116 THE CULTIVATOR. March, 
Ayrshire Cattle. 
Eds. Cultivator —This breed, which takes its name 
from the county of Ayr in Scotland, where it originated, 
has become widely disseminated; and, if I may credit ac¬ 
counts and authorities, is now, as a dairy breed , the most 
popular in Britain. 
The most authentic accounts represent it to have been 
formed by the union of the Alderney and Teeswater or 
Short-horn, with the ancient stock of the district. This 
is strongly corrobated by the general appearance of the 
animals themselves; not less by their properties—docili¬ 
ty, hardiness, and fecundity in, and richness of. milk. 
The nucleus of the breed appears to have been first 
known under the name of the Dunlop Stock,” having 
been possessed by a distinguished family in Ayrshire, 
by the name of Dunlop, as early as 1780. 
Rawlin, as quoted, by Youatt, who wrote in 1794, 
speaking of the cattle of Ayrshire,^says - —“ They have 
another breed called the Dunlop cows, which are allowed 
to be the best race for yielding milk in Great Britain or 
Ireland, not only for large quantities, but also for rich¬ 
ness of quality.” 
Professor Low says, in his Illustrations, in reference 
to the history of the Ayrshires —“ Authentic records are 
wanting to show by what progressive steps this breed has 
become molded into its present form; but that it had 
spread over a large tract of the country, and had ac¬ 
quired the character of a distinct and well defined breed ” 
Col. Le Couteur, in his paper on Jersey or Alder¬ 
ney cows, published in the Transactions of the New- 
York State Ag. Society in 1850, refers to a statement 
by Quayle, in which he says —“ The Ayrshire is a cross 
between the Short-horn and Alderney.” 
Prof. Low sums up the subject as follows: “ From 
all the evidence, which, in the absence of authentic docu¬ 
ments, the case admits of, it is clear, the dairy breed of 
Ayrshire owes the character which distinguishes it from 
the older race, to a mixture of the blood of the races 
of the continent and the dairy breed of Alderney.” 
As to the leading points and characteristics of the 
Ayrshires, no description is more correct than that of 
Prof. Low. It is as follows: 
li The modern Aryshires stand in the fifth or sixth 
class of British breeds, as it respects size. The horns 
are small, and curve inward at the extremities, after the 
manner of the Alderneys. The shoulders are light, and 
the loins broad and deep—a conformation almost always 
accompanying the property of yielding abundant milk. 
The skin is moderately soft to the touch, and of an orange 
yellow tinge about the eyes and udder. The prevailing 
color is a reddish brown, mixed with more or less white. 
The muzzle is usually dark, though it is often flesh color. 
The limbs are slender, the neck small, and the head free 
from coarseness. 
u The cows are very docile and quiet, and hardy to the 
degree of being able to subsist on any ordinary food. 
They give a large quantity of milk in proportion to their 
size and the food they consume, and the milk is of an 
excellent quality. Healthy cows, on good pasture, give 
800 or 900 gallons in the year—although taking into ac¬ 
count the younger and less productive, 600 gallons may 
be considered a fair average for the low counties and 
somewhat less for the high.” 
Stephens, in the “ Book of the Farm,” and in 11 the 
Farmer’s Guide,” speaking of the milking properties of 
the Ayrshires,. says -—“ They are in such high repute on 
that account, that most of the nobility throughout the 
kingdom are furnished with Ayrshire cows.” 
In relation to their color, he says that, although red 
and white are most common, yet that sometimes a clear 
red or even those of a yellow or dun color, are to be 
seen—that such colors are known to be borne by stocks 
of the purest and oldest blood. 
In regard to the yield of Ayrshire cows. Martin says, 
“ It has been estimated that a good Ayrshire cow will 
yield for two or three months after calving, five gallons 
of milk daily; for the next three months, three gallons 
daily, and a gallon and a half for the next three months. 
This milk it is calculated will return about 250 lbs. of 
butter annually, or 500 lbs. of cheese. This is, however, 
somewhat exaggerated—four or four and a half gallons 
of milk a day is about the average product .” 
The author of ‘‘ British Husbandry” remarks, in re¬ 
ference to this yield—If equalled, we believe it will 
not be found exceeded by any other breed in the king¬ 
dom.” 
Youatt says, in relation to the Ayrshires, that they 
produce an unusual quantity of rich-cream—that they 
feed kindly and profitably, that their fat is mingled with 
the flesh rather than separated in the form of tallow, 
and that they will fatten on pastures and in districts 
where others could not be made to thrive at all, except 
partly or principally supported by artificial food. 
Dickson in his work “ on the breeding of live stock,” 
says of the Ayrshires —“ The cows have obtained a 
world-wide celebrity as milkers, and are to be found in 
most of the dairies of noblemen and gentlemen, in every 
part of the kingdom.” 
The cow u Ayr,” owned by Mr. Prentice near Al¬ 
bany, has given regularly, on grass feed only, over twen¬ 
ty quarts daily through the favorable season, and will 
milk the year round. This cow is of very small size 
and easily kept. Another of Mr. Prentice’s cows—a 
grand daughter of the above, a five-year-old, produced 
in 1851, twelve pounds and seven ounces of butter in a 
week, without the least deviation from the ordinary 
treatment of the herd, on grass only. 
In fact, whether the Ayrshires are judged by their 
actual produce, or by the external points which, by ex¬ 
perience and observation, are acknowledged to denote 
dairy qualities, it must be admitted that they take a 
high rank ; and it is believed that their adoption for the 
dairy would secure the following advantages over the 
stock commonly kept for that purpose in this country: 
1st. A greater quantity and better quality of milk, 
for the food consumed. 
2d Better symmetry and constitution, greater docili¬ 
ty of temperament, and tendency to gain flesh when not 
giving milk. 
3d. Greater uniformity in the general character of the 
stock, from its inherent or hereditary qualities. V. V. 
A Double Furrower 
Eds. Cultivator —I send you the plan of a Double 
Furrower, which we have used five years. We find it 
very handy. It furrows twice as much as the old fash¬ 
ioned w r ay. It can be set two, three, or ff>ur feet apart. 
A. The shoe made of plank, 2 inches thick. 
B. B. Shares; same as those on a double mould board 
plow, bolted on the shoe. 
C. C. These pieces are made of 2 inch plank,and mor¬ 
ticed in the shoe. 
D. D. These rods are made with heads on one end, and 
nut on the other. They pass through the stanchion, C. 
C., through the plank, E., and the upright, F., which 
forms a hinge; the holes are a little larger than the rods, 
and work freely. 
G. Crosspiece, on which are two handles; it is bolted 
loosely on the uprights, and works same as plank, E. 
H. Beam bolted firmly on the plank, E. 
I. Rod to stiffen the beam. 
The plank uprights and crosspiece, are 1| inch stuff 
It is necessary to have a wheel on the beam, the same 
as on a plow. A. T. James. New-Rochelle. Westchestei 
Co., N. F., 1851, 
