UMASS/AMHERST « 312Dtifci0aS30HSDl 1- mm ^ilii\i^i''i^^'".Ht'''i!l :iiliji!iji!liliif r^i^v ..d^-^4^^ ''•ise^* DATE DUE 1 UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS LIBRARY SF 191 A98 A7 1900 YEAR BOOK OF THE. Ayrshire Breeders ..FOR... 1900 ^ ^ E VlHI -^^ ^ ISSUED BY THE flyrsbire Breeders* H$$ociatiol«. BRANDON, VT. BRANDON PUBLISHING COMPANY. 1 900. liNIVFRSiTY OF AMh'eRSXMASS. (o O (o . A. ^ A w 7a- 1^ o-t> PROCEEDINGS. The twenty-fifth annual meeting of the Ayrshire Breeders' Association was held January 24th, 1900, in the parlor of the United States Hotel, Boston, Mass., in response to call of the secretary and was called to order by the president, ly. S. Drew, at 2 p. m. The roll call was responded to by the following members in person : Clark, Franklin P. Knnis, Alfred A. Fletcher, Etna J. Garvin, W. R. Hayes, Charles S. Joslin, H. S. Magie, J. O. Sage, Charles D. Wells, S. M. Winsor, Nicholas S. Yeaton, Geo. H. The following members responded by proxy : Brown, Obadiah Drew, L. S. Fletcher, Geo. A. French, J. D. W. Hayes, Charles H. Hazard, Isaac Leach, Philo Piper, Anson C. Smith, Daniel A. Winslow, CM. Arnold, Geo. W. Babcock, F. M. Barnes, N. Blodgett, H. W. Bowker, Geo. H. Boynton, C. H. Byrne, Christopher Cloud, James & Son Converse, J. F. Cornell, F. P. Drummond, James Ayer, H. S. Bacon, P. K. Bement, George Blodgett, J. W. Bowen, Edward S. Butterfield, Jerome F. Casterline, J. Andrew Coldron, J. N. Cookingham, H. W. Curtis, L. W. Dorn, Elmer J. ;ij / 4 ^' Foote, T. L. Gold, T. S. Harrington, H. A. Irving, Thomas Krebs, J. DeWitt Norton, W. H. Peck, Cassius Perley, Charles Reeves C. Mc Scribner, G. S. Shinier, B. Luther Smith, Oliver Spalding, ly. C. Stowell, L. D. Tschud}', Fred Underbill, C. S. Watson, H. R. C. Foss, J. M. Hall, IvOtt Hunt, A. W. Jackson, AV^ard R. Larned, J. H. Peck, C. L. Pierce, Geo. H. Proctor, Fletcher D. Scott, John W. Sears, B. C. Smith, E. A. Smith, Peter D. Stevens, Wm. Stanford Surget, James Tubbs, Ambie S. Viner, Wm. Wells, Dudley Whitney, C. P. The following breeders of A3^rshire cattle, not mem- bers of the Association, were present : Samuel G. Copeland, West Bridgewater, Mass. B. F. Barnes, Haverhill, Mass. W. I. Bartholomew, Putnam, Conn. John T. Wade, Taunton, Mass. Aaron Gay, Stoughton, Mass. Davis Copeland, Campello, Mass. F. C. Pierce, Concord, Mass. Thomas A. lyillibridge, Norwood, Mass. Benjamin F. Davis, South Lee, N. H. Leonard H. Kimball, Haverhill, Mass. Harry B. Carter, North Barrington, N. H. Frank T. Moore, West Peabody, Mass. Chauncey Gleason, Haverhill, Mass. K. E. Saw3^er, Atkinson, N. H. 5. SECRETARY'S REPORT. It is with feelings of sadness that I have to record the loss of our treasurer, Mr. Henry K. Smith, who died this last fall. He was a man that commanded our re- spect for his strict integrity and care in business, and acquaintances found him a genial and true friend, and we, who knew him well, shall miss him. I have a no- tice here I would like to read from the Providence Jour- nal, and after that to move that a committee be appointed by the chair consisting of two, wdio shall draft proper resolutions in regard to Mr. Smith's death. The secre- tary read the following : HENRY E. SMITH, DIED SEPT. 23d, 1899. IN MKMORIAM. Whereas, it has pleased the Great Ruler over all in whom we live and have our being to call Henry E. Smith, our friend, fellow citizen, director and president to the Divine Beyond, we hereby desire to express our esteem and appreciation for him as a man, citizen and officer of the bank, and to commemorate the pleasant memories of our associations with him by recording this testimo- nial in the records of the National Exchange bank and publishing the same in the Providence Daily Journal and the Pascoag Herald. We also, as a Board of Directors, hereby extend to the family and relatives of the deceased our sympathy and condolence in their unexpected bereavement. N. S. WINSOR, ) A. P. MOWRY, - Committee M. I. MOWRY, 3 The President — I appoint Obediah Brown and Mr. French to draw up those resolutions. The membership of the Association has been in- creased by the addition of the following : Geo. Davidson, Fairfax, P. Q. Edward Kemp, New York. E. A. Schouten, Cortland, N. Y. John W. Scott, Austin, Minn. 6 William Jay, Katonali, N. Y. Franklin Doane, Middletown, N, Y. N. E. Sears, Elmwood, Conn. Howard Cook, Beloit, Ohio. George E. Pike, Gouverneur, N. Y. Ira W. Jones, Alfred, N. Y. Elmer J. Dorn, Johnstown, N. Y. Beside the death of our treasurer I have had only the death of Henry Thorp, Charlotte, Vt., reported. Volume XII is printed and about i,ooo animals al- ready- recorded for Volume XIII. The plan of issuing an attractive year book has proved a success, and has done much good I believe. For 1898 we issued 500 which proved not enough, so in 1899 we issued 1,000 copies and the}^ are all gone. I know of no wa}^ we can scatter information for so little money as in the issue of an attractive year book, but the trouble is to obtain good photographs and records of the dairy 3deld of Ayrshire cows. We h'ive a good many photographs sent us, and they look as though the cows were good ones, and if the artist had known how to pose her he could have taken a desirable picture. It needs a large photograph to get a good half-tone, also the cow should stand in a graceful position. A side view, a little to the rear and on a level is the best. I cannot understand wh}^ it should be so difficult to obtain reliable milk and butter records, and it seems strange that when the Association offers such induce- ments to breeders to test their cows that so few aA'ail themselves of this opportunit^^ for there is nothing that attracts buyers like a milk and butter record and it is not necessary that it should show wonderful cows. I think Mr. Drew and Mr. Yeaton would both tell you that the records of their herd which they have pub- lished have been the direct means of bringing them 7 ■ many customers, and I believe the fact of their being sold short always is largely due to the printed records of their cows. A good many Ayrshires have been brought in from Canada the past year and one importation from Scot- land. This herd, numbering about a dozen, w^as brought over by Mr. John R. Valentine of Bryn Mawr, Pa. I saw them when in quarantine at Garfield, N. J., and they looked like strong constitutional cows and a good type of the Scotch-bred cows. They were all of them dry and looked to be heavy in calf. I also saw a good many in Canada that had been recently imported and most of those had the same appearance of the Scotch type. Some of the Canadians promised to make tests and records of their imported cows and send them to me, but as yet I have not received any. There seems to be a good deal of inquiry for Aj^rshires and some sales, es- pecially to go west. I lately shipped a carload to Santa Barbara, Cal., about half of them being bulls, and most of them consigned to parties who want them to cross on Jersey cows. Mr. Henry Wade of Toronto is trying to consoli- date the Canada herd-books under one head at Toronto and cut out everything that does not trace to importa- tion. His efforts are meeting with success, and his late volumes are recording only such cattle as have a clear pedigree tracing to importation. . The States are Canada's best market and she wishes to place her herd-book on a similar footing with ours to inspire confidence and attract buyers. REPORT OF FAIR=GROUND TEST, I899. In accordance with the vote of the iVssociation, at its annual meeting, held February i. 1899, your com- mittee issued the following circular : SECRETARY'S OFFICE, Ayrshire Breeders' Association, • Brandon, Vt., Februarj^ 15, 1899. The Aj^rshire Breeders' Association offers a special premium for the season of 1899 of $25 00 — $15.00 to first and $10.00 to second — to the two A^^rshire cows, regis- tered in the A3^rsliire Record, that shall score the high- est from one day's milking on your Fair Ground at the time of holding your Fair, the butter fat, not to fall below 3.70 per cent, butter fat as determined by the Bab- cock test, and the award to be decided by the following SCAEE OF POINTS : For each 20 da3^s since calving, - - i point. For each 15 days of gestation, - - - i '' For each pound of milk in 24 hours, - i " For each pound of butter fat in 24 hours , - 20 points. Provided, however, that your Fair Association will offer a like amount, making the whole premium offered amount to $30.00 to first and $20.00 to second, and that your Fair Association take the full charge oi the testing, and return a full official report of the test to the Secre- tary of the A3Tshire Breeders' Association. C. M. WINSLOW, Secretary. Which was sent on March 5th to the Illinois State Fair. Maine " " New" England Fair. New Hampshire Grange Fair. New Jersey State Fair. New York Ohio c 03 o X CN Penns3'lvania State Fair. Rhode Island '' St. Louis Fair, St. Louis, Mo. and later to the Valley Fair, Brattleboro, Vt. Cambridge Fair, Cambridge, N. Y. The Rhode Island, St. Louis, Valley and Cam- bridge fairs accepted. At the Rhode Island fair Mr. S. M. Wells entered two cows, both of which fell below qualifying standard for one milking, but the second milking of one was suf- ficiently high :o allow the average of the two milkings to stand at 3.75 per cent., and the Rhode Island fair waits instructions as to whether the wording not to fall below 3.70 per cent, means for either milking or for the average of the two. At the Cambridge fair cows were entered b}^ L- C. Spalding & Son and by E. H. & C. S. Barney, and I am informed that a cow of Mr. Barney's averaged over 3.70, but that all the cows fell below 3.70 at one milk- ing, and that the Fair Association ruled that all cows were disqualified. The St. Louis fair were to offer the special, but as they have not reported results we are unable to sa}^ what was done. At the Valley Fair Rose Clovis won first and Rose Clenna second, both owned by CM. Winslow & vSon. Rose Clovis showed 4.65 per cent, of butter fat. Rose Clenna "4.12 Your committee would suggest that if it is thought best to continue the fair ground tests that the Associa- tion state whether both milkings shall reach 3.70 per cent., or whether the average of the two shall reach 3.70 per cent., also that no cow shall be entitled to a premium making less than i^-^ pounds of butter, figured on a basis of adding one-sixth to the result of multiply- lO ing the pounds of milk oriven b}' the per cent, of butter fat, this being the Experiment Station standard. J. D. W. FRENCH, ] Committee on C. M. WINSLOW, ) Dairy Tests. It was voted to construe the Rhode Island fair test of Mr. Wells' cow to be the average of the two milkings and award him first prize on the cow that averaged 3.75 per cent, butter fat. HOHE DAIRY TEST. REPORT OF COMMITTEE. For some years your committee on dairy tests has be;:n tr5dng in every wa3^ to obtain reliable statistics of the dair}^ 3neld of Aryshire cows, but with little com- parative success. They have urged the breeders to test their cows. The3^ have devised ways in which it would be no expense to the owners of cows, and last j^ear the Association offered $100 in prizes in addition to pa3'ing all the expense of the test, and still Ave are unable to re- port any but the same old herds. Your committee prepared the following circular and sent to ever}^ owner of five or more AA^rshire cows, as we believe, in the United States, and four herds responded as follows : Geo. H. Yeaton, Dover, N. H. C. H. Ha5-es & Sons, Portsmouth, N. H. E. S. Drew, South Burlington, Vt. C. M. Winslow & Son, Brandon, Vt. AYRSHIRE BREEDERS' ASSOCIATION. HOME DAIRY TEST, 1 899. For