1869. 



OT:W ENGLAND FAKIMER. 



485 



"The cows were housed during the winter; 

 but among the small farmers this was con- 

 ducted in a singular way — for one rude dwell- 

 ing contained and sheltered both the family 

 and the cat:le. The family had their beds of 

 straw or heath in the niches of the walls, while 

 t; e litter was never removed from the cattle, 

 but fresh layers of straw were occasionally 

 laid down, and so the floor rose with the accu- 

 mulation of dung and litter, until the season 

 of spreading it upon the land, when it was at 

 length taken away. 



"The peculiarity of the climate and the 

 •want of ii closed lands, and the want, too, of 

 forethought in the farmer, were the chief causes 

 of this wretched system of winter starvation. 



"As a beef animal, the flesh of the West 

 Highland ox is considered of the best quality 

 in the London markets, and usually worth Id , 

 or two cents per pound more than that of the 

 ordinary breeds. He is usually pat upon high 

 feed at three years old, and in good pasture 

 in summer, and a fall allowance of turnips 

 and meal, with plenty of hay or straw in win- 

 ter, is fitted fur the shambles at about four 

 years old." 



Mr. Allen believes that this race is admira- 

 bly adapted to the immense ranges of moun- 

 tain lands in the older States of the union, to 

 the plains west and north of Mi^souri, in Texas, 

 &c., and sums up their qualities by saying, 

 they are an original breed, bred for untold 

 centuries in one of the roughest climates ; of 

 great hardihood and endurance ; homogeneous 

 in their natures and habits ; strong in blood, 

 ■with a tendency and power to transmit it upon 

 an) thing with which they may be connected. 

 The cows are not fitted fur the dairy, nor is it 

 necessary they should be for the purposes to 

 •which they are intended, yet giving milk 

 enough to rear their progeny well. They 

 mature early, and when matured are full in all 

 their points. They feed their pastures closely, 

 are active in movement, capable of ranging 

 over wide fields, gathering their subsistance 

 without trouble, adapted to climates and soils 

 where other cattle would glean a bare subsis- 

 tence, and thus a valuable race to introduce 

 into the regions of country which are above 

 named. 



He hopes yet to see the Highland cattle 

 introduced into this country. By their iutro- 

 duction our far southwestern grazing regions 



whic.i now send us only the ragged and com- 

 paratively worthless Texan cattle, and the far 

 northwestern wilds which send us none at all, 

 together with our intermediate mountain 

 ranges, would ultimately — even shortly — fur- 

 nish our interior rich lands with grazing mate- 

 rial fur the best of beef, and our maikets 

 would be supplied with the choicest of flesh 

 for consumption. 



ABOKTION IN COWS. 



Report of Wra. n. C'rnialt, M. D.. C'omn iseir.ner of 

 the New YorB Sciite Ayricul'ur^.1 Society lor the In- 

 vtBtigaliou of Aborlion in Ci-'ws. lilbai y. 18b9. 



This is a well written report. The Com- 

 missioner and his assistants seem to have pur- 

 sued their work with great diligence, and ac- 

 cording to a well arranged plan. The results 

 arrived at are, we are sorry to say, mostly 

 negative. But some points would seem to be 

 settled, and the field of investigation narrowed. 



It is the opinion of the Commission that tke 

 disease is not caused "by reason of the intro- 

 duction of a deleterious substance in the food," 

 that is, they do not believe it is caused by 

 ergot, or fungi on grasses or cereals. Many 

 have believed that cultivated grasses were 

 more liable to be infested with such parasites 

 than natural grasses, and that hence cows feed- 

 ing on hay, were more subject to the disease 

 than when in the pastures. This is an iniporta&t 

 point disposed of. 



It is also settled that cows are much more 

 liable to the disease in the advanced months of 

 pregnancy, especially after the sixth month. 

 Cows once affected are more subject to be af- 

 fected in subsequent pregnancies, which may 

 be an additional reason for turning them to 

 the butcher. 



It has been suggested that changing cows 

 from farm to farm during pregnancy might 

 have a prejudicial effect. An examination 

 into the facts in connection with such removals 

 showed clearly that it is so. Is this owing to 

 the fict that cows that have once aborted are 

 sold during the next pregnancy to avoid prob- 

 able loss ? 



The investigation shows tliat breeding from 

 immature stock increases the tendency to abor- 

 tion — the percentage of cases being greater in 

 stock of this class. 



But the most important matter discussed, as 

 it seems to us, is, whether the amount of milk 

 given by the cow influences the process of 



