384 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
JUNE 45 
that, being themselves well informed in their 
art, they would become centers of instruction 
for others; and knowledge would thus go on 
multiplying itself. 
TnE Mark op a Good Farmer is easily 
recognized. He never wastes any manure. 
If you want to know what kind of a farmer 
you are, here is a test, infallible, by which 
you may try yourself. A man who has sense 
and business enough in him to save all the 
fertilizing material made on the farm, is not 
the man to waste it. Ho may make mistakes, 
but these very mistakes will instruct him, and 
be of profit to him. 
A Fair Question. —“ Now will you, please, 
tell me, Bucephalus Brown, how to save all 
this fertilizing material, which you say we 
are wasting?” I wish it were as easy to in¬ 
duce the questioner, who cocks his head 
and his eye at me, and puts this question to 
do what he already knows that he might and 
ought to do in that direction.as it is to an¬ 
swer it! The thing is very simple. Are the 
17 men whose barns I passed by in a 80-mile 
ride, last winter, ignorant that they ought 
not to throw out the manure of their long 
cow stables under the stables’ eaves, as they 
certainly did? Have not nineteen-twentieths 
of the farmers of the State in which I live 
who save little or no urine abundant proof of 
its power to make grass grow thick and dark 
and tall? Every spot in their pastures and 
fields where a cow has humped up her back is 
a testimony against them. 
There are Difficulties.— Yes, there are 
lions in the path, Even some of those who 
have made some attempt to save and apply 
the liquid waste of their stables, have been 
disappointed in its use. Urine, and espec¬ 
ially the urine of straw-fed stock, is by no 
means a complete and satisfactory manure, 
when used alone. The better we feed our 
stock, the more wasteful it is to waste their 
excrements; for in them is the greater part of 
the plant food taken out of the soil which 
grew that rich feed. It costs something to 
prepare a urine tank, as much as it costs to 
build a silo, and perhaps more than to build a 
cheap one. It costs something, too, to get the 
liquid on to the land. But it costs much 
more to let it waste. 
Three Wats —Urine may be carted out 
in a water-cart, such as is used in watering 
dusty streets, and sprinkled on grass stubble, 
either to promote the growth of the grass, or 
preliminary to plowing. If for grass, re¬ 
member that urine, rich or not so rich in 
plant food, is always an ill-balanced manure. 
It should naturally go with the dung, and 
even then there is often a large deficiency of 
phosphoric acid, relatively to the nitrogen 
and potash. A plain pho-phate, like ground 
bone, Thomas-slag, or similar material, should 
be used along with all stable excrements to se¬ 
cure the best economy. 
Other Wats —The water-cart method gets 
it all on the land; but there are other ways, 
often better, to utilize this liquid. On farms 
where there is an excess of straw, either of 
the small grains or of peas, beans and buck¬ 
wheat; or of poor swale or salt-marsh hay; or 
where sea-weed or swamp muck is good and 
handy, urine is a most admirable instrument 
for making these materials quickly into the 
richest kind of compost. With a compost 
yard handy to the urine tank, but on a lower 
level, properly made piles of any or all of 
these absorbents, singly or in mixture, may 
be easily moistened and kept moist from the 
tank, until they have, with occasional turn¬ 
ing, become sufficiently rotted to be drawn 
out and plowed under. Even the stored ma¬ 
nure. in sheds, is bettered by the same prac¬ 
tice, which certainly should be resorted to so 
far as to prevont over heating which tends to 
fire-fanging. There are ways enough, when 
there is a proper amount of will. At present 
the trouble is too much won’t. 
Piunj J^itsbimbm 
MHolstein-Friesii 
DAIRY vs. GENERAL-PURPOSE. 
What Breeders are forkini For. 
