The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1901-02-07
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Thsrs ass many points a similarity
oetwsen the island q jersey, In the
Engllah channel, and the ialand of Ian
Juan. There b. very little difference
In area; the mean annual temperature
and tie rainfAll are approximately the
same and the two islands are much
aiike In their physical characteristics
and productions. but the population Of
Jesey IL more that forty times that Of
San Juan and the annual rental Of land
averages more than the selling price
per acre Of the best farms in this
county.
!, jersey Il eleven miles long and lsAs
than six miles wide, being an irregular
rsctangle tn shape, about the size Of
Staten island, IN New York Harbor.
High rocky cliffs bound it. coast Ola the
north and west; thence the surface
slopes gradually to the south, with val.
leys and plains Of some extent. This
II the home of one Of the most i'm
portant and widely distributed Of the
dairy breeds Of cattle. The island was
known by the Romans - Cesarea, and
it Ii supposed that Jersey" IN q cor
ruption Of that name. Although one
Of the oldest and most loyal parts Of the
British empire, this island, with Its
1000 Inhabitants, IL In appearance a.
much French a. English, the curious
dialect used by most Of its people being
old Norman. The foundation Of the
race Of cattle developed here was prob.
ably the stock Of Normandy and Brit
tany. But early In the eighteenth
century steps were taken to prevent
outside cattle coming to jersey, and In
l779 law was made, which has since
been rigidly enforced, prohibiting un.
der heavy penalties the landing upon
the island Of any live animal of the
bovine race. Jerseys have therefore
been purely bred with certainty, for Q,
longer time than any other breed Of
British origin.
The arabic land of the island Is in
the hands Of about 1900 owners. The
holdings vary from three to thirty
acres, and herds exceeding q dozen
cows are very rare. The soil is ex.
tremely fertile and Its productiveness
is enhanced by mildness Of climate;
the mean temperature Of the year is
81 deg. F. and the average rainfall Ia
80 inches. The ordinary yearly rental
Of land Is $50 to 500 per acre. Exten.
sive pastures, therefore, cannot exist,
and land and grass are 30 valuable that
cattle are never permitted to roam at
large. From time immemorial the GUS
tom has been to tether all animals, and
they are moved several times . day.
They are always led instead Of being
driven, and the handling IL largely
done by women. The COWS remain
out Of doors the greater part Of the year
and are often MIXED In the fields.
Very little grain IL fed, but In addition
to grass and hay the cattle are literally
supplied with roots, chiefly parsnips,
which are abundantiy grown for this
purpose. Under these conditions .
race Of highly organized, delicate and
gentle cattle has been developed. 1t 10
constitutional vigor aud peculiarly free
in its island home from contagious,
congenital and other diseases.
A few Jersey cattle, then generally
known as Attorneys, were brought. to
the United States prior to 1910, but
importations did not become active
until the middle Of the century. Con.
necticut, Massachusetts, and New jersey
led in introducing this breed to Amer
lea, and from 1880 to 1880 importatiOns
were very numerous. Year after year
the little home island exported 1000
animals or more, nearly all coming to
this country. Jerseys have been 80
numerously imported, have increased
90 rapidly in America, have been 80
largely used for grading, and have
proved 80 remarkably well adapted to
. wide range of climate, that the char.
acteristic markings Of no other breed
can he 30 frequently seen wherever
dairy COWS are kept, from the st. Law
renee to the Gulf, and from ocean to