several years the officers of the Ayrshire Breed- ers' Association have been tr3dng to obtain reliable rec- ords of the dairy ability of the A3''rshire cow. While the response has not been general it has been sufficient to demonstrate the fact that the A3"rshire cow is natu- II rally a dairy cow of great ability, both in the production of butter and milk, and that it onl}^ needs a little atten- tion on the part of her owners to ascertain by test which are the profitable cows, and having found them, to breed judicioush^ and the Ayrshire cow will take rank with the best dairy breeds of the world, if not at the head of all. The Association, for the purpose of making a still further attempt to obtain statistics, voted at its last an- nual meeting to authorize the "Dairy Committee" to conduct a Home Dairy test for seven consecutive daj^s to obtain a week's record of quantit}^ of milk, per cent, butter fat, per cent, total solids and pounds of market- able butter with the cost of butter per pound, and voted to offer three prizes for the largest amount of butter ob- tained in seven consecutive days from a herd of five cows, $50 to the first, $30 to the second and $20 to the third. RULES OF TEST. Herds of cows will be tested for individual records = Any breeder of Ayrshires may enter a herd of cows, w^hich shall at the time of notice of entry stand on the books of the Association as owned b5^him. He shall in giving notice of entr}^, furnish the secretary with a full list of the cows he proposes to have tested, giving name and herd-book number and stating the time w^hen he would prefer the test to be made. He may name as many of his cows for the test as he chooses and may have as many of those named tested as he chooses, but no notice of entry will be accepted after December i, 1899. The time of having the test made is optional with the owner, but notice must be given the secretary at least one month previous, that arrangements ma}^ be made for the test. The owner need not name the indi- vidual cows he enters for the herd prize, until after the test of the herd has been made. He ma}' also have as 12 man}' tests, of cows named in the notice, made during the year as he desires, but shall give notice to the sec- retar}^ of each test he proposes to have made and shall himself employ and pa}^ the agent for all tests after the first test made b}- the Association, as the Association will pa3^ for only one visit of the agent, and he shall cm- ploy the same agent the Association employed for the first test. In making his selection of the five cows for the herd, he ma^^ select an}' cow that was in the test made by the Association or by himself under the dire'c- tion of the Association, as above stated. He shall in making the final entry, fill out a blank furnished by the secretary, giving name and number of each cow, her age and weight, the number of calves she has produced, the date of birth of last calf, and date of last service by bull since last calf was dropped. A statement, as accurate as possible, is requested of tlie method of feeding and care for at least two weeks previous to test, and during the seven days of the test a statement of the exact amount of food given each cow with its local market cost. If the cows are in pasture, give the local price per week for such pasturing and an exact account of an}^ other food given. Also state the local price paid for butter. The object is to obtain the cost of the but- ter, but in awarding the prize it is for the large^^t quan- tity regardless of cost. The tests will be made as far as possible by agents from the Experiment Station, or some other disinterest- ed and competent persons, who will see the cows milked clean twelve hours previous to the beginning of the test, and will weigh and test the milk of each cow at each milking during the test, or he may tCvSt from a compos- ite sample, being left optional and governed by the nec- essities of the case, but if he shall make a composite sample he shall place a seal on each jar of milk each time after adding milk to the composite sample in the 13 jar and take such other care of samples as shall ensure freedom from suspicion of its having been tampered with. The test shall be made bj^the "Babcbck Tester" and the "Quevenne I^actometer, " and the quantit}* of marketable butter shall be calculated by the addition of one-sixth to the butter fat. It will be expected that persons entering herds for the Home Dairy Test will entertain the agent while making the test, free of charge, and give him every fa- cility for carrying on test. J. D. W. FRENCH, North Andover, Mass., C. M. WINSLOW, Sec'y, Brandon, Vt., Committee on Dair}^ Tests. GEORGE H. YEATON. I wish to enter the following herd of five cows, for the prize of- fered by the Ayrshire Breeders' Association for the "Home Dair^ Test" for 1899 : Date of birth Date of last No. of of bull service Name No. Age Weight calves last calf since calving Lad3^ Fox, 9669 13 975 11 Mar. 30, '99 Annie Bert , 9670 12 900 10 April 23, '99 Lukolela, 12357 6 1000 4 Mav 2, '99 Xoa, 11469 8 950 5 Jan."' 3, '99 Feb. 16, '99 lona S, 12350 7 950 4 ( Sig-nci Jan. 28, '99 d) GEO. H. May 7, '99 YEATON. NEW HAMPSHIRE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND THE MECHANIC ARTS. AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. Durham, N. H., Dec. 2, 1899. Results of the test of the Ayrshire herd owned by George H. Yeaton, Rollinsford, N. H., conducted by Mr. Arthur Given and Mr. C. H. Waterhouse, May 15 to 21 inclusive: Lbs. Per cent. Per cent. Lbs. Lbs. Cow milk solids fat fat butter Lukolela, 428.5 12.4 3.8 16.27 18.98 Annie Bert, 333.2 12.0 42 13.98 16.31 Lady Fox, 334.3 119 3.7 12.32 14.37 lona S., 247.8 11.7 4.5 11.16 13.02 Xoa, 282.4 12.1 3.8 10.72 12.41 1626.2 12. 4. 64.45 75.09 FRED W. MORSE, Vice-Director. 14 SUMMARY. Five cows, 1626.2 milk, 12 per cent, total solids* 4 per cent, fat, 75.09 butter. FEED PER COW FOR SEVEN DAYS. 30 lbs. hay per day at $12 per ton, $1.26 8 lbs. mixed feed per day at $18 per ton. 50.4 8 lbs. gluten feed per day at $18 per ton, 50.4 4 lbs. cotton seed meal per day at $25 per ton, 35. 2.61.8 5 Seven days' feed for five cows, ' $13.09.0 Cost per pound butter, 17.42 cents. FEED BEFORE THE TEST. 30 lbs. hay per day at $12 per ton. $1.26 5 lbs. mixed feed per day at $18 per ton, .45 5 lbs. oluten feed per day at S18 per ton, .45 21/2 lbs. cotton seed per day at $25 per ton, .22 $2.38 5 11.90 CHARLES H. HAYES & SONS, I wish to enter the following herd of five cows, for the prize of- fered by the Ayrshire Breeders' Association for the "Home Dairy Test" for 1899 : Name No. Age Date of birth No. of of W'glit calves last call Date of last bull service since calving Lady Marcia, Hersa, Cromona, Cherr\^ Blossom, Ladv Briarwood mil 11204 11436 12389 ,11434 9 8 8 5 8 1200 6 Mar. 19, '99 1000 7 Mar. 28, '99 1000 6 April 20, '99 1100 4 Mar. 18, '99 1200 6 Feb. 22, '99 May 5, '99 (Signed) C. H. HAYES & SONS. NEW HAMPSHIRE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE .\ND THE MECHANIC ARTS. AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. Durham, N. H., Jan. 10, 1900. Results of the test of the Ayrshire herd belonging to C. H. Hayes & Sons, Portsmouth, N. H., May 2 to 8. 1899: Lbs. Per cent. Per cent. Lbs. Name milk solids fat butter Ladv Marcia, 381X 12.0 3.3 14.67 Hersa, 295V2 11.7 3.7 12.78 Cromona, 272% 12.2 4. 12.74 15 Name Cherry Blossom, Briar'wood, Lbs. milk 276% Per cent. solias 11.25 11.8 11.79 Per cent, fat 3.4 3.6 3.6 Lbs. butter 11.65 11.63 6347 151634 The tests were conducted and anal_vses made by Messrs. C. H. Waterhouse and Arthur Given. FRED W. MORSE, Vice-Director. SUMMARY. Five cows, 15.16% pounds of milk, 11.79 percent, total solids, 3.6 per cent, fat, 63.47 pounds butter. COST OF FEED PER COW. 15 lbs. of hay at $8 per ton, 15 lbs. ensilage at $2.50 per ton, 15 lbs. beets at $4 a ton, 15 lbs. brewer's grains at .05 per bushel, 8 lbs. grain mixed at $20 per ton. Cost of feed for five cows for seven daj-s, Cost per cow, 20% cents. Cost of one pound butter, 11.09 cents. ,06 .01% .03 .01% .08 $7.04 L. S. DREW. I wish to enter the following herd of five cows for the prize of- fered bv the Avrshire Breeders' Association for the "Home Dairv Test" for 1899 : Date of birth of last calf Name No. Age Nett 3d, 12647 6 Miss Edna, 13218 4 Sadie Tascott, 11483 8 Miss Ollie, 12039 6 Ladv Sears, 12641 6 Estimated No. of w^eis-lit calves 1000 4 Mar. 27, '99 1000 2 April 24, '99 1000 6 April 30, '99 1000 4 Oct. 18, '98 1000 4 April 12, '99 (Signed) L. S. DREW. TEST OF HERD OF MR. L. S. DREW. May 9-15, 1899. Name Nett 3d, Miss Edna, Sadie Tascott, Miss Ollie, Ladv Sears, Lbs. of milk 312.5 272.5 292.5 208.5 271.0 Per cent, total solids 12.87 12.93 12.73 14.05 12.40 Per cent, fat 3.90 4.01 3.68 4.76 3.63 Lbs. of fat 12.20 10.94 10.77 9.93 9.83 Lbs. butter fat plus 1-6 14.23 12.76 12.56 11.58 11.47 1357.0 13. 4. 53.67 62.60 Correct, JOSEPH HILLS, Director Vermont Experiment Station. i6 SUMMARY. Five cows, 1357 pounds milk, 13 per cent, total solids, 4 per cent, fat, 62.60 pounds butter. FEED. 36 lbs. hay per day at $8 per ton, 1 0008 IV^ lbs. gluten meal per da3^ at $22 per ton, .1155 22 ozs. bran per day at $18 per ton, .09 Food for one cow one week, Food for five cbws one week. Cost of butter per pound, .0964. 1.2063 5 $6.0315 C. M. WINSLOW & SON. I wish to enter the following herd of five cows for the prize of- fered bv the Avrshire Breeders' Association for the "Home Dairv Test" for 1899: Date of birth Est, No. of of Age weight c'lves last calf 6 1050 4 Aug. 22, '99 950 1050 1050 1050 Name Rose Sultana, Rose Allie, Rose Cleon, Rose Deruth, Thoretta, No. 12072 11154 11143 10346 10258 / 9 12 30, 29, • 2, 30, C. '99 '99 '99 '99 M, Date of last bull service since cah'ing Sept. 16, '99 Nov. 15, '99 Jan. 1, '00 Oct. 10. '99 Dec. 22, WINSLOW. '99 5 Oct. 6 Oct. 7 Sept Oct. (Signed) TEST OF HERD of C. M. Winslow & Son, conducted under the direction of the Ver- mont Experiment Station. J. L. HILLS, Director. Lbs. but- ter fat pJtis 1-6 12 86 12.67 Name, Rose Sultana, Rose Allie, Rose Cleon, Rose Deruth, Thoretta, Lbs. of milk 295.5 250.8 210.3 229.5 223.8 Per cent, total solids 12.15 13.14 13 17 12 51 12.49 Per cent, fat 3.73 4.33 4 19 3.75 3.60 Lbs. butter fat 11.02 10.86 8.81 8.61 8.06 1209.9 12.69 3.92 47.36 SUM.VIARY. Five cows, 1210 pounds milk, 12.69 per cent, total 3.92 per cent, fat, 55.26 pounds butter. FEED FOR ONE COW SEVEN DAYS. 40 lbs. hay per day at $8 per ton, 4 lbs. bran per day at $16 per ton, 2 lbs. corn meal per da\^ at $18 per ton, 1(1.28 10.05 9.40 55.26 soli U. Cost of feed for five cow^s seven days. Cost of butter, 13Xc. per pound. $1.12 .22 126 $1.46.6 5 $7.33.0 17 The Secretary — At the meeting of the Executive Committee, held this morning, it was voted to recom- mend the continuation of both the Fair Ground and Home Dairy tests, with the same appropriation as last 3^ear, also to accept the recommendations of the commit- tee on tests for the changes voted in the rules of the test. It seemed to the Executive Committee that while the re- sponse from the breeders and owners of Ayrshires was surprisingly few that it all the more behooved the Asso- ciation to do all they could to encourage and urge upon the breeders of Ayrshires the advantage of these official tests, in that it now and then gave valuable statistics for the breed, and encouraged the breeder to improve his herd by knowing which were the best cows in his own herd, and where to go for stock with which to build up and improve in dairy lines. While the announce- ment that a cow has won the blue ribbon in the ring may be gratifying, it really means but little, for she ma}^ have