GRADE HOLSTEINS. 81 



from three cows made 980 Ibs. of butter; average per cow' 326^ Ibs; cost of keep 

 per cow, $82. 



"Veals sold at four weeks old, hog dressed, weighed from 128 Ibs. to 145 Ibs. 

 Price received, six and seven cents per pound. Steers live weight, two years 

 old, 1000 Ibs.; price three cents. So I find the Holstein cow more profitable 

 than any other breed. 



"Average per cow on butter the past year, $67.90, without calf." 



Mr. Edward A. Powell, of Syracuse, N. Y., writes the following practical 

 and interesting article on grade Holsteins : " The annual report of Dairy Com- 

 missioner Brown, of this state, for 1888, and the ' cow census ' of a portion of 

 Jefferson county, both seem to show that the dairy cows of the state average 

 only about 3,000 pounds of milk per year. 



"Those reports present such a dark picture to all dairymen the cows of 

 this state being, doubtless, equal to those of any other that every enterprising 

 party in the business will at once ask himself, Is there no remedy? Is there no 

 brighter future for the dairy business of this country? 



"I have given the subject some attention, and am convinced that there is a 

 remedy within the reach of every dairyman. By breeding better, by selecting 

 bulls from breeds and from families which have been proven by careful test, 

 extending through several generations, to be superior for both milk and butter 

 bulls in which these tendencies have become so thoroughly established that 

 they will transmit these qualities to their offspring, and, by crossing them upon 

 the best cows in any dairy, a herd can very soon be built up that will produce 

 double the present average product. 



"Pure-bloods are, of course, superior to grades, but it is not practical for 

 every dairyman to have pure-bred cows. 



"He can, however, at small expense compared with the result to be 

 attained, secure bulls of the highest quality and best breeding. 



"These bulls should not only be pure-bloods, and recorded, but, which is of 

 far greater consequence, they should come from families whose superiority has 

 been established beyond all question, by actual and well-established records. 



"It is not enough that the dam alone has a good record. Every female in 

 every line for several generations should be proven, showing that there are no 

 blanks. 



"Every ancestor should be superior, not only for milk, but for butter ; for 

 the dairy that can be used with profit for the production of either product is 

 much more valuable, and is a safer investment, than if it must be confined to 

 one. 



"The farmer who converts his milk into butter this year may find it much 

 more profitable to make cheese, or sell milk, next. He will also find a larger 

 field for the sale of his surplus stock. 



"The following statements will convey some idea of what can be accom- 

 plished by breeding from superior bulls : 



"Messrs. Wood & Son, of West Exeter, N. Y., only a few years ago bought 

 a thoroughbred bull and a few heifers, at an outlay of only a few hundred dol- 

 lars. They now have thirty cows, pure bloods and high grades, nine of them 

 only three years old. 



"They sold at the factory this last year over 183,117 Ibs. of milk. They 

 sold 1,535 Ibs. of butter, which, at 25 Ibs. of milk to a pound of butter, would 

 require 38,375 Ibs.; 570 Ibs. from skimmings, at an average of 4| Ibs., equal to 

 2,560 Ibs. They raised on new milk thirty-six calves, which they estimate at 

 500 Ibs. each, equal to 8,000; 90 quarts of milk sold, equal to 180 Ibs. 



"The milk, cream and butter for a family of six were also furnished from 

 the dairy, which, at the low estimate of 12 quarts per day, would require 8,760 

 Ibs. for the year. 



"This makes a total of 240,990 Ibs. for the thirty cows, about one-third of 

 which were three-year-olds, making an average of over 8,000 Ibs. per cow. 



"Messrs. Henry Jerome & Son, intelligent, enterprising farmers living 

 near Syracuse, commenced a few years ago to improve their herd by selecting 

 the best cows in the country, and grading up from this foundation by the use 

 of a fine Holstein-Friesian bull. About two-thirds to three-fourths of the herd 

 are now fine grades. They feed liberally and well, but only in such quantity 

 as they deem most profitable. 



"Their herd consisted this year of eighteen cows, including three two-year- 

 old heifers. 



