Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1877-01-24
agricultural.
Meeting of the Vermont Diarymen's AssO-
citation.

Meeting of the Vermont Diarymen's AsSO-
citation.
The eighth animal meeting Of the Ver-
mont Darymen's Association commence,
mt the ity Hall in Burlington on Wednrs-
day. the l7th inst, and was called to order
by the President, L. d. Mason, Esq, IL
hnIf-past ten in forenoon, when, aftel
prayer by the Rev. Mr.. Atwcl, IN nd
dress of welcome was given by President
Buckham of the Vermont University
President Buckham opened by saying, he
thought perhaps there was not another
subject on which so much gratnitous advice
WAS given by those who were amateurs
merely, or by persons mainly ignorant OF
the matter, rs on the subject of farming
excepting perhaps The subjects of education
and the bringing up of children.
He thought he should resent the preach
ment of such persons if lie were II farmer
rs farmers 50 often did. There were to be
found plenty of people to tlatter the firm.
er, who wanted something Of them; in
huence or votes; and whose flatlcreth his
neighbor spreadeh snare.
Ii he should speak honestly what he
felt, it would be that farmers needed to
understand their business better. The
chief condition Of success or failure, was
the knowledge or ignorance of the subject
or occupation followed.
lie then spoke of the great fortunes OF
Aslor, Stewart and Vanderbilt AS the re
suit Of the thorough knowledge Of their
business. us was also pa enL in such men
us he who built the Victoria bridge, OF
the Crystal Palace. or exploded He'll Gate
In farming there WAS 81 IN lch to he
learned it was almost impossible for one
to know enough To become Il thorol Oh
general farmer, and consequently many
were taking up special branches for study
and practice. Daifymen should know
more Of their specialy;-n three days
since he had heard it stated that not one
third of the butter made in Vermont was
tirst-class. He could see no reason VIII,
every churning or nearly SO should not be-
rst-clnss, though he knew it was not easy
it was not IL matter of chance, but ot
science, of understanding the business, OF
brains. There were vo parts To farming,
the theory and the practical part. In order
for the highest success, both should be un
derstood. not necessarily by the same per
son, but by more than one, whose result
obtained, could be easily nterchangel.
He thought the work done on in expert
mental farm should be that only which
could be better done by an expert, ana
the great burden should be done by tn,
practical farmer. He approved of the
Dairymen's Association, ola rousing gen
eral meeting whose results should be
spread over The state.
President Mason replied briefly and well
after which the meeting adjourned till
half-past two in the afternoon.
WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON.
The Association came to order ut half
past O'Clock, taking up the subject of thu
production OF milk. Mr.. Alger, of Bur
lington, spoke OF the milk supply Of III
city, and gave it rs his belief That the milk
supply of Burlington was generally pure,
and any deficiencies noticed We're referabIe
chiefly to the difference of cows Mills
sold at cents per quart in winter and
GEMS IN summer. Dr. Wakefield, member
of Massachusetts State Board Of Agricul.
ture, was next called on, and gave the rr-
suit OF his experiments on The production
OF milk. When he was called to tn,
cllal &c OF the Stale farm ut Nuns n, ii Gu
about one hundred tons OF hay, when Ii
left it cut about TWO hundred. There was
connected with the farm school of abo
500 children, which took all the milk h,
produce /, and much beside. The d airy
WAS comp Ised of natives, and grade Ayr
sh res II Il short horns; and in loOkin .
over the herd to see how he could get the
best milking race, not the best for bnttel
or cheese, had concluded the Ayrshire,
were the best milking breed. lie had kept
recor of The amount given by every COW
at every milking for the entire eight years
he had the farm in charge.
He had become cpnvInced that the best
food for the COW for milk was the sweet
grass of the hillside, and if she had that
and enough of it, believed she needle.
nolhn. else. This for summer. II,
thought it, would be rather difficult to sue
ctssfully Craze on Vermont hllsides n
the present lime.
The best feed for winter was hay and
bran. H. fe,l cut hay wet with warm wa
ter, and two quart, of bran morning and
night, dry h.y twice day, and ROOFS once
feed Of rohts every day, from the time she
clme into the barn, Till she came out in
the spring.
The average of the herd was forty-0nc
COWS, and they averaged for the whole
year six quarts of milk per COW per day
Tor the Whole eight years, whether in milk
or not or about two and lwo-thirIs tons
per COW. The best COW he ever had gave
5,282 quarts, ut Two and fifteen one-hun
dredths lbs. for the qmrt. lie h ID, for the
last four years, weighed the milk exclusive
ly, us arriving ut the most exact result
lie didn't profess to be able to do much III
making butter; he could churn, liked il
pretty well. lie churned by steam, and
thought it n decided Improvement, in
which opinion the farmers present seemed
to coincide.
Mr.. StO lizard of Poultney inquired il
in feeding turnips in winter he had even
been troubled with any faint. DR.. w
reptile he had had little of it, but on
feeding directly after milking, had found
little trouble; he believed the mangold.
the best for feeding, the most profitable L
raise and the least liable to impLrt any
tant.
Dir w. replied in answer to question
that cotton seed meal would produce tht
mos milk. He had killed out the brush
and brakes by cutting them down two Oh
tree times IL year He lop-dressed all bis
mowings and much of his pastures. Had
used the Slockbridge fertilizer, and had
concluded no one should neglect making
all the barn-yar'l manure he could, though
he thought those fertilizers good. Mr.
Wood, Of Pomfret, in reply, said he kept
COWS for butter, and fed his COWS meal tile
whole year, two quarts per day in sum.
mer, and tile same amount in winter. with
an equal amount of bran, and no roots.
Bran would increase the flow of milk !;
that was not his object; and meal enriched
the milk, increasing the amount and i'm
proving the quality of the butter. Hi
herd numbered fourteen COWS, which this
year averaged two hundred and seventy
five pounds of butter per COW, rs this was
hard year; last year his herd averaged
300 pounds per COW. His cows were Jer.
seys. Mr.. Ellsworth, of Barre, Mass,