been the best type of an Ayrshire cow in the ring, and she may not, but to win the prize in a dairy test means just what it purports to be, for the tests are con- ducted by competent and disinterested parties and the verdict means something. Mr. Hayes — I move the acceptance of the report and the dairy tests be continued with the same appro- priation. The motion was seconded and unanimoush^ adopted. The President — A motion is made to appoint the same committee as last year. Those in favor make it manifest by saying a^^'e. Unanimous vote.) The President — Listen to a report of the com- mittee appointed to draft resolutions in regard to Mr. Smith's death which will be read by the secretary : Whereas, it has pleased our Heavenl}^ Father in His wise Providence to remove from our midst our late i8 treasurer, Henr}^ E. Smith, we hereby desire to express our esteem of his sterling qualities, as a friend and brother member, and also our keen sense of apprecia- tion of his long and faithful service of thirteen ^^ears as Treasurer of the Ayrshire Breeders' Association. We desire that a copy of these resolutions be placed on record and that they be sent to his family to whom we extend our sincere sympathy in their great bereave- ment. Mr. MagiE — Mr. President : I think we, as an Association, do not fully realize what we have lost in the death of Mr. Smith. Having been one of the com- mittee to examine his accounts for some years, it has given me great pleasure to see in what a plain, business- like manner he kept the books, so easily examined, and I sincerely concur in this resolution. The President — You hear the resolutions. Those in favor please rise. (Unanimous rising vote.) NEW nEHBERS. The Secretary — I have the names of candidates for membership which 1 wnll read : Walter F. Scott, Brandon, Vt. ; George L- Rice, Rutland, Vt. These I recommend and I think Mr. Drew will recommend them also. The President — I will. The Secretary — We have the names of Benja- min F. Davis, South Lee, N. H. ; Chauncey Gleason, Haverhill, Mass. ; B. F. Barnes, Haverhill, Mass. ; H. F. Cater & Son, North Barrington, N. H. ; Eugene A. Holt, Bennington, N. H. ; Frank T. Moore, West Pea- body, Mass. ; Frederick Kimball, East Haverhill, Mass.; these are recommended by Mr. Garvin and Mr. Yeaton. The Vermont Experiment Station, by CassiusPeck, Burlington, Vt., farm superintendent, recommended by Mr. Drew and myself; Alfred J. Ta3dor, 257 Broadway, 19 New York, recommended by Mr. Hayes ; John A. Tay- lor, Owego, N. Y., recommended by Mr. E. A. Schau- ten of Cortland, N. Y. A motion was made that they all be elected. The President — You hear the motion, that they all be elected members upon payment of the member- ship fee. (Unanimously adopted.) The President — We will now call for the treas- urer's report. The Secretary — Mr. President : At my request Mr. Winsor prepared a report of the treasurer's (Mr. Smith's) account, starting with the account as he took it at the last meeting and adding to that the amount that is in my hands at the present time not paid over which I think he will read. The acting treasurer, Mr. Winsor, then proceeded to read the report as stated above, it having been aud- ited by Messrs. Brown and Magie. AYRSHIRE BREEDERS' ASSOCL\TION IN ACCOUNT WITH HENRY E. SMITH, TREASURER RECEIPTS. 1899. Feb. 1. Cash on hand $ 790.19 Sale of herd-book-- 10.25 Deposit in Smithfield Savings bank 2,631.32 Nov. 1. Interest on deposit 112.28 $3,544.04 EXPENDITURES. 1899. Expense of annual meeting $19.20 Express and postage 1.39 Balance on hand, viz: Deposit in Smithfield Savings bank $2,631.32 Mavl5. Deposited in bank 300.00 Nov. 1. Deposited in bank 450.00 Interest on deposit 112.28 Cash ." 29.85 $3,523.45 $3,544.04 Auditor's report of balance in hands of secretary 523.82 Total cash assests $4,067.86 20 The President — Gentlemen, what will you do with this report? Mr. Hayes — I move it be accepted and adopted. The President — Gentlemen, will 3'ou accept and adopt it? (Unanimous vote for its adoption.) The Secretary — I received the following from F. A. Converse, secretar}^ of the New York state Breed- er's Association. Copy of resolutions passed b}'^ New York State Breeders' Association, D.^cember 7, 1899: Whereas, such a marked difference in t^^pe of the Ayrshire cattle exists between several breeders that it practically forbids an attempt to judge correctl}^ b}" the comparative system, and that this constitutes a great source of error and dissatisfaction, therefore be it Resolved, that the Ayrshire Breeders' Association of United States and Canada be requested to make their scale of points more exact and clear, and that they no- tify the secretary of this Association of their action. The Secretary — The above request to revise our scale of points was laid before the Executive Com- mittee, and they voted to recommend to the Association that it be referred to the Executive Committee to ap- point someone to revise. It needs a vote b}- the Asso- ciation if they wish to have the scale of points revised, and either appoint a committee themselves or refer it to the Executive Committee. The lavSt scale of points was made February 21, 1889, and it seems, for the good of the Association, that once in ten 3^ears or so, we should look over the scale of points and see if there is need of any change. Mr. Hayes — I move it be left in the hands of the Executive Committee. (The motion was seconded and adopted b}^ unani- mous vote.) The Executive Committee referred it to J. D. W. French and CM. Winslow. 21 The Secretary — Mr. President : The Canada people are ver}^ anxious to get into our herd-book be- cause our government requires an entry in our herd- book before the}^ will admit them free of duty. The Canada people have for several years past been working over their pedigrees trying to look up the missing links and trace each animal through definite animals to im- portation in order that they may be eligible to registry in our book for the purpose of sales across the line. At present our government does not look upon a registry in the Canada Ayrshire books as a sufficient guarantee of purity of blood, they not having been very particular about their records and admitting to their appendix the registry of animals of doubtful purit)^ but now that ever}^ Ayrshire that is sold to come over the line free of duty must be registered in our book they have revised their book and are throwing out all that we will not ac- cept, in the hope that our government wnll accept a reg- istry in this book as authorit}^ and save them the trou- ble and expense of registering in our book. There have been quite a number of Ayrshires im- ported from Canada within the past two years which were obliged to pay duty because the}^ were not eligible to registr}^ in our book. Then, too, the Canadians are anxious to have our government accept their book as au- thority' because there are a good man^?- of their old fam- ilies of A^^rshires which until recently have had a flaw in their pedigree and were not eligible to our book, but now they claim to have them straightened out and elig- ible. But there are so many unrecorded animals between the present animals and the imported ones that the ex- pense of a record in our book prevents a sale when the record must be made before importation. But if their book was received as authorit}^ the purchaser would not find out his mistake until he had brought his animal over the line and wanted it entered in our book. Thev 22 wrote me the other day and asked me to bring up before our Executive Committee the matter of two cows which they were ver^' anxious to have recorded in our herd- book, because the}' would not accept in their herd- book anything that was not eligible to ours. They have got these two cows down so the}^ are quite sure that each cow is out of one of two certain cows and sired by one of two certain bulls, but just which the}^ do not know^ ; but it is their ver}^ strong opinion that it is b}^ one of two cows by one of two bulls, and the^^ request us, in order to admit several hundred of their cattle into good stand- ing, to make a departure in our herd-book and substi- tute two dams and two sires for one calf. When the matter was brought up before the Executive Committee this m^orning. it was decided to recommend the Associa- tion to instruct the Secretary that when the}^ can be sat- isfied themselves that the animal is from one dam and one sire, by name and number, and will sj record it in their herd-book, we wall accept them, otherwise not. But it remains for the Association to settle that matter. The President — Gentlemen, what do 3^0 u say? Mr. Hayes — I move it be left as the Executive Committee recommended. (Motion adopted b}' a unanimous vote.) The Secretary — Mr. President : The Canadians have felt it was a great hardship to have to pay so much to get into our books. For a great man}^ years it was of no great consequence to them whether they got in or not, but at the present time they are making sales from Canada over here, sending cattle to buyers, and they have to be recorded in our herd-book before the}^ can get in without duty. A great man}^ of their cattle of late 3'ears, b}^ the strenuous efforts of a good manj^ men, have been identified so that an animal which formerly traced back to a herd, or one or two cows has now been traced to one dam. But it happens ver}' often, in order to register an animal they have to record 50, 75 or 100 cows, and I received a letter from Mr. Galium the other day saying it was going to cost $25 to register one calf, and it was not worth any more than that. At the request of the secretary, Henry Wade, who is tr3dng to put their book on a solid basis, I met him and we agreed on the following terms, provided the As- sociation acquiesced : We require that a member of our Association shall pay one dollar for the entrj^ of an ani- mal and for ancestors, (the record of w^hich is of no val- ue to him except to connect animals already recorded as importation) shall pa}' twent3'-five cents apiece. I arranged with Mr. Wade, if our Association would en- dorse it, that I would recommend that the}' be allowed, if they wanted to sell an 3^ cattle over here, to enter their animal at one dollar and one dollar each for all animals back of it necessar}' to connect the pedigree in our book or to importation up to ten animals, and all back of ten animals at twent3'-five cents apiece. He was satisfied and said that if we would do that the3^ could have their cattle recorded. I thought that was a fair offer and we can afford to accept them under those conditions. It would make it rather expensive for them an3^wa3'. If we hadn't done that, the3' would send the animal over here to the bu3'er and he would get it recorded at twent3'- five cents, so that I thought on the whole, we would be mone3" in and I thought it wise to do it : but it needs the endorsement of the Association. The President — What does the Association sa3' ? Mr. Hayes — As I understand it, the Executive Committee have decided to let them in at one dollar apiece up to ten, and then twent3-five cents after the ten. Is that right ? The President — That's it. Mr. Hayes — I move it be left as the Executive Committee has decided. (iVdopted b}^ unanimous vote.) 24 The President — The next business, gentlemen, is the election of officers. The Secretary — First is the election of president, who is elected by ballot. Will 3^ou nominate for presi- dent ? Mr Hayes — I move the secretar}-^ be authorized to cast a ballot for the election of Mr. Drew as president. (A ballot was cast by the secretary and Mr. Drew^ was unanimously elected.) Thr Secretary — Mr. "Drew is elected. The President — Well, gentlemen, if time would allow, I would make 3'ou a speech, as I am so well adapted to speech-making. Thank 3^ou for the election. If you will bear with me another 3^ear, I will be pleased to serve 3'ou. The Secretary — The vice-presidents are next and the president has asked me to read the list. (List read by secretar}'.) I have a letter from Mr. Sears, sa3dng he has gone out of A3^rshires and thought it would be of no especial benefit to the Association having him remain an officer, and would suggest someone else be put in his place. I would name Dr. Turnbull of Monaca, Penn., to take Mr. Sears' place. We who were at the last meeting re- member him as a stirring man, who is doing a good deal in the matter of pushing A3^rshire interests. I would nominate the same list of vice-presidents with Dr. Turnbull in place of Mr. Sears. The President — I heartily concur with the secre- tar};- as to Dr. Turnbull being in a location that will do us some good and in a manner that will be useful. (It was unanimously' voted that the secretar}- should cast a ballot for the following list for vice-presidents, Obadiah Brown, Providence, R. I., H. R. C. Watson, New York, John Stewart, Blburn, 111., Thos. Turnbull, Jr., Monaca, who were elected.) 