SELECTION OF MILK COWS. 383 



able, from not possessing the marks which are now looked for in 

 milkers. For the breeder who wishes to find buyers, it is not 

 sufficient that his stock possess good qualities ; it is, moreover, 

 necessary, that these qualities be manifested externally by the 

 recognized marks. 



"It must not be thought, however, though it is often said, that 

 nature is capricious, or that chance presides over her operations, 

 because it is sometimes difficult for us to explain her works 1 

 Her procedure is uniform, and her plan always skillfully framed, 

 but her methods are numerous, and her products diversified. 



"To explain the variations in the hereditary transmission of 

 milking qualities, let us not forget that these qualities are not 

 observed in wild cows; that they are produced, when man is 

 able, by a particular discipline, by the act of milking, the separa- 

 tion of the sexes, &c., to make certain natural powers more 

 active than others ; but that the qualities disappear as soon as 

 these powers, the nature of the soil, the peculiarities of climate, 

 the properties of plants, the temperament of the cows, are again 

 allowed to act, according to the original plan of creation ; so that 

 the variations which we consider as caprices of nature, are incon- 

 testable proofs of the uniformity of her works. 



"It is only by examining animals carefully, by taking accurate 

 notes of their qualities and defects, by attending to the circum- 

 stances in which individuals are produced, reared, and main- 

 tained, that we shall be able to account for what seems to us a 

 sport or caprice of nature. It will then be easy to tell, first, how 

 the same bull and ths same cow have been able to produce three 

 calves with different properties; and, second, to trace out the 

 rules which we must follow, so as to be almost uniformly suc- 

 cessful in obtaining stock of first-fate quality. 



"Experience proves that the qualities which are transmitted 

 with most certainty, depend on the most important organs of 

 life ; accordingly, in the forms of the viscera and the skeleton. 



