cows FOR THE DAIRY. 45 



to our American climate. From Massachusetts tliey 

 have spread into other States, and are now kept in suffi- 

 cient numbers to gain a wide reputation for butter pro- 

 duct. The average yield of a Swiss cow is 2,700 quarts in 

 a year, but the milk is rich in cream. The largest yield 

 is from twenty-four to thirty quarts daily, and the pro- 

 duct of butter varies from a pound to two pounds daily. 

 These cows are brownish in color, of solid build, and 

 make very good beef animals. The portrait given, fig- 

 ure 6, is one of a cow of the Simmenthal breed, which 

 is considered the best in Switzerland. 



The Devok Breed is said to be the oldest pure race 

 of domestic cattle in existence. This may be true, for 

 no other breed reproduces itself so true to type and with 

 such slight variations. The color of a pure Devon is a 

 rich dark red, solid and without any mixture. The horns 

 are long and fine, and on the whole this breed is espe- 

 cially well and handsomely formed. As ^^ general pur- 

 pose" cattle they are second only to the Shorthorn, being 

 very fair dairy cows, giving an average yield of milk, 

 and rich, high-colored and highly-flavored butter equal 

 in quality to that of the Jersey cows. The oxen are the 

 best for tlte yoke, being active, docile, sagacious, easily 

 trained, and of good size. The Devon beef is considered 

 the best of all kinds, being tender, sweet, and well mar- 

 bled with fat. For the purpose of the farm dairy theso 

 cows will probably be more suitable than any other kind; 

 but for special dairy purposes, where the most butter 

 from the least feed is required, the Devons will rank 

 lower than the best. A pure Devon cow five years old, 

 in the author's dairy, gave eight pounds of the best qual- 

 ity of butter weekly for three months, when the yield 

 fell off quite rapidly; at the same time Jerseys and Ayr- 

 shires were giving ten pounds weekly and only fell off 

 slowly, keeping up a profitable yield for fully eight 

 months in the year. These yields, however, were from 