25 The President — Now, gentlemen, who will you have for secretar}' ? (It was unanimously voted that the president should cast one ballot for Secretar}^ Winslow, vvho was elected.) Mr. Brown — We have a ^-oung man who is pres- ent with us from Rhode Island whom I think eminently fitted to occupy the position of treasurer. As he is a stranger to most of you gentlemen I wall sa}' this for him : He is cashier of the bank of which Mr. Smith was presi- dent. Our tunds are all in that bank. So far as I know him, and I have known him from a small bo}", he is a very eminenth^ qualified young man to fill the posi- tion. He is an Ayrshire breeder, takes an interest in Ayrshires. I do noi want to say too much in his praise for he is present, but from the position he holds and the company he has kept while with Mr. Smith, I think it is fit for you to consider him a worth}^ candidate for the position as treasurer. I take great pleasure in naming Nicholas S. Winsor to fill the place of our late treasurer, Mr. Henry E. Smith. (It was voted that Mr. Brown should cast a ballot for Nicholas S. Winsor as treasurer, and he was unani- mously elected.) The Secretary — The members of the Executive* Committee, whose term expires this 3^ear, are Mr. J. D. W. French and Mr. John W. Scott. I would like to name those two gentlemen for the term of three 5'ears. Mr. Scott is a man wdio is doing a great deal in his state to wake them up on A3a'shires, by speeches at dair}^ meetings, exhibits at fairs and articles in his State papers. He is cashier of the First National bank of Austin, Minnesota, and has a large farm stocked with Ayrshires. I would like to repeat one statement that he wrote me the other da}^ and that is, he is not selling au}^ animals that are not 26 going to be a credit to the A3'rshire Breeders. Any ani- mal he finds not worth}^ of perpetuating, he disposes of, which I think is a good recommendation tor any breed- er. He sells nothing except what is going to benefit the breed. Mr. WelIvS — I thoroughh' recommend Mr. Scott. I have had a great deal of correspondence with him. He is a good Scotchman, understands himself thoroughly and knows how to express his views. The Secretary — I move that Mr. Wells be au- thorized to cast a ballot for Mr. Scott and Mr. French. (The ballot was cast and Mr. French and Mr. Scott were elected.) The President — You are in want now of an edit- ing committee. Mr. Winslow and Mr. J. D. W. French was our last committee. (It was unanimously voted that the}' should be elected for the coming 3'ear. ) The Secretary — Mr. President, at the last meet- ing in New York we had present a painting of the cow, Duchess of Smithfield, which Mr. Alvord, chair- man of the Dair}^ Department at Washington, had paint- ed, and from that painting had a picture taken — not ex- actl}^ lithographed— I do not know what it is called, for publication, and it appeared in a j^earlj^ report of the Department of Agriculture. He also, I notice, in the department publications, has a skeleton sketch of this same cow to show the different points of a dairy cow. At his request last year, a committee was appointed to examine the picture and write to Major Alvord any crit- icisms in regard to it as this was an experiment of the government. We appointed Mr. French on that com- mittee— I think Mr. French and Henr}^ E. Smith were appointed, and the}' evidently reported, because here is a letter in regard to it. 27 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF ANIMAI. INDUSTRY, DAIRY DIVISION. Washington, D. C, Feb. 14, 1899. J. D. W. French, Esq., Boston, Mass. My Dear Sir : Please accept my thanks for 3'our favor of the i ith inst., giving us your excellent criticism of the oil portrait of the cow. Duchess of Smithfield, owned b}' this department. We are plc-ised that 3"ou are so far able to com- mend our efforts to make a good picture of a typical milch cow, selected from the A3^rshire breed. Unable to give the artist a look at the original, or even a good description of her color and markings, I am gratified to find we succeeded so well. Verv truly yours, HENRY E. ALVORD, Chief of Dair}" Division. Mr. French — Mr. Alvord has published that por- trait as a t3^pical dairy cow. It is a very good picture. Possibly somebody might criticise the coloring some- what as being not quite the color of the original animal, but take it altogether, it is a ver}^ good picture of a dairy cow, and I think it is a good deal to the credit of the breed that the Dairy Bureau m Washington should have taken an Ayrshire cow, of course, it is a well- known one, the Duchess of Smithfield, as the standard type of a dairy cow, to go throughout the land as such and throughout the world. I presume members can get that report by applying to the Dairy Bureau at Washington, of which Mr. Alvord is the chief. The President — I want to say further, gentle- men, about the Ayrshires : The president of the Ver- mont State Agricultural societ}', Mr. George Aiken, wrote a paper the other day. He is a Jerse}^ breeder and represents the Billings farm. He said in his paper that what they want of a Jersey is to make it as near the type of an Ayrshire as possible and then they would have a dair> ow. 28 The Secretary — Mr. President : It is said that a child draws its character from its mother's milk and this man you speak of is a Scotchman, born on a Scotch farm, raising x\yrshire cattle. He came over to this country and had a herd of A3'rshire cattle, but was paid a very large price to abandon Ayrshire cattle to go into the Jerseys. His character remains the same — Ayrshire. (Applause.) Mr. French — I want to say that this is the largest A3'-rshire meeting that we have had, I think, for a good many years — over thirty men present, some whom we have never seen before, I think, at any of our meetings. They have come here, many of them, from a distance, a number of them from different parts of New England, and I think it would do them and us good if they would tell us some of their experience in breeding Ayrshire cattle. I think it would be a pity to have the meeting dissolved without hearing from them. I hope ever}^ man will go home with at least one good intention, if nothing more — that he will keep a milk record of his herd, testing it v;ith the Babcock test and ascertaining the butter fat. This will help the breeder more than an3^thing else in finding out which are the best animals, w^hich the animals he ought to keep, and will have more influence on the breeding of his herd than anything else. First, the keeping of the milk records, these records which the secretar}^ has here, weighing the milk of ever}^ cow twice a da}' if possible, and filing those, making up the record for the 3^ear, the number of days in milk, and ascertaining the butter fat of each cow, and then if he wants to breed his herd up so that the i\3^rshires will have qualit}^ as well as quantit3^ raise the calves from cows that pro- duce the greatest amount of butter fat, then not onl}^ will the Ayrshire breed stand on a level with an}" other breed, but it will stand at the head. The onh' thing 29 that has been lacking has been butter fat. The onl}^ way you can ascertain the butter fat, except by the churn, which it is not always possible to do, is b}^ the Babcock test. Test your cows two or three times a year at different times and periods and then go on thatbasis. It has" been the common custom of many of us in the past to raise every good looking calf that came along or came from a good looking cow. If we are to go to the head, which it looks as though we might do, a little care and trouble is required on the part of the breeders. The Ayrshire breed has been going on graduall}' with- out any boom, increasing in favor, and is steadily rising in the influence and the appreciation of it b}^ Ayrshire breeders, and b}^ men outside as well. There are only a few things wanting and those are the things I have mentioned, but there is nothing any one man can do that will help himself more or the breed more than those two things — keep the milk record and test your herds with the Babcock test, and then breed accordingl}^ from such cows as ma}^ present themselves after that test as being the best to raise your calves from. I hope, Mr. President, we shall hear from the mem- bers present in relation to their experiences. I would like to know how many men present keep a milk record, then I would like to know how many men present have ever used the Babcock test in their herds. I think it would be a useful piece of information. I hope at the next meeting, upon asking these questions, ever^^ man wall raise his hand. The President — Gentlemen, do you hear the re- quest of Mr. French. You who keep a milk record, please raise your right hand. About six or seven. Mr. P'rench — How mau}^ tested their herd wdth the Babcock test. (In reply to this inquiry, about eight answered in the affirmative.) 30 The President — Mr. Brown, 3'ou have heard Mr. French's plea to the breeders, and as 3^ou are about as old a one as we have, w^e w^ould like to hear from you about 3^our experience with Ayrshires, w^hat \^ou have to say that is good of their qualities — sa^^ an^^thing as long as it is Ayrshire. Mr. Brown — I do not know^ as I am prepared to make any speech. I have bred A^^rshires for the past thirt}^ years. As far as I am concerned I am ver}^ well satisfied wdth w^hat I have raised. I have nothing else in m\^ herd. The}^ are good breeders, they fill themselves always with an3^thing you ma3^ give them. The onl3^ objection I have ever had to the Ayrshires is on account of their teats — the3^ are inclined to have too small teats, and I so explained to Mr. John Stewart of Scotland, when he was at m3^ place. "That is the very reason we are not importing A3'rshires toda3^" I told him. "We like them w^ell, but we do not like their short teats. " He expressed himself as being surprised that w^e had bet- ter A3^rshires in America than the3^ had in Scotland. I thought that w^as quite a puff. I told him w^e had tried to breed wdth care from the best cattle, that we bred for milking purposes, and in order to get the milk easih^ we bred the long teats as much as we could. He said he should go home feeling different from what he had, and thought w^e were on the right track. As I have alread3^ said, I have bred for the past thirty years a good t3'pe of the dair3' cow% a cow that w^ll give good milk. When 3^ou come to qualit3^ and quantit3^ I refer to Mr. Drew w^ho lives wa3" up on the mountain, and w^hat he tells you, he is up so high on the hill, can be heard ever3'-- where . The President — To show you that I feel a little cheap m3'Self, we wall call upon Mr. Yeaton, who took the prize away from me in butter making. 