92 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



infusion of that blood into our native stock, you will find that 

 the progeny of these two are going to make something superior 

 to anything we now have. 



I apprehend, gentlemen, that there is no great difficulty in 

 the way of our indulging in the luxury of raising Shorthorns 

 upon our hills, or in any part of this State, because, in the first 

 place, we are arriving at certain knowledge, in agriculture, 

 which assists us in bringing our farms into better condition than 

 ever before. All we have got to do is to recollect that we have 

 got noble animals that are worth raising, and that we can afford 

 to feed them. The best way to feed them is by enriching our 

 farms, and getting them up to such a condition that they will 

 support those animals. We do not want any farms round in 

 Berkshire County — we have not got many — that will only sup- 

 port small animals. We have excellent soil for grass, and we 

 can do nothing more profitable than to turn our cattle, our im- 

 proved Shorthorns, in summer and in autumn, upon our pas- 

 tures, even if those pastures are substantially meadows ; and 

 when they are eaten off, in two or three years, so that they would 

 not cut more than a ton or a ton and a half to the acre, turn 

 them up and reseed them, and keep them as you would mead- 

 ows ; then you will find that you are raising cattle profitably, 

 because these improved Shorthorns, at two years old, are just as 

 good, just as fit for the butcher, and bring a larger price than 

 ordinary cows at four years old. That is the experience of 

 England. A century ago, in England, the average age of steers 

 brought to the market was four years. It took four years to 

 grow them to a point at which they were fit to be brought to 

 the shambles. Now, by the use of Shorthorn bulls, they bring 

 an animal to the butcher at .two years old, equal in every respect 

 to those animals at four years old. You can calculate in one 

 moment, considering the saving of two years' hay and meal, the 

 great profit that that affords. That is what we want here. We 

 want it for our dairies and all the purposes of the farm. If a 

 man is running a dairy, let him get animals of this class, take 

 them from good milking families, and when he wants to change, 

 he can turn them over to the butcher in good condition in two 

 or three years, and get others of the same class. I apprehend, 

 if we set our minds upon getting these animals, or any other 

 class of animals, it is not necessary to pay any attention to our 



