VOIi.  XXXIV.  No.  «5.  t 
WHOLE  No.  1403.  » 
PRICK  sxa:  CENTS 
82.00  PER  YEAR. 
fEntcred  accordlnK  to  Act  of  ConKTOsa.  in  tho  yo>ir  18715.  by  ilio  Rural  I’ubllshliK?  Company.  In  the  offlco  of  the  Librarian  of  ConRress  at  Wnshlnuton.i 
to  hilly  regions,  being  of  moderate  size  and  anre- 
footetl.  therefore  they  can  obtain  forage  where  a 
more  bulky  breed  would  fail  to  procure  food  in 
sufficient  quantities  to  keep  in  llcsh.  They  are 
also  very  industrlouB  in  seeking  their  food,  tak¬ 
ing  that  which  .some  ollipr  breeds  would  reject 
and  feeding  while  othoi-a  would  be  sleeping. 
They  are  excellent  for  milk  and  some  of  the 
largest  milk  and  butter  yields  on  record  in  this 
country  were  from  Ayrshire  cows.  Wo  note  a 
few  as  examples  of  what  the  Ayrshire  cow  will 
do  under  favorable  cucumsfanccs. 
Lady  Kilburnio,  an  Ayrshire  cow  owned  hy 
the  STinvTEVA>'T  nnoTHERS,  FariniMgton,  Mass., 
Is  reported  to  have  given  in  one  year  7,429 
pounds  of  milk,  eqnal  to  3,4.')3  quarts.  Her 
weight  was  850  pounds.  Gforgi.a,  a  c<^w  owned 
by  tho  same  partina,  and  weighing  890  pounds, 
has  given  7,127  lbs  of  milk  in  a  year.  A.  A. 
Mooai;  of  East  Berkshire,  Vt.,  a  few  years  since, 
reported  that  he  had  a  cow  threc-fourthu  Dur¬ 
ham  and  ono'fourth  AyrsJiiro,  which  gave  60  lbs. 
of  milk  per  day,  and  from  wldch  he  made  16  lbs. 
of  butter  in  a  week.  Tlie  Ayrshire  cow,  Sybil, 
according  to  FtiNx's  abstract  report,  1874,  gave 
In  one  year  18,066  Iba.  of  milk.  Jean  Amour, 
another  noted  Ayrshire  cow,  weighing  967  lbs., 
is  reported  i  htfre  aver.aged  fifty-twn  pounds  of 
milk  during  ten  days  in  June,  yielding  lbs. 
of  butter  per  week. 
Largo  aa  the  above  yields  may  appear  they 
have  been  o.xceotlcd  in  this  country  and  in 
Great  Britain,  but  tlioso  named  are  fully  suf- 
ilciont  to  show  tho  capabilities  or  value  of  tho 
Ayrahiros  for  daii7  purposoo. 
CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE  AYRSHIRE. 
Tho  accompanying  illustration  of  a  group  of 
pure  Ayrshires,  drawn  from  life  for  the  Rutul 
New-Yorker,  will  give  our  readers  a  very  good 
idea  of  the  appearance  of  tills  noted  breed,  bat 
wo  add  a  brief  general  descriiition.  Tlie  bade  of 
pure  Ayrshire  cattle  is  straight  and  nearly  level, 
yet  has  a  slight  depression  at  the  top  of  tlio 
shoulder,  and  a  alight  tendency  to  another  over 
the  loins  j  the  ribs  ere  pretty  round  ;  tho  sides 
deep  and  sometimes  showing  a  slight  deficiency  in 
the  llllltig  up  of  the  bullock.  The  breast  in  front 
is  comparatively  narrow  ;  the  upper  surface  of 
the  caroaHH  shows  less  breadth  at  tho  shoulder 
th.an  at  the  back,  showing  a  kind  of  wedge- 
shaiifKl  fiiitiina.  Tho  length  of  the  body  is  pro- 
port  iomitcly  greater  than  tbo  bight ;  the  legs 
comparatively  short;  tho  imizzlo  is  fine;  tho 
face  broad  but  rather  short ;  tbo  oye  is  compla¬ 
cent  ;  tlie  expression  of  tho  face  is  gentlo  but 
dull;  tho  boms  short  and  tnniednp;  the  slyn 
smooth  and  thin  ;  tbo  touch  ia  good,  hut  lacks 
ifc  iiu  llowneas  which  accompanies  a  thick  and 
soft  skin  ;  (Kilora  !ue  red  and  white,  like  those  of 
tho  Short-Horn,  but  usually  lack  the  rich  hue. 
