472 Guenons System of Selecting Cows hy the Escutcheon. 
desirable this maj be for the milkman, it is an unnatural and 
forced condition for the animal, and, if possible, she should be 
" dried off" at least from four to six weeks before calving, to 
give her needed rest. Such cows will occasionallv have a year 
when the owner will say she is not doing as well as usual, and 
this is some transient trouble or disease, or natural endeavouring 
to recuperate. Other cows again, most generallv those of 
robust nature, and coarser make, will commence almost at once 
to fall off in their quantity, and devote their energies to the 
development of the fcetus instead. These animals Guenon 
denominated " bastard," a term, as we generallv understand it, 
not exactly applicable, but as it also means " spurious," " false," 
we will understand it in that sense. Of course this character of 
cow, failing so rapidly in her yield, is less valuable than one 
that brings forth her healthy young, and yet gives plenty of 
milk in the meanwhile. This is one of the great values of the 
Guenon system, that it enables one to perceive, select, and 
discard cows of a spurious character. By the coarse, masculine 
form, by the harsh, wiry hair, by the dry and dandrufBess skin, 
and, above all, by the escutcheon, Guenon points out how to 
avoid purchasing such stock. So that of the two buvers, he 
who has mastered the system will buv the less handsome but 
more valuable cow, while the ignoramus will buy the more 
beautiful and more worthless stock at a higher price. 
Thus it will be seen the importance of the judge knowing 
how far in gestation the animal has progressed, in stating the 
quantity the cow will yield, and the length of time the animal 
will continue to milk. The size and shape of the escutcheon 
will tell both ; but the yield is modified by circumstances, and 
by the other points. 
6. The Health of the cow was made another point in judging 
by Guenon. If the cow is viewed as a machine, it is evident 
that it will run more perfectly if all its parts are in good con- 
dition, and supple from being well oiled, than it would if choked 
up with dirt or accumulations. A cow in best health is evi- 
denced by a clear eye, a healthy skin, a fine coat of hair, a good 
quick step, and an excellent appetite. Whether she is breeding 
or milking, her health will have an important influence upon 
both. Her milk will be rich, and not serous, or blue and 
watery. If Doctor Sturtevant's theory is true, that the colouring 
of the milk is derived from the daily throwing off certain 
glandular cells, a healthy cow performing its functions well will 
throw off larger cells and containing more fatty matter, and thus 
enrich the milk more than an unhealthv animal. This is 
evidenced not only by the different amounts of butter yielded 
from different animals, but by the varied flavour of milk. To 