Association somewhat divided advice was 
given. Prof. Johnson, oi the Michigan Agri¬ 
cultural College, strongly urged breeders to 
pay particular attention to the dairy points 
of their cattle. In spite of the fact that the 
tost he had shortly before completed gave the 
strongest evidence of the value of a Holstein 
steer for beef, he was emphatic in saying that 
the Holstein cow was specially designed by na¬ 
ture to servo as a dairy machine,and that every 
energy of the breeder should be devoted to 
the task of improving the ability to make 
milk and butter. Prof. Morrow, on the other 
hand, seemed to think that the Holstem- 
Friesian might profitably apply for the posi¬ 
tion of “ general-purpose” cow, and he there¬ 
fore urged breeders not to neglect the beef 
points while they tried to develop dairy quali¬ 
ties. As this seems to be a matter of consid¬ 
erable interest, we have requested a number 
of breeders to give their views on the subject. 
W e are also enabled to present pictures of a 
typical milk Holstein, and also of a cow bred 
more with reference to beef poin's. “ Lady 
Fay,” Fig. 149, is owned by Smiths, Powell & 
sell grade Holstein-Friesian steers at the same 
figures as grade Short-horus. I think I can 
make Holstein-Friesian beef as cheaply as 
any other kind; but 2% cents per pound, which 
we get at present, is not a flattering price, and 
I feel that if we neglect the dairy qualities we 
must soon go under. 
Lenawee County, Mich. 
FROM F. C. STEVENS. 
My advice to all breeders of Holstein-Fries¬ 
ian cattle is to nreed so as to perpotuate the 
breed as they now are (taking as a standard 
the highest and best type); for we have in 
them a combination of qualities found in no 
other breed, and this and this only is what 
makes them better than any other known 
breed. It is their size that makes them so 
much more desirable than Ayrshiros or Jerseys 
and their milking qualities that recommend 
them to all farmers over the Short-horn. The 
successful breeder of Holstein-Friesians is ho 
who produces a cow’ weighing from 1,400 to 
1,600 pounds, which will give 10 times her 
weight in milk each year. 
Wyoming County, N. Y. 
FROM N. C. BARNEY. 
I agree emphatically with Professor John¬ 
son in striving to make the Holstein-Friesian 
a dairy cow “first, last and all the time.” 
Breeding her for that especial purpose for 
generations has brought her to her present 
high standard. Breeding for another object, 
will, in my opinion, deteriorate her milking 
qualities. No one animal or breed among 
quadrupeds or bipeds can possess all of the 
“admirable virtues.” The beef attributes of 
the Holstein-Friesian are now sufficient to 
make her pre-eminently a good “all-purpose 
cow.” lleally what purpose is served by run¬ 
ning the risk of depreciating what we know 
we possess, in striving to gain something we 
may never acquire? 
New York. 
FROM JOHN A. FRYE. 
This question, like all others, has two sides 
and while in the West it does, without doubt, 
pay to raise beef, I doubt very much if it can 
be profitably done in New England. There¬ 
fore I think it wiser for New England men to 
LADY FAY,” TYPICAL DAIRY HOLSTEIN. Fig 149. 
Our readers will remember that at the last 
meeting of the Holsteiu-Friesian Breeders’ 
Lamb, and is considered about the highest 
type of the dairy Holstein. The judges at the 
N. Y. dairy show, guided by the “scale ot 
points,” awarded her the highest honors, and 
she verified the wisdom of this judgment by 
winning the sweepstakes prize for milk at 
that show. • 
Rhoda, Fig. 150, is owned by Mr. F. C. Ste¬ 
vens, who regards her as a typical milk-and- 
beef animal as near to the “general-purpose" 
standard as we aie likely to get. Rhoda has 
always been a great milker, having a year's 
record of 21,809 pounds, and a butter record 
of 23 pounds in seven days. She is now nearly 
14 years old and has ceased to breed. The 
greatest weight she has ever attained was 
2,080 pounds. 
FROM SMITHS, POWELL A LAMB. 
