Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1846-04-09
ELEVENTH STATE AGRICULTURAL
MEETING IN MASSACHUSETTS.
Management of .Nent Cattle.

Mr.. Gleason had paid some attention to the rails
| ing OF CalVes-and considered a good mixer and
choice stock OF some Importance. His manage
mont was IN raising to put two calves to a COW
by That means, they learned to feed younger. AZ
ter four months the COW is taken from the pasture
and the calves are left His object in raising cows,
was to be sure of good ones. He usually raised
from the Buffalo or no-horned COW, In selecting
COWS, he chose bright eye, thin head, broad hip
thin skin, udder Of yelowish color, and avoided
black tcat.. He preferred pastures near home (;
the cows give more milk by such treatment. He
usually kept salt where they could get access to it
freey-by that means, they would not be likely to
eat too much. BY keeping cows up in winter, they
gave from one to three pints more milk.
Mr.. Gleason was of the opinion that pool keep
ing induced horn all, though there were exceptions
For its cure, he dropped into the nostrils a small
quantity of spirits of urpentine, and By syringe
elected a mixture of pepper, salt and vinegar into
the nostrils, which caused them to blow off mass
of matter from the nose, producing cure. For
the murrain, his practice was to bleed. He was
satisfied with the native breed-it was only neces-
sary to make good selections in regard to good mil
kers.
Mr. Calhoun said he was anxious to get good in
formation on the subject last mentioned by Mr..
Gleason. 1t was very important to ascertain the
best breeds of cows Ii, his part of the country
much attention had been paid to the improvement
of natives. He found great variety of opinions in
regard to foreign breeds. neighbor Of his, an
extensive farmer preferred the Durham for good
Mixers yet most of his neighbors were satisfied
the native is as good-care only is wanted in Sc
Letting proper animals. From his observation and
reading, he had come to the same conclusion. 1t
was matter of economy to raise good creatures,
for it cost no more than poor ones.
Mr.. Buckminster said, it might be that he was
prejudlced; but so far as he had ascertained, the
Durhams with us had not proved what had been eX-
pected OF them; as many good mixers had been
found among the natives as the Durham. He had
found native cows who had produced from Is, 16,
to Is lbs. butter per week. But few Durhams pro-
duced so much. He had pressed Col. Jacques of
Charestown on this question, who always replied
that we had no lull-bood Durhams in this country,
The State Agricultural Society," in their recent
importation of cattle, had selected entirely from the
North Devon and the Ayrshire.
Mr.. Sheldon Of Wilmington, thought the advan-
tage derived from foreign breeds was principally in
crossing them with the native, and leading farmers
to be more choice in their selections for raising
Formerly the butcher had the first choice. His
cattle were mostly from helfer he bought thirty
years ago He preferred, for a COW, a long, lean
head, slim neck, hazel eyes, with other qualities
mentioned He found those of more open ribs
were the best mixers. Those with black eyes usu-
ally had black teats, and he avoided those with a
white rim about the eye. The OK should be broad
between the eyes, or straight back to the hip,
straight legs, no bending inward Of the knees, and
n round hoof.
AS a cure for the horn all, he put soft soap and
salt into square bag, which he placed between
the horns. This invariably cures. He supposed
it was from licking the substance which ran down
the nose For swelngs up, he gave mustard seed
with hogs lard.
Cows give more milk in winter by keeping them
ups it is better to cut their feed, and by warming
their drink the temperature of the brooks in sum.
mer, they will also yield more milk. To get most
work from oxen he gave them chopped hay and In
dian meal. He condemned the bad practice CON-
mon among the farmers of New Hampshire and
Maine, of using whip stick with brad in the
end Of It, as injurious, and tending to an unequal
drawing of the cattle
Mr.. Brooks, of Princeton, had raised many cat
tie, He purchased his calves from the best COWS
he could hear of; they had mostly been of native
breed. lie found most of the Durhams failed in
enduring our hard winters well as the native
The native in his region had been principally of
the Devon Breed imported fifty years SINCE by Mr.
Christopher Gore. lie mentioned among the good
points of COW, slim, narrow, thin neck, not round
deep flank, thin thigh, slim leg, round hoof.
Mr.. Buckminister said it was stated of some En-
gsh cows that they gave thirty-six quarts of milk
per day--half of that quantity was doing well with
us. lie thought that in giving results of the quail
ity of milk yielded, regard should be had to the
size of the animal.
Mr.. Brooks spoke of disease prevalent in his
neighborhood, principally confined to mich cows
under the effects of which they were inclined to
eat bonts-lhis was disease of the bone, which
he had cured by giving them bone meal 1t was
caused by want of lime in the system.
Mr.. Cole said there a time in Chester, Eng
land when this disease prevailed extensively A
cure was effected by the application of bone ma
nure to the soil.
Mr.. Calhoun read some remarks of Mr.. Phinney
in relation to the importation by the State Society,
in which the principal argument in favor of the for
eign Breeds is, that it would require great expense
to improve the native breed all that II is capable of
Mr.. Davenport, of Mendon, spoke of the advan-
tages of good treatment over that of breed in ma
king cows profitable. He found weak lye, one pint
ashes to pail of water, to be good for swelling.
EXPERIMENTS WITH AMMONIA.
NJ