The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1894-04-26
EVOLUTION OF THE JERSEY.
PRIZE ESSAY, BY Mics LIZZIE BEcKMANN.

In early times the cattle breeders on
the Island Of Jersey recognized the
fact that, in order to be successful in
the breeding OF cattle, it is necessary
to study the animal and learn wherein
her greatest worth hes. Whether this
be beeb cheese or butter matters not /;
but whether it be, that is the point to
be kept in mind when raising and
feeding stock,
Owing to the scarcity OF pasture on
the island, the cattle were either teth-
cred or fed in stalls. The former, by
the way, is still recognized by the best
authorities as sul error 10 pas;uring at
large. This practice tended to make
the gentle female more gentle, though
on the male it had the opposite effect !;
tits usually necessary to manage the
latter with considerable caution. These
traits have now become characteristic
with the breed
The natural tendency Of the native
COW is to produce very superior
quality of butter, and with knowledge
of this the Jersey has ever been bred
and fed, with view 10 increasing and
enlArgiug this tendency. she stands
pre- eminent today as the cow that will
average not only the finest grained,
most deliclt favored and perfectly
colored butter in the market, but will
produce more butter given amount
OF iced than any other breed.
The Jersey IS handsome COW
fawn colcred coat, creamy ears, clean
white ring around the muzzle, small
horns, gracefully bent and waving or
incurviug as the case may be, long tail,
large pathetic eyes, almost human in
their intelligence and an udder that
goes to show there is ample room for
the secretion Of the milk necessary to
the daily production OF from one to
three pounds of butter.
Her age Of usefulness usually begins
when she is about eighteen months or
two years old, and from that time on
she is self supporting. Young as she
is, she gives enough milk to pay for
Der keep, and if her progeny prosper
she begins thus early in life to earn
more than she spends. But not until
she reaches the age OF seven years
docs she show her real powers. 1t is
now that We discover her capacity to
convert feed into butter, and feel
tempted to conclude that, is systemati-
caly and scientifically fed, her worth
is incompatible.
Advocates of other b eeds usually
otirr her size as a prime objection, but
% The intelligent this objection loses
iwcs when they learn that tests haye
been made which show that, though
the Jersey is small, she is hesvy
feeder, and is able to convert what she
does eatintO cream. Aside from this,
the fact that she is small is in her favor
in the general summing up, as the
smaller she is the less it will require
to keep up her own vitality, and leaves
80 much more of what she does Eat to
be converted into butter.
We all know that a good draft horse
can not be a swift race horse. This
axiom also applies to cows good
beef COW can not be fine butter COW.
and Uice versa.
GOOD butter That is what we claim
for the Jersey. Experiments have
been made which prove that the grain,
flavor and color of butter is inherent
in the milk before it IL drawn from the
COW, and unless this ID Of the finest
quality, all the after care in the world
Can not produce first class butter. 1t
is this Inherent quality that the Jersey
possesses.
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