31 Mr. Ybaton — Mr. President, I do not think I can sa}^ an3'thing to this Association. I think, perhaps, the secretary can talk very much better than I can. Mr. Drew blamed me a little today for feeding so heavily. I find that the Ayrshire cattle do not do as well unless they are well fed. Now, in this test that we had in May before the cattle were turned out to grass, I did give the cows a little extra feed, but I did not get any of them off their feed. They all ate what I gave them and looked for more, and the}^ gave me quite good returns. Mr. French asks what our cows have done. I will speak of just one which I mention in my circular, I think. She gave for the seven days 428 pounds of milk, an average of 61.2 per day, and her milk tested 3.8, I think- it was. She gave 18.98 pounds of butter, which is 2.35 pounds a da}^ for the week. She gave her weight in milk in 18 days for the month of May — that is, her estimated weight. I judge she w^ould weigh 1,000 pounds and her milk w^eighed 10 18 pounds. Now, I do not believe that cow would have given that if she had not been well fed. It occurs to me that it is profitable, if you want good returns from a cow, to feed well. I have practised that for at least the number of years that I have been breeding Ayrshires. I think our president himself feeds his cow^s pretty w^ell. A cow won't give 9,000 pounds of milk unless you give it some fuel to live on. I do not think I will attempt to take up any more of your time b}^ trying to interest you further, as I do not think I can do it. I will, however, extend to j'^ou an in- vitation to come to the town of RoUinsford — there are two herds there, one beside my own, that of the veteran breeder, Mr. Garvin. He had a little calf there in his barn about as big as a poodle dog. I asked him if he was going to raise it, and he said, "No, I will give it to you if you want it." This little cow, Annie Bert, has given me over 58,000 pounds of milk in seven 3^ears. She is the smallest cow in the barn and the homliest. I hope you will call on such veterans as Mr. Garvin, 32 Mr. Garvin was thereupon asked to make a few re- marks, in response to which he stated his inabilit}' to make much of a statement, but that he had been a breeder of Ayrshire cattle for fifteen 3'ears or more. Mr. Wells was then called upon. "Gentlemen : You ought not to call on me ever\' time — you called on me last time. I have been breed- ing x\yrshire cattle for fort}^ 3^ears and I have not tired of them yet. I have kept a record most of the time. I have been supplying milk to the Medical Society, and thcA^ require that the milk shall be weighed and tested under the Babcock test every month. It is not required that I shall feed any particular food, but the cow must be kept in good, health}^ condition at all times. I have had cows give as high as 10,000 or 12,000 pounds in a 3^ear, but I think it is a pretty good cow if she gives 6,000, a very good cow. I was talking to Mr. Fuller at one time about thai: great Jersey cow in Canada who made a great Jersey record, Mary Ann of St. Lambert. She had three men to take care of her and she was fed fifteen or twenty times a da^^ the feed being changed constantly. She was a large cow. I find that the larger frame a cow has the more milk she will give ; a small cow will not give as much milk per 3'ear as a larger cow. The President — Here is a gentleman who has often met with us — Mr. Magie of New Jersey, an old breeder. Mr. Magie — Gentlemen, I am very glad to see so many Ayrshire breeders here today. I think the Ayr- shire breed is looking up ; it is in our section of the countr}'. We are raising milk there for the market, nearby markets largely . Some portions of New Jersey ship to New York, but our milk and that of many dairy- men round us go to the cities of Newark, Elizabeth and Portsmouth, the larger cities. At New Brunswick, ^^^^^^^Bk '^^-!t^ 1^ pill * t . ;^3^*;^; ^^H ^^^^v ' Wt ^VHiitf * ^,ii- ^k), ■ .■ ^ ' ^#;^^ffv^ 1 1 i* 33 where the State Farm is, the}^ are now getting some A^-rshires. Prof. B., who is at the head of it, is ver\' much interested in A3^rshires, and has recently bought some. Some 3"ears ago the}' started a herd of five dif- ferent breeds for the sake of testing the milk. The}' were only running a short time before their barn was accidentall}' burned and they were destroyed, none of the cattle being saved. But after building they bought a few more. There was, however, a change in the ad- ministration of affairs and their dair}- rather ran down. They have now" placed it in the professor's hands and he is building tt'Up. The object is to sell the milk in New Brunswick. We are running two wagons into Elizabeth. As has been said by Mr. French and our president, we want to breed for qualit}' as well as quan- tity. We have bought some other breeds sometimes when short of milk and find the Ayrshire cows' milk is the best for the retailer, although we bottle our milk. If j^ou bottle Jersey milk and 3^ou take the cream off and let it stand a while, it looks like skimmed milk ; but the bottom of the A3'rshire milk will look better, is better, and is the best milk for children's use of an}' in the mar- ket. We have had Jerse3"s and Holsteins, and occa- sionalh" Guernse3's, but the A3'rshire is the best. I know of one instance where a ver3' weak child was raised with Ayrshire milk alone, and has grown to be a strong, health3" bo3', and I have known of a great man3^ such instances. It is an acknowledged fact with us that the Ayrshire milk is the best for human food. People generally do not appreciate what good milk reall}" is for the human famih", as well as for all }^oung animals in growing them, and I can assure 3^ou, as has been said, while we have kept some partial rec- ords, in our business hurry, we have uot kept them as complete as they should be. We are making tests now, or did last year, a number of times with the Babcock 34 tests, and we are weeding out and raising from our best milkers giving the best qualit}^ of milk. Mr. French — A year ago this last summ.er ni}- farm buildings were struck b5' lighting which disorgan- ized ni}' farm a good deal, and ni}' records and other things were destro5^ed, so that I am just getting a fresh start and have not a large number of Ayrshire cattle-^- some twenty head. I have nothing remarkable to show at the present time, still I shall be ver}^ glad if there are any members here who would like to see them. I have a new barn, which is perhaps w^orth seeing. A motion was made by Mr. French that the salary of the secretar}^ be the same as last year, which motion was unanimously adopted. The Secretary — It is customary to vote where we shall hold the next annual meeting. Where will 3'^ou hold it ? Tjhe President — Why is not Boston a good place ? After discussing the matter at some length it was finally voted to hold the next annual meeting in Boston. It was voted that the list of judges be referred to the Executive Committee for revision. It was voted that entries for the next volume of the herd-book be closed the first of October, 1900. (Adjourned.) EXPERT JUDGES. It is the opinion of the Ayrshire Breeders' Associa- tion that the men selected by the Agricultural Fair As- sociations throughout the country, to judge A3^rshire cattle in the ring, should be men acquainted with A3'r- shire cattle, and men familiar with the scale of points and characteristics of the breed. The Executive Committee have selected the follow- ing names of men in different parts of the countrj^ whom 35 we believe to be experts in judging Ayrshire cattle, and would recommend to Fair Associations as judges : Alonzo lyibby, Westbrook, Maine. Charles H. Hayes, Portsmouth, N. H. George H. Yeaton, Dover, N. H. W. R. Garvin, Dover, N. H. I^. S. Drew, Burlington, Vt. F. W. Spalding, Poultney, Vt. H. R. C. Watson, Brandon, Vt. C. M. Winslow, Brandon, Vt. J. D. W. French, North Andover, Mass. Obadiah Brovv^n, Providence, R. I. H. S. Joslin, Mohegan, R. I. Dudle}^ Wells, Wethersfield, Conn. S. M. Wells, Wethersfield, Conn. J. H. Larned, Putnam, Conn. B.C. Sears, Blooming Grove, N. Y. George Taber, East Aurora, N. Y. A. S. Tubbs, Mexico, N. Y. C. S. Barney, Milford, N. Y. Frank Converse, Woodville, N. Y. J. D. Magie, Elizabeth, N. J. William Eindsay, Elizabeth, N. J. B. Euther Shimer, Bethlehem, Pa. J. P. Beatty, Pataskala, Ohio. John Stewart, Elburn, 111. C. S. Plumb, Eafayette, Ind. AYRSHIRE niLK RECORDS. The following are yields of milk that have been re- ported of 9,000 pounds and over for 365 consecutive days : Name No. A. R. Pounds of milk Olah, 11471 9020 Belle Hebron, 13013 9084 Rose Sultana, 12072 9172 Roxie, 4498 9191 Rose Deruth, 10346 9253 Naine. No. A. R. Lukolela, 12357 Lad}^ Teazel, 6579 Rose Alta, 9529 Xoa, 11469 Betty Lightfoot, 7498 Yucca, 11470 ^Lnnie Bert, 9670 Belle Temple, 3353 Roxanna 5th, 4606 Queen oi A\r, 1776 Island belle, 1292 Biona, 12383 Vinewood Queen, 8092 Ethel Douglas 2d, 2342 Rose Electa, 10336 Ruth, 4816 Rose Eola, 8510 Jennie Ch^de, 12028 Oueeu of Avr 4th, 4465 Nellie Clyde, 12723 Rose Deross, 10347 Duchess of Srai thfield, 4256 Qijeen of Avr 5th, 4466 Ellen, 8324 Queen Mar}^, 6578 iVleewe, 11130 Lad_v Mnrcia, mil Myra, 2955 Manton Queen 4th, • 6100 Rena Myrtle, 9530 Lady Fox, 9669 Alice Douglas, 4398 Pound of miik. 9268 9268 9307 9361 9394 9496 9613 9624 9671 9775 9982 10024 10026 10066 10207 10219 10323 10344 10426 10507 10645 10748 10801 10823 11154 11252 11543 11908 12162 12172 12299 12617 AYRSHIRE BUTTER RECORDS. There is a long list of records of over 300 pounds, but we have given only those reported as 400 or over. Name No. Quess 2nd, 3120 Rosa' 3143 Bessie Bell 3d, 4323 Tern pie. 3263 Juniper 4th, 4578 Duchess of Smithfield, 4256 Rose Cleon, 11143 Rose Electa, 10336 Rose Sultana, 12072 Rose Ladye, 11158 Lbs. butter 14.6 in seven 14.15 a 15.4 t< 15.6 (( 17.11 (( 19.6 (( 49.8 in Jan., : 57 8 u 64.0 (( 78.4 n davs 1897 37 Xame No. Lbs. butter. Lukolela, 12357 402 in one Rose Clovis, ^12777 402 " Queen Sela^a, 9545 404 11 Rose Veritas, 12076 404 (( Rose Allie, 11154 405 u Olah, 11471 412 ll Nancy B 2d, 11936 412 << Biona, 12383 413 t( Nancy B, 9581 416 (( Annie Bert, 9670 417 <( Printsteps 2d, 8410 418 a Mexic, 11131 419 ( ( Rose Alta, 9529 420 it Rose Sultana, 12072 421 << Minnehaha 3d, 12646 424 a Ruth, 4816 425 u Xoa, 11469 428 t> Acelista, 12094 438 (i Clio Rose, 7525 441 n Yucca, 11470 444 i ( Lovely, 9596 448 1 1 Rose Clenna, 11153 455 <( Rose Ladye, 11158 463 (( Rose Electa, 10336 467 (( Tola Lome, 12773 474 (4 Rose Erica, 12775 504 (< Ren a Myrtle, 9530 546 " Meewe, 11130 567 li Rose Deross, 10347 572 ll Lady Fox, 9669 624 il Year AYRSHIRE CATTLE. (A paper read at the Minnesota State Dairyman's Association by John W. Scott, Austin, Minn.) The County of Ayr, not the Count}^ of Aja'shire, as a recent writer on breeds of cattle hath said : This count}" in the southwest part of Scotland has given the name to a breed of cattle noted for their dair}" qualities. The country w^hereof I speak, is generally low towards the sea-shore, gradually rising by eas}^ slopes, and wav}' undulations to a ridge of high or hilh^ countr^^ It has man}' woodlands and is well watered. The climate is moist and rather windy, although not severe. The soil throughout is of moderate fertility. Its principal crops or