THE JERSEY, ALDERNEY AND GUERNSEY COW, I03 



The intelligent and impartial use of this scale cannot 

 fail to raise the standard of our exhibition cattle, by 

 requiring them to be well formed in every essential part 

 in order to obtain the highest prizes. Defects of form 

 are often covered up by superfluous flesh, whereby the 

 unskilled eye is imposed upon, and the estimate of the 

 crowd is rendered incorrect It is the duty of judges to 

 probe this excess of fat, and find the true points of the 

 animal, and breeders will be obliged to conform. Amer- 

 ican Jerseys will be kept pure in their characteristics, 

 and not be perverted into poor imitations of Durhams. 



The Jersey scale was formed before the promulga- 

 tion of the remarkable theory of Guenon respecting the 

 milk-mirror or escutcheon as a visible sign of dairy 

 qualities. But this method of judging of dairy stock is 

 now so favorably received by intelligent breeders, that 

 it should be taken into consideration by the judges 

 awarding premiums at our agricultural fairs. If a 

 breeder, in purchasing an animal for the dairy, looks for 

 this sign of quality, why should he not recognize it in 

 making up his judgment of animals exhibited for pre- 

 miums ? Experience proves that a perfect escutcheon 

 can be perpetuated from generation to generation as 

 certainly as can any other outward marks of milking 

 capacity. If a cow or bull has a defective escutcheon, 

 according to the rules of Guenon and as developed by 

 Mr. Sharpless, how can the first prize for breeding or 

 dairying qualities be consistently awarded, even if all 

 the other points are good ? 



