48 BOARD OP AGRICULTURE. [Jan. 



special object in view and select his animals with reference to it. 

 But there are some general principles that apply to breeding 

 everywhere, and which, in many cases, are not well understood. 



It would not ho desiraljle, even if it were possible l)y crossing, 

 to breed out all tlie general characteristics of many of our native 

 cattle. They have many valuable qualities adapted to our 

 climate, soil, and the geological structure of the country, and 

 these should be preserved, while we modify the points in which 

 many of them are deficient, such as a want of precocity and 

 aptitude to fatten, coarseness of bone and want of symmetry 

 often apparent, especially when the form of the animal does not 

 indicate a near relation to some of the well known breeds. 



It is a well known fact, that in crossing, the produce almost 

 invariably takes after the male parent, especially in exterior 

 form, in its organs of locomotion, such as the bones, the muscles, 

 &c. Particularly is this tlie case when the male belongs to an 

 old and well established breed, and the female belongs to 

 no known breed and has no strongly marked and fixed points. 

 Put a Galloway bull, for instance, to a Devon cow, and the 

 calf will be hornless. Put a ram without horns to ewes with 

 horns, and most of the lambs will be destitute of horns, that is, 

 they take the characteristics of the father rather than the dam, 

 and this rule holds good generally in breeding, though like all 

 other rules, it has of course, its exceptions. Hence, the first 

 principle which the good sense of the farmer would dictate, 

 would be to select a bull from a breed most noted for the quali- 

 ties he wishes to obtain, as perfect as possible, and especially 

 in the parts which it is most desirable to increase. A bull of 

 fine bone and other good points in perfection, will make up for 

 the deficiency of some of these points in the cow. 



On the other hand, the internal structure of the offspring, 

 the organs of secretion, the mucous membranes, the respiratory 

 organs, &c., are generally admitted by breeders to be imparted 

 chiefly by the dam. Hence it has generally been found, that 

 by taking a cow remarkable for milking properties, though 

 deficient in many other points, as in the coarseness of bone and 

 in early maturity, and putting to her a bull remarkable for sym- 

 metry of form and fineness of bone, the offspring will be superior 

 to the cow in beauty of form and proportions, and still retain 

 the milking qualities of the dam. This principle is questioned 



