ILLINOIS DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 141 



that the daughters have the characteristics of the sire, and the 

 sons of the clam. I believe that ought to be put clown. We 

 ought to know these things in our work. 



The first proposition to consider is the mother cow. You 

 know how they go to work to select the beef that contains the 

 largest percent of saccharine matter, and to keep on increasing 

 the percent of sugar. The same principle holds true of the 

 mother cow. We want the best we can get for production. Our 

 record association of pure bred live stock are making a mistake 

 in registering everything, because pure bred. They should sim- 

 ply register those that have proved themselves worthy by their 

 records, then we would have more rapid advaicement. 



As I say, we want a producer for a mother cow. We want 

 one that has constitution enough to make splendid record, one 

 that's got constitution enough to make more than one such 

 record. I tell you that the dairy cow that can make a good 

 record this year and next year and year after year, until she gets 

 to be an old cow, is the kind of a cow that we want for the mother 

 cow, if we can get her. Her progeny will be better performers 

 than one who makes a good record for a short time, and then 

 gives out. 



This mother cow should have the dairy type. Put in opera- 

 tion this system of testing before you begin to breed, and you 

 will not have very many that haven't the dairy type when you 

 commence to breed. That will cull them out. 



There are a great many qualities that we will not take time 

 to dwell upon. But one quality, she should have a good dispo- 

 sition to be gentle. I believe more mistakes are made along 

 this line with the mother cow. We have got so we judge a dairy 

 cow by her performance. What can she do? That largely de- 

 termines her value. 



We work on a different principle on the dairy sire and don't 

 know why we should. Pedigree and looks, and then we trust 

 to luck for the balance. I believe the dairy sire should be tested 

 in the same way as the cow. If he produces heifers that are 

 satisfactory, then he is valuable, if not, he is worthless, and it is 