They  are  sometimes  mixed  with  black,  and  are 
always  arranged  in  patches  which  are  generally 
irrcgnlar  in  form. 
Just  as  we  finished  the  above  sentciico,  a  far¬ 
mer  who  formerly  kept  fifty  cows  on  his  farm  in 
JclTerson  Co.,  N.  Y.,  walked  into  our  sanctum 
and  after  the  usual  salutation  wo  a-sked— “  How 
about  Ayrshire  cattle  for  the  dairy?”  fie  re¬ 
plied— •“  There  is  nothing  to  bo  found  better. 
They  will  tAirlvo  under  conditions  where  some 
other  broeils  would  half  starve.  Just  give  an 
Ayrshire  cow  a  ohance  at  a  straw  stack  and  she 
will  go  throngh  the  winter  and  come  out  fat, 
giving  a  show  of  milk  ali  the  timo.  I  tell  you, 
tho  Ayrshires  never  fool  around  after  fine  piok- 
ings,  but  are  always  ready  to  work  for  their  liv¬ 
ing,  and  do  not  mind  staying  up  late  nights  to 
get  their  fill.”  To  all  of  wlilch  wo  readily  as¬ 
sented,  for  the  best  cow  we  ever  saw  a  piul  set 
under  was  a  grade  Ayrshire.  But  wo  presume 
there  are  more  of  tho  same  sort  to  be  found 
among  tbo  breeders  of  these  famous  cattle. 
Other  breeds  may  be  more  popular,  and  in  fact 
more  valuable  to  tho  farmer  under  certain  cir- 
ctimstances  and  conditions  than  the  Ayrshires, 
still  tho  latter  possess  merits  not  to  be  found  in 
any  other  breed ;  and  to  learn  just  where  they 
will  fit  In  and  give  tlie  greatest  profit  on  cost  and 
care  licstowed,  is  tbo  tost  of  a  breeder's  skill  in 
stock  raising  of  any  kind. 
AYRSHIRE  CATTLE 
The  Ayrshire  is  one  of  the  four  most  popular 
breeds  of  cattle  at  present  rais^  in  this  country 
or  Europe.  They  are  quite  distinct  from  all 
others  of  what  are  termed  the  middle-horn  breed, 
although  evidently  closely  allied  to  them.  Tliolr 
origin  is  enveloped  in  obscurity,  but  it  ia  known 
that  tho  Ayrshire,  as  a  distinct  breed,  cannot  be 
traced  back  a  century. 
For  many  years  tho  Ayrshires  wore  considered 
the  beat  Lactiferous  breed  in  Great  Britain,  and 
were  eioeediogly  popular  in  ISootland,  not  only 
in  A3rr8hire  but  in  Renfrewshire,  Sterllngshiro 
and  the  surrounding  country.  Tho  diurvtnen  of 
the  regions  where  ibis  brood  first  nude  Its  ap¬ 
pearance  are  said  to  have  guarded  them  with 
jenlona  care  and  sedulously  appropriated  them  to 
dairy  purposes.  Like  all  the  more  valuable  but¬ 
ter  breeds  the  Ayrshires  are  not  so  profitable  for 
the  shambles  as  tho  Sbort-HoruB,  although  the 
beef  is  of  good  quality,  possessing  a  fine  admix¬ 
ture  of  fat  and  lean,  still  there  nro  other  breeds 
wliich  rank  higher  for  the  vali..^  of  their  flesh. 
The  merits  of  the  Ayrshires  may  be  briefly 
summed  up  as  follows :  —  They  are  well  adapted 
