THE SKIN. 81 



bulk, and such an unison of adjustment, as to make 

 the cow an exemplar of economy in its highest type. 

 In so far as the Ayrshire cow has not attained to this, 

 must the breeder strive for it, crowning his art with 

 this success, the tribute to his genius. 



The skin is not only the covering to the animal, 

 binding together her parts, and protecting the under- 

 lying parts from exposure, but it gives support to 

 the hair, and is studded with glands, and may be 

 considered one of the organs of the animal body, as 

 through it is eliminated not moisture alone, but car- 

 bon and other products. Reason as well as experi- 

 ence teaches that its texture and " feel " may be indic- 

 ative of certain qualities in the animal. It is here 

 that we are enabled to detect degrees of vascularity 

 and thrift ; and the hand, taught by experience, can 

 tell by the touch the good from the bad feeder. The 

 skin to be desired in the Ayrshire is neither too thick 

 nor of a papery thinness, but medium. It should be 

 vascular, that is, soft ; and although it must not be 

 so well underlaid by fat as in the grazing breeds, it 

 must be loose and easily lifted. 



As some of the glands of excretion are homolo- 

 gous with the glands of the udder, their appearance 

 may give us an idea of some qualities of the milk. 

 By experiment we have satisfied ourselves of the re- 

 lation of the color of the skin secretion as found in 

 the ear and elsewheie, with the color of the butter 

 the animal affords; there is a seeming relation be- 

 tween the glands of the skin and the lacteal gland, 

 which suggests a vicarious action, in a measure, be- 

 tween the two. 



5 



