Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1891-03-06
TALK ON JERSEY STOCK.
FIR. George Athens Gives his Views OF
the Jersey Cow-An Interesting Meeting

FIR. George Athens Gives his Views on
the Jersey Cow-An Interesting Meeting.
The lecture in the farmers course ut the
experiment station last week Tuesday was
by George Athens, manager of the Billings
farm at oodstoCk the subject being the
Jersey COW. President Buckham introduced
the speaker who gave one of the best lee
lures Of the course thus far. He said tho
breeding and improvement of our domestic
animals is a problom, which is receiving
great attention. 1t is systematic and
scientific study and research, at tho present
time, more than ever before. For 80 CEN
turtles the laws of breeding have not
only been known, but kept; not only
discovered, but taught and obeyed 10 the
letter. In no other way can we account
for the wonderful uniform and excellence
of the Jersey breed which can be traced
back 5000 years SO exact that strangely
colored hair has never appeared in the hide
Of one of them. With some exceptions the
Improvement OF live stock has been brought
about by individual effort. Times have
changed in the last decade and now we are
living iii an age when intercourse with all
the world means progress and Improvement
while isolation means being left behind in
the race for advancement. A farmer can
not raise all he needs to feed and clothc his
family; lie must adopt some special purpose
in farming; take some crop that the farm and
surroundings are especially adapted to so
that he may uo able to produce it to as
good advantage or II little better than his
ncighbor.
Vermont is we'll adapted to dairying; her
most successful farms have already adopted
this speciality but in order to 10 successful
,t4r
20 work with and those adapted to the
business. Some men after struggling along
Cor years to make butter from poor COWS
will fold their arms and cody inform you
that dairyinS docs not pay. In
MI Likelihood their cows are IL
mixture of all the different breeds
they could get. Instead of trying to breed
for purpose they will keep on making
hash Of their stock by breeding to scrub
bulls. they will tell you as their COWS are
only grades it would be of no advantage to
them to use a thoroughbred bull and rea-
soning will not convince them of their mis-
take. | am often asked what | consider the
best breeds of dairy cattle for Vermont.
Ny answer has always been the Ayrshire
and the Jersey. If for the production of
mill, alone there is no breed that will pro-
duce milk SO economically rs this Ayrshire;
=
good flow of milk on ration that would
barely keep one of the large framed IIol-
stems But il butter is the object sought
there is no breed that can approach the
Jersey in the economical produc-
ton Of a first class article. They
are the best established and purest
breed The speaker gave history of
some of the Jersey cows. Some farmers
say the Jersey thoroughbred bulls are too
high priced, they cannot afford one. This
is not So Farmers can club together and
buy good thoroughbred bull and use him
together Young bulls of this breed can be
bought ut prices only a little in advance of
the price paid tor scrubs. The first crop Of
calves will more than propensate for the
trouble But | would not council the use
Of bull just because he is registered in
herd book. ! believe that a thoroughbred
bull viii improve herd Of scrub cows
though | am well aware there are good and
bad animals in all brcr!,. do not
believe in purchasing stock Mt
fairs because most OF it has been
pushed. This is caused 10y feeding too high
and it generally ruins their constitutions
An animal fatted III this way is in no way
fitted for the rough life of the average farm.
l think that breeding for general purpose
COWS doing great injury and good herd of
Jerseys has never to my knowledge failed
10 pay and never will if properly cared for
The speaker closed by giving some advice
to the ,-ulents, adding that they had an ad-
>aut.s 81 over the older generation, the
knowledge which they obtain at the agri-
cultural college gives them better start in
life and the farmers will look to them for
the ideal way in which to farm to the best
advantage and produce the best results.