27S [ASSEMBLT 



CROJSING AND BREEDING CATTLE. 

 Remarks of Mr. Thomas Bell, of Morrisania, made at a former 

 meeting of the Farmers' Club, on the subject of cattle. 



Mr. Bell rose and addressed the chair as follows : 

 I have heard much and many practical remarks to-day 

 on the subject of the Devon cattle and other breeds, but I be- 

 lieve the Durham slock is the best that has ever been introduced 

 into this country. I breed from a Durham bull on the native 

 cow, and by this method of breeding I have produced the best 

 imilkers for a dairy that ever have been produced in this or any 

 Other country — far preferable to the native cow. We beat the 

 English breeders by this plan : while the English native milker 

 will not yield more than nine quarts a day the year round, I 

 have from my own dairy, at Morrisania, milked eleven quarts a 

 day on an average, for the year round, from a cross of the Dur- 

 ham and native. 



There are indeed some rare exceptions to this rule, but they 

 are few. 



The best one I ever saw was a native cow, which I have owned 

 eleven years. She was called "The Old Judge." She has 

 yielded me more than twelve quarts a day for eleven years past, 

 at my dairy. 



Some days she milked twenty-five quarts a day. 



She had eleven calves in eleven years, and has produced 

 37,500 quarts of milk while I owned her, which, at 4 cents a 

 quart, equals a sale of milk from tliis cow of $1,500. I bouglit 

 her from a friend in Greene County, in this State, Judge Van 

 Buren, for $25. She was raised on the hills west of the Hudson 

 'jriver, and of the native stock, and sent to nie as an unraanage- 

 lible animal. She kicked and hooked so that she could nut be 

 iafely milked. I broke her so that she became docile. I cured 

 the kicking by taking the right fore leg and doubling it up with 

 8 rope, or bandage while milking. 



I manage all unruly cows this way when milked. 