Wo believe that the dairy qualities, (those 
concerned in the production of milk and 
butter) in the Holstein-Friesian breed of cat¬ 
tle are of paramount importance, and that 
they should never be sacrificed in any de¬ 
gree in order to secure better beef points; 
but at the same time we do not believe it is 
nectssary to breed entirely away from beef 
qualities in order to retain or even to improve 
the essential dairy qualities. We believe in 
breeding for butter and milk first , last and 
all the time, and with these qualities devel¬ 
oped in the highest degree we wish to retain 
all the beef points possible. 
Syracuse, N. Y. 
FROM J. O. BEAL. 
In practice I have been selecting, feeding 
and breeding with the object of producing a 
large cow that will mature early (if thebe two 
requiiemeuts are not contradictory) with 
great milk and butter capacity, leaving to 
other breeders the task of producing the high- 
esbpricsd beef. It seems impossible here to 
FROM T. O. YEOMANS A SONS. 
We agree more nearly with the views of 
Prof. Johnson than with those of Prof. Mor¬ 
row. Wo believe the Holstein-Friesian is the 
best “general-purpose” cow. and in those 
localities where beof qualities are more of a 
desideratum she can very easily be bred in 
that direction, but our experience convinces 
us that she is the greatest dairy cow the world 
has ever known whether for milk, cheese or 
blitter, aud we think it wise to continue to 
develop her in that line in which she has been 
so long and successfully bred. 
Wayne County, N. Y. 
FROM CORNFORTH A CORNFORTII. 
The majority of people in this country and 
in this State especially, want the Holstein- 
Friesian to be an all-purpose cow. Wo aim 
to breed and raise good, large, well developed 
stock, but in so doing we do not neglect the 
milking qualities a3 we breed to the finest and 
best milk and butter animals we can get. 
We believe that if breeding for beef qualities 
were entirely given up, and no attention were 
given to breeding for large, well-formed 
bodies, the Holstein-Friesians would become 
in a number of years, small ill-formed ani¬ 
mals such as the Jerseys. 
Elbert County, Colorado. 
FROM CHAS. ROBINSON A HON. 
We concur fully with Professor Johnson in 
aiming for all the points wo have already se¬ 
cured and in keeping the Holstein-Friesian a 
strictly dairy breed, continuing to improve in 
that line. We have plenty of beef breeds 
now, and only one strictly dairy breed, viz. 
the Holstein-Friesian. p*L“tus fight itoutou 
that line forever.”) Breeders must stick to 
one thing If they would regard the future. 
Worcester County, Mass. 
give their attention to breeding first for milk 
and butter, and incidentally to producing an 
animal that will ultimately bring a fair figure 
at the block. 
Middlesex County, Mass. 
FROM OERRITT 8. MILLER. 
I coDsidor the Holstein-Friesian emphatical¬ 
ly a dairy breed. It owes its world wide 
reputation to the fact that it produces more 
n\ilk, butter and cheese, per capita, than any 
other breed. But iu addition to this re¬ 
markable dairy feature, it is the equal if 
not the superior of any of the beef breeds in 
one very important feature—that of rapid 
growth, (at the Chicago Fat Stock Show, 
Holstein-Friesians have surpassed their com¬ 
petitors in this respect). This combination of 
excellent dairy and very fair beef qualities is 
one possessed by no other breed in so great a 
degree, and intelligent breeders Bhould not 
only preserve it, but strive to improve upon 
it, always keeping the dairy feature upper¬ 
most. 
Ocean County, N. J. 
A PLEA FOR 8PECIALT1E8. 
O. W. THOMPSON. 
That the general purpose cow has not 
figured favorably in the history of the post 
goes without saying, and the same is likely to 
bo the case in the future. To assume that, 
because the cow is used for both milk and 
beef, therefore au agreement that *• whatever 
is is riaht” would paralyze our every effort in 
Improvement. We might as reasonably ex¬ 
pect to produce a valuable horse for the turf, 
the coach and the city dray, by a careful 
mixing up of Clydesdale and Ilambletouiau 
