60 On Breeding Cows for the Dairy. 
necessary to give a fair and proper developement to all the quali- 
ties of the animal. It is, therefore, a natural consequence that 
we have fine horses, possessing vigorous constitutions, and sprightly 
action. What has been said with respect to the breeding of horses, 
will apply with equal force to the breeding of all animals, viz.: 
that the order of nature should be followed, as near as can be. 
By this rule the young are allowed to nurse the dam, and draw 
all the sustenance it can get from that source. And this will be 
found to be not only the best, but the most profitable way of rear- 
ing all animals, except the dairy cow. And if she was to be 
reared in this way, although we should have a fine animal, with 
all the qualities properly developed, stilh she would not be worth 
what it would cost to rear her. Hence the dairy-men of our 
country have thought it better to buy their cows than to rear 
them; still there are some heifer calves reared every year, by 
farmers, whose principal business is making cheese; and as this 
is the principal business of a large portion of the farmers of our 
country, it may be well to examine the subject of rearing cows 
for the dairy, and see if they cannot be reared in a way that they 
will be worth, when reared, what it has cost to rear them. 
There is no rule better settled in political economy, than that 
the thing produced, should be worth in the market, what it cost 
to produce it, with a reasonable profit to the producer. When it 
does not do this, it shows that the supply is too great for the de- 
mand; and as no one will, for any length of time, produce aa 
article that does not pay, there will be a falling off until the sup- 
ply and demand are proportionate. In our county we buy a large 
number of cows every year, that are reared at a considerable dis- 
tance. It may be, that in certain portions of the stEite, cows can 
be reared and sold to us cheaper than we can rear them. 
One thing is certain, we cannot afford to rear them in the way 
nature points out — by letting them draw from the cow all the milk. 
In deviating from this, we should, as far as possible, observe the 
rule. In order to do this, it may be well to consider that the 
quantity of milk which the cow yields now, is very different, and 
perhaps double the quantity yielded in her original and natural 
