a1 
colony was imported, but now we can not only supply our own demand, but in 
the near future, if seasons are favourable and the present progressive spirit 
prevail, Queensland should be drawing large sums of money annually from 
England and elsewhere, which must undoubtedly tend towards the prosperity 
of those gaining their living from the land. About eight years ago, when the ._ 
Travelling Dairy under the auspices of the Department of Agriculture was 
first instituted asa means of educating the farmers, the idea was severely 
criticised by many, but the fact remains that the results exceeded the most ; 
sanguine expectations. Factories and creameries have sprung up in nearly ~ 
every district visited by the Dairy, and many of the managers of these, 
together with hundreds of farmers, are prepared to testify to the value of 
that institution. The Travelling Dairies not only turned out proficient factory 
managers, but imparted a practical knowledge to individual dairymen who 
Were not in a position to join in the factory business, and enabled them to 
make a creditable article. In fact, it is fully admitted by all but those who 
are prejudiced that the Travelling Dairies amply justified the purpose for 
which they were intended. The vast improvement in the quality of our dairy 
produce, not only from factories but private dairies, as compared with that 
_of some years ago, must be apparent to the most casual observer, and proves 
conclusively the rapid strides made during that short period. Many predict 
that the industry will be overdone by the production exceeding the demand, 
but such will assuredly not be the case, as the increasing demand will always 
keep pace with the increasing production. One great point in favour of the 
Queensland dairyman is that milk can be produced here at a less cost than in 
any other country in the world. The farmers have discovered that they must 
place at least a portion of their crops on the market in a more condensed form 
than was the case hitherto, such as in butter, bacon, cheese, &c. It is a well- ' 
known axiom that a succession of crops impoverishes the soil, and to avoid this ji 
a system of mixed farming should be adopted. 
DAIRY CATTLE. 
That the quality of his herd is an important factor in the dairyman’s 
success goes without saying, and the present dairy herds in Queensland are in — 
general, to say the least of them, an inferior lot. In building up a good herd, 
a good milking strain should be aimed at, regardless of breed. Good and bad 
milkers are to be found among all breeds. Very often the progeny from the 
best of milkers is destroyed in the rearing, for if the calf is stunted or badly 
cared for, the animal will never become such a good milker as if it had been — 
treated properly. It is a mistake to think that a good herd can be got together 
under any other circumstances. One often hears the remark that the calf from 
2 cow of exceptional quality turned out disappointingly, which in many cases is. _ 
not to be wondered at when no attention has been paid to its rearing. Good ~ 
breeds in the hands of the careless dairyman will quickly deteriorate. Care and 
feed are absolutely necessary to produce a g90d animal, but as the Americans 
say, “unless it be supplemented with knowledge in breeding, the transmission 
of that quality will be slow and attainments doubtful.” Here is where the 
trouble les: quality has been obtained in many individual cows of different 
breeds, but it has not attained regularity of power to transmit these same 
qualities to the offspring. An excellent ‘guide in the selection of dairy cattle 
is to note how the good qualities are first developed. A. well-known authority 
in America says the work begins by exciting the udder to unnatural activity 
by stripping it continuously of all the milk secreted. Such stripping is a call 
on Nature for more milk, which leads to a call for more blood, then more food 
to produce the blood, &&. This course persistently followed leads to the 
formation, on the part of Nature, of an animal which eats largely, digests, 
and assimilates well. In the case of a beast with a good constitution, additional 
force is expended in elaborating the milk from the large quantity of blood 
produced from the amount of food consumed. Seldom are two men to be 
found who agree as to what is the best breed for dairy purposes, many being 