products are grasses, oats, wheat, turnips, potatoes, beets, etc. Dair}^ is the leading interest, although grazing is carried on to vSome extent. Ayrshire in olden times was divided into three dis- tinct districts, viz : Cunningham, Kyle and Carrick. Prior to the year 1780, the cattle kept in the districts of Kyle and Cunningham were a small, ill-fed, ill-shaped and inferior breed of cattle. Thus you see, ladies and gentlemen, that we in the south had no more to boast of than our honorable presi- dent had in Aberdeenshire. But to-day, what a w^onderful change has taken place. For instance, behold the Aberdeen, Angus and Cruickshank cattle. The}" in Aberdeenshire were bus}' piling on beef, while away down in Ayrshire they were hard at work packing butter and cheese. I imagine "Auld Cruickshank" saying, (were he living) "Shon Mathieson, hoo ye hae degenerated. Ye Dinna ken a guide quey when ye see it. What a pit}^ 3'e went awa' wi' auld mortality to the Isle of Sark, for ye're a' bones noo instead of guide, honest beef." There is an old adage in the County of Ayr, which is characteristic of the District of Cunningham, "Carrie for a man, K3de for a coo, Cunningham for butter and cheese. It was in this countr}^ that the plowman poet was born. But perhaps our Honorable Chairman will claim that it was in Aberdeenshire, as he claims all the cream, but an allusion is made in one of Burns' letters dated Nov. 13, 1788, to a heifer that had been presented to him by Mr. Dunlop, as the finest quey in x\yrshire, he kept x\5^rshires on his farm at BHisland, and at that time they had a high reputation, Ayrshire cattle of toda}^ like the improved short- horn, orio^inated from various crosses, but there is some uncertainty as to the early history of their crosses. 39 It is said that the Holderness were introduced into the South of Scotland from the North of England, and it is probable that they may have been used ; again, the introduction of the Kerry from the coast of Ireland, and it is further claimed that the Dutch from Holland and the Alderny from the Channel Islands were also intro- duced into that country, and these various importations have given rise to the origin of crosses from those breeds, but notwithstanding the assumption, there is more or less of a resemblance to the said respective breeds, but the breed is undoubtedly descendant of the Kyloe, or native cattle of Scotland, modified by selec- tions, and these selections have been aided by crossing with other distant breeds. Whatever part these breeds may have had in the origin of the Ayrshire breed, it is certain that the hard-headed sense of the Scotsman, that evolved the steam engine into usefulness, had guided those engaged in moulding a dairy cow, which for average and general conditions stands without a peer today. Since 1805 marked improvements have been made in this breed of cattle, and in 1836 the Highland Agri- cultural society offered a premium for the competition of this breed. In 1853, for the first time, a recognized standard was adopted by the Ayrshire Agricultural Association. In 1866, '68 and '71, the various writers describing the Ayrshire cow, state that the chief point of merit is said to be, "a capacious and well set udder." It is a fact worthy of mention, that the Farmers' clubs and Agricultural societies in educating the farm- ers and offering premiums, have done more to improve this breed, or any other breed of cattle, as it has had the effect of creating greater interest and inciting strong- er efforts towards improvement. 40 These cattle are now scattered throughout Great Britian, and have been introduced into other countries, viz : Finland, Norwa}" and Sweden, Holland, Austra- lia and New Zealand, South America, Japan and Can- ada, in all of which the}' are highly esteemed for their dair}" qualities. We must not overlook our own countr}', for in 1S22 or '28 they were introduced into this country. In 1831 there is some mention made of importations, and in 1837 they were introduced into the New England states b}' the Massachusetts Society for the Promotion of Agri- culture. The}^ are now scattered throughout the New England states, New York, Penns^dvania, South Caro- lina, California, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin, and a few herds have been introduced into our own Minnesota. In Canada this breed has been very popu- lar with dair3anen, and there being a similarity in the climate of Canada to our northwest, it would only go to show that they should become popular wdth us, being a hardy breed for our climate. It ma}' be well to direct your attention to this fact : That for a hundred years here is a breed of cattle which has been bred in a climate with its cold, bleak weather, rugged pasturage and scant}^ feed, that has been devel- oped into a hardy and enduring race of cattle. Here is a breed, bred, perhaps, for centuries, also in a country with a climate as severe in many respects as our own northwest — yes, I say — a country swept by frequent coast storms of sufficient severity to try the constitution of the most hardy cattle. Will this not count for some- thing in the selection of a breed for our farms in the Northwest ? In 1880 Prof. Sheldon, author of '"Dairy Farming," said of the Ayrshire : "They are wonderful milkers, doing well in nrilk where most breeds would hardly live, more completely HH (* h , i,- ■•■t:.r . ^ ?S| W ^^^^^^^^3 41 than most, if not all, other breeds, thej^ possess the property of converting into milk the elements of food. They are hardy enough to stand severe climates, while the}' have the faculty of quickly adapting themselves to altered conditions." The A3'rshire has kept abreast with im.provements until toda3% fellow dairymen, I have no hesitation in presenting to 3'our attention a breed of cattle that with careful selection and breeding, is bound to take the front rank as a dairy cattle throughout this Northwest. Every good farmer must keep up with improve- ' xcnts, and if he has that in mind his motto will be, "Get There," whether in breeding cattle or tilling the >iL Dr. Sturtevant, a noted breeder and writer on Ayr- shire cattle, says : "The Ajashire has a superabund- ance of nerves ; she is ever read}^ to employ them upon demand in self-defense or in self-support ; she asks lit- tle beyond a fair chance, yet all this nature in her is in reserve, and she does not use it wantonl}^ to disqualify her to be the pet of the household. She responds readily and appreciates good treatment, her looks appeal to ones intelligence to accord it to her. ' ' - The A^-rshires are of medium size. The cows aver- aging 1,000 pounds. They are short-legged, fine-boned and very active. They are wedge-shape generally, wide and low development of the brisket, insuring good constitution. The}^ have well developed hind parts, long, broad and straight, and deep at the flank. AH good specimens have well arched ribs, giving room for their digestive organs. When in milk they do not carrj^ a pound of extra flesh. In color the}^ are red, brown or white, or a mixture of these colors, each color being dis- tinctly defined. Again Mr. Peer, a large importer and one of the prominent judges at the Toronto Industrial exhibition, 42 and other eastern agricultural exhibitions, writes re- centh^ : ^ ON THE MODERN AYRSHIRE. "The best of their kind are the best in the world." That's a Scotchman's estimation of an up-to-date A^-r- shire coo. "Although I am not an A3'rshire breeder, I must sa3^ there is small chance of an argument with the Scotchman, except I should like to make this amend ment, 'the best of the kind are the best all-round dairy cow^s in the world.' "When you call on a Scotch breeder it is of no. use to ask him how much milk a cow gives. He does not know, or only says, 'I have never heard an}^ complaint of that coo.' If you go to the dairyman and ask him, he is not going to point out to a customer the best que}', for that is the sort he doesn't want his master to sell. "I remember once asking a Scotch breeder why it was the3^ did not go in for testing their cattle and giv- ing them milk records. 'A3'e mon,' he replied, 'but ye'r na' thinking o' the liars ye would be making o' the Scotchman.' Then looking at me sl3d3' he added, 'ye must na lead us into temptation.' Then I thought of the great amount of temptation that breeders in the United States are called upon to withstand when pub- lishing records. I had nothing to say. As my friend, Mr. Howie, often said, 'A coo is a coo and that's a' aboot it,' which is equivalent to saying, if a cow is a ^ood cow she will show it, and a man who knows his business can tell without leading his neighbor into temptation to lie about her performance. "I am informed that the ist, 2d and 3d prize cows in the ring of cows at S3^racuse this year were all over sixty pound cows, and they looked it. He ends by say- ing : 'To my mind they are the highest and most per- 43 feet utilit}^ cow that has ever been produced, all in spite of their rare beaut}' and style.' "Before closing, Mr. Chairman, I wish to make a few remarks as to the qualities of the Ayrshire, first as a milk producer and lastly as a neat animal. I do not wish to weary 3'ou, and I do not want to be led into temptation, so will pass over a few facts briefly and con- fine ni3'self to official statements. "At the British Dairy show in 1879, twelve samples of milk were tested representing seven different breeds and three crosses. One Ayrshire, three Jersej^s, one Guernse}^ one Kerry, one Dexter, one Brittan^^ and two Dutch cows. Highest on the list ranked the Aj^rshire, showing the least water and most fat, followed in turn by the three Jerseys and the others in the order named above. "The Ayrshire gav^e 5^2 per cent, butter fat, and the Dutch cows only 2^/i and 2^2 per cent, butter fat. At the same show in 1880 an Aj^rshire in competi- tion with eighteen other cows of noted breeds, 3delded twenty-five pounds and two ounces of milk and in pure butter fat 6.82 per cent., and was only beaten by a Jer- se}^ with 7.78 per cent., which, however, only yielded for the da}^ sixteen pounds of milk. At the Vermont Experiment Station in 1895, Rena Myrtle, H. R. 9530, gave 12,172 pounds of milk and 546 pounds of butter. At the Vermont State Fair in the fall of 1897, the average of the 12 A3'rshire cows in the butter fat test was 4.99 per cent. At the New Hampshire Experiment Station, with four cows of each breed, the average result for a full year test was as follows : Pounds of milk, Pounds of butter. Per cent of butter fat, 4.28 Cost of keeping. Pounds of butter, Ayrshire Jersey Holstein Dtirliam 5,845 4>847 5,971 6,140 267 269.2 207 261 :, 4.28 5.12 3-15 3.86 $44.48 $46.49 $50.12 $48-41 21.2 18 20 24 44 In the report of the New Jerse}' Experiment Station, experimenting for the most of the time with three cows of each of the following breeds, the average cost of food per quart of milk was: A3^rLhire, 1.66 cents, Gurnsey, 1. 