, 

 with a view to test the quality of the milk, it 

 was found that they gave in the following pro- 

 portion of butter to one quart of milk : 



No. 1, 3 oz. 6 ihvts. No. 4, 1 oz. 10 dwts. 



2, 1 6 " 5, 1 " 14 " 



3, 1 " 12 " 6, 1 " 6 " 



" These measures, it will be perceived, are 

 given in troy weight, of which it requires 175 

 Ibs. to make 144 Ibs. avoirdupois. It is not 

 stated whether the quart was wine or beer 

 measure, and it is therefore difficult to adjust 

 the proportions. A variety of circumstances, 

 likewise, would affect, in some degree, the 

 result; as, whether the milk was taken at the 

 beginning or the last part of the milking ; and 

 how long the cows had been in milk from the 

 time of calving; and what was the kind of feed 

 given them at the time of the experiment. Still, 

 I have quoted the result, as, under any circum- 

 stances, showing by comparison the extraordi- 

 nary product of the cream-pot breed." 



Mr. Colman has added to his report of the 

 dairy produce of the county of Cheshire, a 

 table showing the number of cows kept on 45 

 farms in 1838, with their produce, the amount 

 sold, and prices obtained. The whole number 

 of cows was 913; the amount of new-milk 

 cheese sold, 300,000 Ibs.; skim-milk cheese, 

 11,050; cheese used, 7,500 Ibs.; butter sold, 

 19,050 ibs. The average price for the new- 

 milk cheese was 7 cts. ; of skim-milk cheese, 

 3 cts., and of butter, 17 cts. per pound. 



In the dairy establishments about Boston, 

 good hay, and corn-fodder are the general feed, 

 with sometimes carrots, ruta-baga, and mangel- 

 wurtzel. The ruta-baga, and all the turnip 

 family, .are apt to impart a turnip taste to the 

 milk, which is very generally disliked. Mr. 

 Colman was informed by a very careful milk- 

 man that no objection of this sort is found 

 against ruta-baga, if they be given to the cows 

 directly after, and not just before being milked. 

 Before the next milking comes, the disagree- 

 able odour is entirely got rid of. The best 

 milkmen prefer good clover hay for cows in 

 milk to any other. "Potatoes and mangel- 

 wurtzel," says Mr. Colman, "increase the 

 quantity without improving the quality of the 

 milk. Carrots, parsnips, and sugar-beets im- 

 prove the quality. A milk farm, well situated 

 and with a good custom, is a profitable hus- 

 bandry where the milk brings 5 cents in sum- 

 mer and 6 cents in winter. A good deal of I 

 milk is sold by the farmers to the milkmen for 

 392 



3 cents per quart, of the profits of which man- 

 agement to the farmer I have strong doubts. 

 If we suppose that it requires 10 quarts of 

 milk to make one pound of butter, this at 3 

 cents per quart would be 30 cents. Suppose 

 the milk to be made into butter, there is a 

 pound of butter worth 25 cents, and, if of su- 

 perior quality, 33; there are the skim-milk and 

 butter-milk remaining, worth certainly for 

 young pigs 1& cent per quart say 9 quarts, 

 13 cents; and there is the manure made by 

 the swine kept, which is of considerable value. 



" The amount of milk furnished by a herd 

 of cows through the year is very differently 

 estimated by different persons. Rare indivi- 

 dual cows may be occasionally met with, 

 giving ten, and perhaps, in some remarkable 

 case, even eleven quarts of milk per day 

 through the year that is, 365 times 11 quarts, 

 or more than 4000 quarts per annum; but such 

 cases are very few in number. In Curwen's 

 dairy of 28 cows, kept and fed with great care 

 for 220 days, the average was eight wine 

 quarts per day, or a little more than six beer 

 quarts. In the Harleian dairy, where a hun- 

 dred cows were kept, it is said that twelve wine 

 quarts were about the daily average ; but the 

 statement, in the form in which it is made, is 

 very imperfect and doubtful. Twelve wine 

 quarts would a little exceed nine beer quarts. 

 Nothing could surpass the pains used in the 

 selection of these cows, the care taken of them, 

 and the abundance with which they were fed. 

 If the statement were positive, I should regard 

 it differently ; but as it seems to be rather mat- 

 ter of conjecture than of proof, I place little 

 dependence upon it. In a private letter to a 

 respected friend from the celebrated Fellen- 

 berg, it is stated that, at that institution, the 

 cows, which are considered amongst the best 

 milch cows in the world, average through the 

 year about six quarts per day. But here again 

 we are left at a loss to know, whether the year 

 includes only the season while they are in 

 milk, or 365 days. These are foreign state- 

 ments. I wish I had those from among our- 

 selves, on which entire reliance can be placed. 

 Men in these cases are so in the habit of deal- 

 ing in conjecture instead of facts, that it is ex- 

 ceedingly difficult to arrive at the truth. I have 

 been so often deceived in these matters that I 

 place little confidence in any thing which is 

 not matter of actual measurement and positive 

 verification. The most intelligent and careful 

 milkmen whom I have consulted are of opi- 

 nion, that their cows average about six quarts 

 per day for 365 days, and go dry in that time 

 from two to three months. A very careful 

 milkman, who may be entirely relied on, from 

 20 cows produced 11,131 gallons of milk in 

 a year. This was at the rate of 6| quarts per 

 day for 365 days, or 7 quarts per day for 300 

 days. These cows were native stock, ex- 

 tremely well selected and well fed. Succes- 

 sive trials on this same farm give about the 

 same result. 



"On a milk establishment in Medford, under 

 excellent management for many years, with 

 twenty cows in summer and more than thirty 

 in winter, the average product for 365 days is 

 from five to six quarts to a cow per day. The 



