146 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



March 



LEGISLATIVE AGRICULTUKAL MEET- 

 ING. 



[Heported for the Farmer ey H. E. Rockwell.] 



The Fourth of the series of Legislative Agricul- 

 tural Meetings was held Tuesday evening. The 

 subject for discussion was nearly the same as at the 

 last meeting, relating more to farm stock in gen- 

 eral, however. 



Hon. Francis De Witt, Secretary of State, was 

 introduced as chairman of the meeting. lie said 

 he received a notice very unexpectedly to-day, re- 

 questing him to preside at this meeting, and as he 

 was accustomed to obey all reasonable commands 

 of his superiors, he had acknowledged the call, 

 though he did not profess to be greatly skilled in 

 the particular branch of agriculture which was to 

 be discussed. There were practical farmers present 

 who were better fitted to discuss the question as to 

 the best kinds of stock than himself, and he would 

 not therefore say much. The question he consid- 

 ered an important one, however, as every farmer is 

 interested in knowing what kind of stock is most 

 easily kept, what kind will best endure the rigors 

 of our climate, and what kind will yield the great- 

 est profit, whether for beef, for draft or for the 

 dairy. It is often said that a good native breed is 

 equal to any imported. But a large part of our 

 stock was originally imported. The large stock 

 im])orted by Mr. Mason, of N. Hampshire, between 

 1631 and 1634, was referred to. That stock, which 

 was from Denmark,was scattered over New England 

 considerably, and has been crossed with some Dur- 

 hams and others. They were of a large frame and 

 of a yellowish color. Importations of Spanish 

 black cattle followed ; and others still succeeded, 

 so that we see an intermingled breed at present ex- 

 isting. 



It has been remarked by gentlemen in Pennsyl- 

 vania and New York that the yellow cattle are 

 noted for their strength. They are not so swift as 

 the Devons, but they will endure our climate better, 

 and have greater power as draft-oxen. With ref- 

 erence to the best breed of cows for the dairy he 

 would not attempt to give any opinion. He had 

 recently met a gentleman who had been for thirty- 

 five years breeding in-and-in, and he had made his 

 stock as perfect as he could by selecting one animal 

 for its superiority as a milker, and then for its su- 

 periority in some other respects, and so on. The 

 question was then submitted to the members of the 

 meeting, of whom there was a very good number 

 present. 



Mr. Ward, of Orange, preferred a cross of Dur- 

 hams with the native stock. By so doing he had 

 obtained a good stock for beef, as he had thereby 

 increased the size over that of the native stock ; 

 and the milking quahties of the grade stock he con- 

 sidered better also. In reply to the objection that 

 Durham cattle were too large for our light soil and 



short feed, he said that his own experience had sat- 

 isfied him that the Durhams, combined with the 

 native stock, could be raised with profit and were 

 really the best. To be sure they need to be fed 

 well, and so do any cattle of any breed whatever; 

 and they also require careful protection from cold 

 and storms, by being furnished with warm and 

 comfortable stalls. The necessity for doing this, 

 in order to have stock of any kind thrive, was set 

 forth in very strong and appropriate terms. 



W. J, BucKMlNSTER, of the Ploughman, said 

 many thought that we already have the best 

 cattle we can have in what is called our native 

 stock. But we have had too little accurate statis- 

 tics, and too little experience to settle il satisfacto- 

 rily. We are in the condition described by Pop 

 when he says 



"Man never is, but always to be blest." 



We are not yet, but expect to be, satisfied on this 

 point. The best cow for milk of which he had read 

 was that of Thomas Motley, Esq., of West Rox- 

 bury, an Alderney cow, that gave milk from which 

 five hundred and eleven pounds of butter were 

 made, in one year. He had never known of a na- 

 tive cow that did so m"uch. In order to settle the 

 question of the superiority of any one breed, one 

 farmer should keep a variety of stock in the same 

 way, and for a sufficient time, to determine the va- 

 rious questions that are yet unsettled, as to their 

 relative excellence. By a reference to the reports 

 of some of the agricultural societies, he found some 

 facts that might assist in determining the question. 

 From the report of the Worcester North Society, 

 the highest premiums were given for mixed breeds. 

 If mixed breeds are really the best, it is important 

 to have the matter satisfactorily determined by re- 

 liable statistics. When that is done, he thought it 

 would be found that the North Devon stock would 

 prove to be best for all purposes, to combine with 

 our best native stock. It was important also to 

 determine which element in the combined breed 

 causes the superiority, whether It is the native or 

 the foreign element. 



Mr. Sheldon, of AVIlmington, spoke of the rela- 

 tive advantages from having heifers come in at two 

 or at three years of age. Supposing one heifer to 

 come in at two, and that all her progeny for ten 

 years were heifers, and that they also come in at 

 two years ; at the end of the ten years, there will 

 be produced from her about thirty-seven animals, 

 of which twenty-five will give milk. If the heifer 

 comes In at three, and the same conditions are ob- 

 served as with the one that comes in at two, it will 

 be seen that within the ten years there will be raised 

 twenty -two head of cattle, of which twelve will be 

 in milk. It is therefore important to consider these 

 results as bearing upon the increase of stock in the 

 country, especially as the price is so high. Mr. S. 

 then spoke of working oxen, and as an inildent 



