NEAT STOCK. 261 



progenitor as the female, make, when it is practicable, judicious 

 crossings witli such blood stock as have been tried and approved 

 for their good milking qualities ; or else, begin and carry out, 

 long and patiently, such a process of selection and training 

 as shall make the dairy excellency of your own cows so fixed 

 and permanent that you can rely upon their offspring inheriting 

 their own good properties. At any rate, raise your own heifer 

 calves, and, in the end, it will be more economical and satis- 

 factory. 



C. C. Field, Chairman. 



HAMPSHIRE, FRANKLIN AND HAMPDEN. 



From the Report on Stock. 



It is a mooted question among the agriculturists of our State, 

 what breed of cattle, if any, will suit our farmers, and meet 

 all tlicir requirements ; and if there is no one universally 

 admitted to tliat position, how to allot the different breeds to 

 the different localities, wliere each shall be found best adapted. 



A good many Jerseys are introduced into the eastern part 

 of the State, and for a man who keeps but one or two cows 

 they do very well. The Jersey cows give by far the richest 

 milk of any stock ; sometimes as high as three-eighths cream, 

 and they are often very deep milkers. Mr. Fay, the earnest 

 and able Secretary of the old Massachusetts Society, has an 

 Alderney cow which never is dry, and makes all the butter for 

 his family, through the year. 



The Jerseys may be pets, but they can never lead among 

 the farmers. Their small size, unsymmetrical shape, and a 

 little lack of hardihood, will forbid their general introduction 

 into the Valley. One of the largest herds of that breed, is 

 owned by Mr. Jonathan Bird, of Greenfield. 



The Ayrshires, originally a Scotch breed, are now attracting 

 more attention than formerly, and the Massachusetts Society 

 for the Promotion of Agriculture, — which, by the way, has done 

 more for the advancement of that science, in Massachusetts, 

 and in the United States, than any other institution of the 

 kind in the country, — has recently made a large and very 

 valuable importation of this stock. 



