Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1919-01-07
The Cows Keeper.

The superintendent of a boys school
where dairy herd is maintained and Il
cared for by the students, recently asket
as Tor an authoritative word which W,
Can use to impress upon our boys tn,
necessity of carefulness, quietness, snC
gentleness in handling the cows
Thinking that possibly our reply may b,
OF interest to others, we reprint il be
low, although it is q somewhat more
intimate and personal statement than w
usually publish. We said:
Possibly the best word we can give
the boys is TO quote the following 'iNo
tice to help" which Ex Governor Hoard
the senior editor of Hoard's Dairyman
keeps posted before the men doing the
work on his farm:
THE rule to be observed in this stable
at all times toward the cattle, young ol
old, is that of patience and kindness
A mans usefulness in q herd ceases al
once when be loses his temper and be,
slows rough usage. Men must bs
patient. Cattle are not reasoning beings
Remember that this is the Home oI
Mothers. Treat each cow as a mother
should be treated. The giving of milk
IS function of motherhood; rough treat
ment lessons the flow. That iujures me
as well as the COW. Always keep these
ideas in mind when dealing with my
CATTLE"
Many years ago, in his lecture OF "The
Dairy Temperament of Cows" Mr..
Hoard said:
"NoW, my friends, you and 1 very
little understand the wonderful connec-
ton between the nervous machinery and
the msmmsry function; if we did under
stand it better, we would use this gentle
mother q great deal better. No finer
truth was ever uttered than that ex-
pressed by Mr.. W. c. White of Wiscon-
sin, q man who illustrated in his person
the sweetest elements Of human nature,
the most successful dairymsn that ever
appeared in our state. When asked how
he treated his cows, be said: Il always
speak TO q COW as / would to a lady.
A great many men reverse it, and speak
to ladies as they would to a cow. But,
my friends, the man who is lacking in
respect for the motherhood of either
does not deserve either"
Let the boys understand that cow is
mother, that she needs the care and
comforts of motherhood if she is to do
her best. No true dairyman believes
the dairy COW can rough 1t and perform
her function to the highest degree. She
must receive the treatment her function
demands or low production of milk will
follow. The cow is honest and does the
very best she can with her talents and
the care she receives from her owner.
There Is tendency upon the part Of
all of US TO overlook little things but it
is the little things that make the differ
ence between profit or loss-success or
failure. See to It that your cows are
well fed. IL pays. See TO Ii that your
cows are comfortable and well kept. 1t
pays. See to it that your cows are
known to you as individuals and that
they have q place 10 your affection. 1t
pays. See TO II that all the little things
around the barn are done well. II pays.
See to IL that kindness and intelligence
govern your every action in caring for
your cows. 1t pays. The man who does
not think it worth the very best there is
In him is not worthy of farming.
1t is not uncommon to hear the dairy
COW spoken of as q machine. Barring
the injustice this does TO the cow as a
sentient, intelligent and responsive be-
ing, there is considerable justification
for applying this sntonym to her for In
many respects she responds to the detini-
tion and purposes OF q machine-so
wonderfully is she designed, so carefully
is she constructed, so dslicstely 10 she
adjusted.
When we consider the dairy COW from
the machine point Of view we find many
similar conditions. She is marvellous in
construction; has nerve force, closely
allied to electricity, which separates,
combines and transforms crude raw
material into refined and useful prod
uct; she has been developed by intelli-
gent breeding and feeding from practical
worthlessness to great and constantly
increasing efficiency; she is thoroughly
responsive to human sympathy and
humane treatment from day to day and
year to year; her productive capacity is
largely governed by the care she receives
and the feed given her. When we con-
slider and compare these resemblances
we begin to realize that the man behind
the cow is = most important factor In
dairy busbandry in developing and main
tanning the efficiency of the dairy COW.