71 cents, Holstein F., 1.75 cents, Jersey, 1.91 cents, Shorthorn, 1.71 cents. As a cheese cow she will give an average of from 600 to 1200 pounds in a yesir. The pure Ayrshire cow. Duchess of Smithfield, H. R. No. 4256, weight 1128 pounds, has a certified record of 19 lbs., 6 oz. of butter in seven days, and 3aelded 44 lbs. of milk in one da}^ ; 463 3-4 lbs. in seven days ; and 10,748 lbs. in one year. I will now exhibit a picture of this cow for your inspection, she is an American bred cow, and some six times removed from importation. I now come to my last qualit}', which is of the least importance in dairy cattle, but which counts for some- thing in the consideration of all the good points of a breed ; that is, they should feed quickh^, and this the Ayrshire will do, for when fed for the butcher then all her energies are directed to meet the demand. I have another picture here which I will exhibit. This is a typical Aj^rshire cow. She was farrow at the time this picture was taken, having been milking over a year and a half. Some of 3^ou dairymen wdll take exception to so much flesh as this cow displays, but this must be said of the Aj^rshire : that she is always busy, and when not giving milk she is ever ready to give a good return in meat. I have a j^oung Aj^rshire in the feed box at present and it is surprising how rapidlj^ it is piling on beef, and as my countr3^man (Mr. Aiorton), whom I see in the audience, will bear me out, that we Scotchmen consider the Ayrshire meat the choicest. This general utility cow^ of which I have been speaking has had no booms 45 as some other breeds have had, but continued to advance and holds its ground wherever it has been in- troduced. EARLY HISTORY OF THE AYRSHIRE DAIRY BREED.* BY AITON.t The dairy breed of cows in A3^rshire, now so much and so greatly esteemed, are not an ancient or indigen- ous race, but are a breed begun to be formed, first b}^ the inhabitants of the bailliary of Cunningham in that count}^ within the last forty, and chiefl}^ within the last twenty 3^ears. It appears, from an adage in the county of Ayr, that dairy husbandry had not only been practised in Cunningham, but that the making of butter and cheese had become the peculiar and distinguishing boast of the district at a verj^ remote period ; and the last and present generations of the inhabitants have shown that they still attend to that branch of industrj^ and have greatly improved on the favorite practices of their ancestors. But though dairy husbandry has for many ages past been more attended to in the bailiary of Cunning- ham than in any other district in Scotland, it was only during the present generation that an}^ material im- provement was begun to be made, or even attempted, on the breed of cows in that district ; and it is only within the last twenty j^ears or thereby, that that improvement merited notice. Every person now of fifty years of age or upwards, who has paid attention, from their youth, to the cattle in that district, will remember that the cows in the bailliary of Cunningham, and in that of Kjde, were gen- erally, till after the year 1780, a pun}^ unshapel}^, and * From Harleian Dair}^ System, 1829. t Mr. Alton's work was bestm in 1815. 46 inferior breed of cattle, not superior in size, shapes, or qualities, to those still met with in the higher parts of Clydesdale, Peebleshire, or those in the islands of Arran and Bute. They were even inferior to these, from not being nearly so well fed as cattle generall}' now are in every district, except in some parts of the North High- lands. The cows then kept in the districts of Kyle and Cunningham w^ere of a diminutive size, ill-fed ill-shaped, and 3delded but a scant}^ return in milk ; they were mostly of a black color, with large stripes of white along the chine or ridge of their backs, about their flanks or on their faces. Their horns were high and crooked, having deep ringlets at the root ; the plainest proof that the cattle were but scantily fed. The chine of their backs stood up high and narrow ; their sides were lank, short and thin ; their hides thick, and adhering to the bones ; their pile was coarse and open ; and few of them ^nelded more than three or four Scots' pints of milk per day, when in their best plight ; or weighed when fat more than from twelve or sixteen to twent}^ stones avoirdupois., sinking offal. It was impossible that, these cattle, fed as the}^ then w^ere, could be of great weight, well shaped, or 3'ield much milk. Their onl}^ food in winter and spring was oat-straw, and w^hat they could pick up in the fields, ' to which they were turned out almost every da}'^ ; with a mash of weak corn and chaff daily for a few days after calving. And their pasture in summer was of the very worst quality, and eaten so bare that the cattle were half starved. The land w^as then under such bar- barous courses of cropping, and so much overcropped, that, when turned to pasture, it yielded little else but weeds, and a few natural grasses of the worst qualit)^ ; and that coarse pasture was so much overstocked, and 47 eaten so bare, that the cattle were half starved, and had the aspect of starvelings. A wonderful change has since been made in the condition, aspect, and qualities of the A3'rshire dairy stock. Thev are not now the meagre unshapely animals they were about fort}^ 3^ears ago ; but have been completely changed into something as different from what the}^ were then, as any two breeds in the island can be from each other. They are almost double the size, and 3aeld about four times the quantity of milk that the Ayrshire cow^s then yielded. Formerl}- they were not of anj^ specific breed, nor uniformity of shapes or color, neither was there an\^ fixed standard b}' which the^^ could be judged. But now the}' are generalh' of a brown and white color, in mixed patches ; and rules have been adopted for determining the purit}^ of the breed and excellence of their qualit}^ These alterations, although thej- are extensive, have not been made by merel}' selling the farm stock, and replacing^ them with a different breed; but the changes have been effected upon the former breed, partly by skillful breeding, and still more by better feeding and treatment. But though these improvements in the dair}" stock of Ayrshire were begun and brought to its present advanced state within the recollection of thousands who are still alive ; and though I kept a dairy stock for • some time in the centre of the district where these improvements were first introduced, and about the time when they began to be improved, — I have not been able to trace the commencement of them to an}^ partic- ular person or family. About the year 1760, or between that and 1770, some noblemen and gentlemen who resided in the eastern and southern counties of Scotland, procured cows of some English or Dutch breed, which were much 48 larger in size than any other then in Scotland ; and when these were well fed, on the sheltered and improved lands round the seats of their owners, the}' 3delded far more milk than the native cows. It was their greater size, and the superior quality' of milk they 3'ielded, that induced these noblemen and others to purchase them ; and wherever their feeding in Scotland corresponded to what they had been accustomed to eat, their owners were not disappointed. But wdien these large cows were turned into pasture that was much inferior to that on which they had been reared, they fell short in milk- ing, as all cows that are not well fed will do. I am really uncertain as to the district or countr}- from which these stranger cows were brought. The}' certainly were denominated Dutch cows when first introduced into A^-rshire. But from their being of a brown and white color, I am disposed to believe the}' were of the Teeswater breed. Neither have I been able to discover who it was that first introduced them into the bailliary of Cunning- ham, nor to point out all those who did so. John Dunlop, Esq., of Dunlop, brought some of these English or Dutch cows to his byres at Dunlop House in Cunningham, soon after the year 1760. As they were there provided with the best of pasture, as the dairy was much attended to in that neighborhood, and as the 'improved breed of the mixed broi'/n and white color came into vogue about Dunlop and Stewarton sooner than in any other part of Cunningham, it is likely that Mr. Dunlop 's were among the first of the stranger breed that reached Cunningham. The Earl of Marchmount, about 1750, purchased from the Bishop of Durham several cows, and a bull of the Teeswater or some English breed, all of a brown color, spotted with white ; and his lordship kept them sometime at his seat in Berwickshire. Bruce Campbell, 49 Hsq., then factor on his lordship's estates in A^-rshire, carried some of that breed to Sornbeg in Kjde, where the}" were kept some time, and their progeny spread over different parts of i\.3^rshire. A bull of that stock, after coupling with man 3^ cows on the estate of Cessnock, was b}^ Mr. Campbell sold to John Hamilton, Esq., of Sundrum, and raised a numerous offspring in that quarter of Ayrshire. John Orr, Esq., of Borrowfield, about the 3^ear 1767, sent from Glasgow, or from some part in that neighbor- hood, to his estate of Grougar, A3'rshire, several fine milk-cows of a much larger size than any then on that estate. One of these cost six pounds, which was more than twice the price of the best cows then in that quarter. As these cows were well fed, the3^ 3delded a good return in milk, and the farmers in that neighborhood were eager to procure their calves, in hopes of obtaining similar returns. Cattle of the same appearance were about that time brought to Eglinton, Loudon, and to the seats of other noblemen and gentlemen in Ayrshire : and as most of those were of the same color, brown, spotted or freaked with w^hite ; as all of them were larg- er, and when duh'- fed yielded much more milk than the native breed, — their calves were reared by such as could procure them, and bulls of that breed, or even of their color, were preferred to all others. From these, or from crosses of them with the native cows, the whole district has been stocked ; and the breed has attained such celebrity, that they have not onh^ supplied the counties of A3^r, Renfrew, and greatest part of Lanark, but, for about twenty 3'ears past, colonies of the improv- ed breed have been carried from Ayrshire to every coun- ty of Scotland and to many counties of England. 50 HISTORY OF THE AYRSHIRE BREED OF CATTLE.* By the late Sandford Howard. January 1, 1863. The breed of cattle now known as the Ayrshire un- doubtedly originated in the county of that name in Scot- land, but by w^hat special means it was formed cannot be particularly told. Youatt (1835) sa\^s : "A century ago there was no such breed in Ayrshire or in Scotland" and he asks, "did the [present] Ayrshire cattle arise en- tirely from a careful selection of the native breed?" add- ing, " If they did, it is a circumstance unparalleled in the histor}^ of agriculture. The native breed may be ameliorated by careful selection ; its value ma}^ be in- calculably increased ; some good qualities ma}^ for the first time be developed : but yet there will be some re- semblance to the original stock." A comparison of the modern breed with the description given by Aiton of the cattle which he says occupied Ayrshire fifty years before the time when he wrote (1806), will show that the difference is great. He says: " The cows kept in the districts of Kyle and Cunningham [districts o± Ayr- shire] were of a diminutive size, ill-fed, ill-shaped, and they yielded but ascant}^ return in milk; the}^ were mostly of a black color, with stripes of white along their chine or ridge of their backs, about their flanks, and on their faces. Their horns were high and crooked, . . . their pile [hair] was coarse and open, and few of them jdelded more than three or four Scotch pints [six to eight wine quarts] of milk a day." Those who are acquainted with the Ayrshire cattle of to-da37^ will readily admit that they present a wide contrast with the old stock, according to the above de- scription of the latter ; and the suggestion of Youatt, *Published in Vol. I, Herd Record of the Association of Breed- ers of Thoroughbred Neat Stock, Ayrshire. ' 51 that the present breed could not have arisen entirely by selection from the old, seems