180 



WEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



April 



from a negro. The marks of the Devons are fixed 

 and permanent. The Durhams are nearly as 

 much so, but the Ayrshires are not so well fixed 

 for they have not been distinct races so long. 

 Why not breed from good native stock 1 Because 

 you are not sure of a good progeny. He related 

 an instance in his own experience to prove this. 

 We must find the stock that has the qualities 

 which we desire in the greatest degree, and breed 

 from that. 



Mr. J. B. Farmer, of Concord, said his grand- 

 father always raised his own stock from his own 

 bulls, and he thinks that his stock deteriorated. 

 One spring he had nine calves, seven of which 

 were idiotic and good for nothing. He thinks 

 raising in and in not a good practice. 



Mr. Heard said that old cows gave to their 

 progeny their own marks more strongly than 

 young ones. 



Prof. Nash, of Amherst, said he had but little 

 experimental knowledge upon the subject. 



But he would make one inquiry. It is conced- 

 ed that it is important to take the cow to a good 

 bull. He believed that opinion true. His inqui- 

 ry is the following. Is not the cow herself dete- 

 riorated by taking her to a mean animal 1 If you 

 take a fine mare to a mean animal, she deterio- 

 rates from sympathy with the male. Is not the 

 same thing true of the cow 1 



Mr. Robinson, of Dorchester, said he was not 

 much acquainted with raising stock. He keeps 

 stock for their milk. He thinks the care of stock 

 of more importance than the breeding. This 

 matter of the care of stock is of infinitely more 

 consequence than is usually imagined. If he were 

 to give an opinion upon the comparative value of 

 different breeds he would say the Ayrshires, 

 were the best for the dairy and the Devons for the 

 plow. 



Dr. Reynolds said the crop of hay last year 

 was small, and he presumed it had led to experi- 

 ments in feeding stock. He would inquire the 

 results of experiments upon cutting hay, the pres- 

 ent winter. Mr. Gleason, of Wayland, thought 

 the quality of the hay last year was better than 

 usual, and although the amount given to stock 

 has been less than usual, he thinks stock in gene- 

 ral is coming out well this spring. He does not 

 think much is gained by cutting hay. But he 

 thinks all feed should be wet — as to raising stock, 

 it costs moj-e to raise than to buy, but we are 

 more sure of good stock. Take a cow that is a 

 good milker to a bull that came from a good milk- 

 er and you are almost sure of a good milker. 



Mr. Sprague made some remarks upon the im- 

 portance of taking better care than we usually do 

 of our calves and young stock. 



Dr. Bartlett, of Chelmsford, said that the sub- 

 ject of feeding was of more importance than any 

 other in relation to stock. He uses apples very 



freely in feeding young stock, and he thinks, fed 

 in this way, they will do better than on roots and 

 hay. Corn fodder he uses extensively, sows South- 

 ern flat corn broad cast, very thick, that the stalks 

 may be small, and he thinks, pound for pound, 

 it is worth more than English hay. He sows in 

 July for winter feeding, and early for summer feed- 

 ing. Salts it in the mow, and cattle prefer it to 

 hay. He gives apples to his milch cows, and 

 thinks them excellent food. He would freeze and 

 then thaw them and immediately feed to the cows. 



Maj. B. Wheeler has used apples as food for 

 cows, for thirty years, very successfully ; values 

 them highly for this purpose. 



At this stage the meeting adjourned for dinner. 

 One hour was spent in discussing the good things 

 of the table. The farmers then returned promptly 

 to the hall, and the subject o^ Plows and Plowing 

 was called up. Several plates were arranged on 

 one side of the hall exhibiting various patterns of 

 plows, ancient and modern. Explanation of the 

 plates, with remarks upon the improvement in the 

 structure of this most important implement in the 

 cultivation of the soil, were made by the Presi- 

 dent. 



The next subject called up was Agricultural 

 Education. Mr. Walker addressed the meeting 

 in a most interesting and eloquent manner. He 

 said this subject was arresting the public attention 

 more strongly of late than ever before. He took 

 the ground that every farmer should understand 

 the science of his profession, and that he can un- 

 derstand it. The physician who does not know 

 why he gives a certain dose of medicine, is not en- 

 titled to, and does not have our confidence. The 

 farmer has more to do with the laws of nature 

 than any other profession. If he is guided by tra- 

 dition it is a very uncertain guide. The farmer 

 has to do with fifteen elementary substances, and 

 he must act in conjunction with the laws of nature, 

 in effecting their combination and decomposition. 

 He then named and described these elements viz., 

 oxygen, chlorine, sulphur, phosphorus, silicon, 

 hydrogen, nitrogen, iron, manganese, potassium, 

 sodium, calcium, magnesia and alumina. The 

 firmer ought to understand geology which teaches 

 the nature and composition of soil and rock. Soil 

 is made mainly of decomposed rocks. Rocks are 

 divided into stratified and unstratified, aqueous 

 and igneous, those that have been deposited by 

 the agency of water in strata, and those that have 

 been deposited by the agency of fire not in strata. 

 He then spoke of the constituents of rocks. Gran- 

 ite contains a large amount of potash. It con- 

 tains soda, lime, manganese and iron. Pulver- 

 ized rocks manure the soil and repair its waste. 

 When we learn to 2:)ulverize rocks readily and 

 cheaply, we shall have the very manure we want 

 for some soils and for some crops. Wo want to 

 know the composition of vegetables that we may 



