204 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



I need not remind the members of this Association that the unit in the 

 problem of improvement is the individual, and that individual excellence 

 is of primary importance and must take precedence before all other con- 

 siderations. Let him first weed out all inferiority from his own dairy, re- 

 taining only such cows as pass the individual::;/ required by his estab- 

 lished standard. Let him secure from any source only the best obtainable. 



In selecting the head of his herd let him remember that many individ- 

 uals with long pedigrees are only capable of short performances and that 

 many a pedigree is only a record of ignorance, prejudice, and parsimony 

 in and inbred for generations. 



Let him remember that the pages of the Herd Books are not closed 

 to the well known and prolific family of scrubs. 



And here let me record an earnest protest against a practice that has 

 obtained very widely, namely, that of indistriminately designating the 

 race of native cattle as "scrubs." When the pages of The Advanced Scrub 

 Registry are opened, the names of many individuals, whose long pedi- 

 grees have purloined from their owners pockets long prices, should occupy 

 conspicuous places. 



In weeding out the herd let the suggest that due estimation be given 

 to the individuality of the choice native cow. No one values more highly 

 than I the potency there in fixedness in character, few appreciate more 

 than I the skill and patience repui red in obtaining it, the only price at 

 which it can be obtained. But individuality and prepotency are not the 

 prerogatives of any race or breed. 



We all remember the old brindle cow with the crumpled horns, with 

 the mild, clear eye and gentle disposition; the pride of our father's herd, 

 and the source of nourishment and growth in the infantile stage of our 

 very early youth. We remember how twice each day the sixteen quart 

 pail was filled to overflowing, and the two-quart pail was filled with the 

 "strippings" to be strained into the jar of rich cream, and how 'after fur- 

 nishing a bountiful supply of sweet cream for the family of eight, the 

 weekly yield of nutlike butter was twelve, thirteen, or fourteen 'pounds. 

 And how persistently old Brindle did yield. How almost impossible it 



