136 Cattle Problems. 



equaled amongst old breeds in this respect. They are a 

 short-horned breed, and probably the old Teeswaters orig- 

 inated in the same old dairy country, namely, the Neth- 

 erlands, or coast country of Western Europe. 



Three things have combined, through ages and cen- 

 turies, to make the yield of the low country cows along 

 the coast country of Western Europe, large or very large. 



ist. The humid atmosphere of the coast country from 

 Holland to Denmark supplies a larger proportion of 

 moisture in both the breathing-air and in green and dry 

 feed, than is found in the feed of dry climates. This 

 juiciness of their feed has led to their making a large Im/k 

 of blood, as shown by their yield, causing large size in 

 the cows, a large flow of milk, and large size in their ud- 

 ders from storing large yields, as a long-continued habit. 



2d. The great and painstaking care of the people who 

 tend and milk these cows, in milking closely and regularly, 

 to the last drop, has had its share, coupled with gentle 

 treatment, in causing them to give down freely to supply 

 the demand, thus increasing their yield. 



3d. They have inherited large udder-supplying artery 

 capacity, and the tendency to yield much milk by reason 

 of moisture and bulk in their food and blood, through 

 scores of ages ; and the increase in their yield has been 

 so gradual that their yielding characteristic has been firmly 

 established by growth in the udder-supplying arteries of 

 the breed ; the tendency being fostered by care on every 

 hand, for which reasons together, the imported Dutch 

 cows have their good yielding capacity more inbred and 

 fixed than any other dairy breed. And this fixed capacity 

 will probably continue in the imported cows, if they are 

 supplied with jiioist food and water, as they probably will 

 be. But yield may decline in their descendants, because 

 of our drier climate and feed, unless they are supplied 

 with moist feed sufficiently to counteract the influences of 



