CATTLE, IIOLSTEINS. 
87 
systematic attempts have been made to breed them with a view to thcii 
careful improvement and toward fixing their characteristics — in England 
with the Durhams, now known as Short-Horns, and in Holland with tho 
Dutch cattle, now known in the West through the importation of tho 
Holsteins, from the fact that in this district more care seems to have been 
taken to breed their cattle, not only to type, but also in line as dairy 
cattle. It takes long generations of such breeding to fix undcviatingly 
peculiar traits and characteristics, so they may be transmitted with great 
fixity to the resulting progeny. Tho Holsteins of the present century 
have presented uniformity, and to-day they may be called as persistent 
in the transmission of quality as the other great families of the genus 
Bos in any country. 
These have superior excellence in their milking qualities. They are 
dairy cows noted for giving enormous quantities of fairly rich milk. They 
have massive compact frames, and make good beef ; as working oxen, 
from their strength, docility, patience, and fairly active habits, they should 
make excellent workers. The horns of the Holsteins are short. The 
hair short, soft, and fine. The hides are of moderate thickness, of good 
texture — that is, mellow. The color should be always black and white, 
either in bands, or else pied, mottled or spotted over the body. The ud- 
ders of the cows are capacious, of great breadth and depth. The teats 
well shaped and standing well apart. The milk-veins prominent, large, 
and running well forward. 
Holsteins in America. 
/ 
As we previously stated, the old Dutch settlers of New York brought 
over with them this valuable breed of cattle. They have, however, become 
entirely lost, except that they have left their impress in resulting genera- 
tions of mixed blood. 
Since the time noted, there probably were none imported until tho 
present century. In the early part of tho century, at the time of the im- 
portation of Merino sheep, by Mr. William Jarvis, of Vermont, in one of 
Lis voyages he brought over a bull and two cows. They remained on ins 
farm for some years ; the bull was bred to the common stock of too coun- 
try, producing a decided impress, but at the end of a few years one puro 
blood was lost. 
It is recorded, that, somewhere between 1820 and 1825, Mr. Herman 
Le Roy, a public spirited merchant of Now York city, imported some im- 
proved Dutch cattle which were sent to his farm near the city. Between 
1827 and 1829, some of the produce of this herd were sent to the farm of 
his son, Edward Le Roy, on the Genesee river. Mr. L. F. Allen do- 