reasonable. It follows, then, that the Ayrshire, like the modern or " improved " Shorthorn breed, originated in crossing. The question as to 'the breeds from which it w^as derived will be brief- ly considered, although the attempt will not be made to give precise details on this point. Various accounts represent that the Earl of March- mont, sometime between 1724 and 1740, introduced to his estates, in Berwickshire, some cattle, conjectured (their history was not positively known) to be of the Holderness or Teeswater breed ; and that, not long af- terwards, some of the stock was carried to estates be- longing to the same Nobleman, in that part of Ayrshire called Kyle. But perhaps the main nucleus of the im- proved breed was the " Dunlop stock," so called, which appears to have been possessed by a distinguished fam- ily by the name of Dunlop, in the Cunningham district of Ayrshire, as early as 1780. This stock, was derived, it is said, at least in part, from animals imported from Holland. The Dunlop cows soon became noted. Raw- lin (as quoted by Youatt) , who wrote in 1794, speaking of the cattle of Ayrshire, sa5^s : "They have another breed, called the Dunlop, which are allowed to be the best race for yielding milk in Great Britain or Ireland, not only for large quantities, but also for richness and quality." This, though extravagant praise, perhaps, shows that the stock possessed remarkable qualities at that early day. It was, indeed, held in great esteem still earlier. In Youatt' s treatise, it is mentioned, when speaking of the catlle of Dumfriesshire, that the poet Burns, when he occupied a farm near the city of Dum- fries, "not content w^ith the Galloway breed, introduced some of the w^est-country cows, which he thought would produce more milk." In the poet's published 5^ correspondence, allusion is made, in a letter dated Nov. 13, 1788, to a heifer which had been presented to him b}^ the proprietor of Dunlop House, as "the finest que}^ in Ayrshire." Mrs. Dunlop, it will be remem- bered, was a special friend and correspondent of the poet.* Colonel lye Couteur, in a paper on the Jerse}^ or Alderney cow, published in the Journal of the Roj-al Agricultural Society, refers to a statement by Quayle, that the Ayrshire was a cross of the Shorthorn and Alderney ; and adds himself that ' 'there is a consider- able affinit}^ between the two breeds." Rawdin also sa^'S, in reference to the Ayrshire breed : "It is said to be a mixture b}^ bulls brought from the Island of Alderney with their own or the old race of cows." Martin sa3'S : "At some period or other there has evidently been a cross with the Durham or Holderness, and perhaps also with the x\lderney." Professor Low, in his "Illustrations of British Quadrupeds," sa3^s : "From all the evidence which, in the absence of authentic documents, the case admits of, the dairy breed of Ayrshire cows owes the characters which distinguish it from the older race to a mixture of the blood of the races of the continent and of the dairy breed of Alderne}^" So far the authorities quoted have doubtless given the main facts in regard to the originals of the present Ayrshire cattle. But there is evidence that the present leading type of the breed was formed, in part, b}" an infusion of the blood of the K3doe, or West Highland "As a further explanation of the preference given by Burns for the "west-country cows," the writer would mention that, in 1858, he had several interviews with the poet's sister, the late Mrs. Begsf, of Ayr, in one of which she stated that her brother, during his occupancy of the farm of Ellisland.near Dumfries, kept a dair^-, and made considerable quantities of cheese. Thus his efforts to procure the A^^rshire cow shows that they had, even at that time, a high reputation for this object. 53 breed. This appeared, in tlie first instance, probably, in what has been called the Swinley variet}^ The facts, which the writer has obtained in Scotland in regard to it, are substantially as follows : Theophilus Parton, of Swinley farm, near Dairy, A5'rshire, about forty to fort3^-five years ago took great pains to establish a herd of what were deemed the best A5^rshire cattle, into which he infused a strain of the West Highland blood, the particular degree of which is not publicly or generalh^ known. The Swinley stock differs from the older Ayrshire in having a shorter head, with more breadth across the ej^es, more upright and spreading horns, more hair, and generally better constitutions. They are also somew^hat smaller boned than the old stock, though, from their superior S5mimetry and greater tendency to fatten, the}^ are fully equal to the former in weight of carcass when slaughtered. The following points, given by the A3^rshire Agricultural Association, 1853, "as indicating superior quality," will give an idea of the standard for Aj^rshire cattle, as recognized b}^ the leading breeders : — Head short, forehead wide, nose fine between the muzzle and the eyes, muzzle moderately large, eyes full and lively, horns widely set on, inclining upwards and curving slightly inwards. Neck long and straight from the head to the top of the shoulders, free from loose skin on the underside, fine at its junction with the head, and the muscles symmetrically enlarging towards the shoulders. Shoulders thin at the top, brisket light, the whole forequarter thin in front, and gradually increasing in depth and width backwards. Back short and straight, spine well defined, especially at the shoulders, short ribs arched, the body deep at the flanks, and the milk veins well developed. 54 Pelvis long, broad, and straight ,' hook [or hip j bones wide apart, and not much overlaid with fat ; thighs deep and broad ; tail long and slender, and set on a level wnth the back. Milk-vessel [udder] capacious, and extending well forward, hinder part broad, and firml}^ attached to the body, the sole or under surface nearl}^ level. The teats from tw^o to two and a half inches in length, equal in thickness, and hanging perpendicularly^ ; their distance apart at the sides should be equal to about one-third the length of the vessel, and across to about one-half the breadth. I^egs short, the bones fine and the joints firm. Skin soft and elastic, and covered with soft, close, and wooll}^ hair. The colors preferred are brown, or brown and white, the colors being distinctly defined. Weight of the animal, when fattened, about fortj^ imperial stones, sinking the offal (that is 560 pounds), the quarters or meat only. From w^hat has already been said, it wall be understood that the dairy is the leading object with the breeders of iVyrshires. At the same time, the fact has not been overlooked that to breed and perpetuate a profitable dairy stock, regard must be had to hardiness and strength of constitution, and also to such fattening tendencies as will insure a profitable return from calves fattened for veal, from steers reared for beef, and for cows which, having served their turn in the dair^^, are at last dried of their milk, and prepared for the shambles. The importance of these properties is not sufficiently regarded by keepers of dairy stock in this country. The remark has not unfrequently been heard that the ''looks of a coav are nothing." People who hold this absurd notion will never be distinguished for breeding profitable dairy stock. Even if milk were the 55 sole object, it would be impossible to preserve a breed possessing superior qualities, in this respect, without giving attention to those points of form which denote strength of constitution. It has been well observed by Magne, that, in the breeding of dairy stock, we should "make choice only of animals possessing the twofold character of general vigor ^ and activity of the maTnmary system^ The leading breeders of Ayrshire, in Scotland, have followed these principles to some extent, if not to the full degree to which they should be observed. Hence they claim a high rank for the breed in reference to general usefulness. Alton, speaking of what the Ayrshire cow would do, says : "She yields much milk, and that of an oily or but3'raceous or caseous nature, and after she has jaelded very large quantities of milk for several years, she will be as valuable for beef as any other breed of cows known ; her fat shall be 'much more mixed through the whole flesh, and she shall fatten faster than any other." Whatever may be said in regard to the extent of these claims, it will be admitted that they indicate the confidence which was long ago placed in the breed in regard to the properties mentioned. Youatt, who wrote twenty-five years after Alton, says: "The breed has been much improved since Mr. Alton described it. " It is thirty years since Mr. Youatt made this remark, and in this time the breed has been still further improved in reference to general usefulness. I have been assured by some of the most experienced breeders in Scotland that, while nothing has been lost on the score of dairy properties, considerable has been gained in hardiness and thrift, and in the faculty of giving a greater return, both in milk and flesh, for the food consumed. Of course it is the return obtained, in proportion to the food eaten, that constitutes the true criterion of value in all animals. 56 In Scotland, the calves of the Ayrshire breed that are not wanted for keeping up the breeding or dair^^ stock are either fattened for veal or turned for beef at an earl}^ age. The larger portion, perhaps, of the males are killed for veal. In fact, in some districts veal is an article of considerable importance, and the abilit}^ of Ayrshire cows to make fat calves is considered one of the excellencies of the breed. Thus, Haxton observes: "For all medium soils and climates throughout the United Kingdoin, there is no breed equal to the Ayrshire for profit, whether the produce is converted into cheese, butter, or veal.'" A portion of the males are castrated and fattened when about three to three and a half years old. Scotch farmers, who are in the practice of fattening stock of various breeds, assured me that A3^rshire steers of this age fattened to as much profit as an}', reaching the weight of 700 to 800 pounds the four quarters, and afforded beef excelled in quality' only by the Galloways and the West Highlanders. At present the Ayrshire cattle have not been tried in America to a great extent. There have been various importations, mostly made within the last twent}^ 3^ears; and so far as there have been such trials as would justif}" a conclusion in regard to their merits, they have answered all reasonable expectations. The leading object in keeping them here is the same as it is in Scotland, — the dairy ; but their ability to fatten readil}^ and make beef of good qualit}^ should be taken into consideration in estimating their value. In regard to the latter property, but few trials have as yet been made here. Most of the males have been kept for bulls, and the females have seldom been fattened till too far advanced in 3- ears to breed. It may be worth3^ of consideration, W'hether it would not be an object to give some good steers of the breed a fair chance to show what they could make in beef at three to four 3^ears old. K O o c 57 It is also desirable to ascertain what are the capabilities of the breed in regard to the performance of labor. On this point we are without any evidence from abroad, as oxen are not worked in Scotland. The results of the few trials that have been made with full- bloods have been highly favorable in reference to the qualities of the breed for this purpose. Judging by their points, there is no reason why Ayrshire oxen should not be equal to any others of their size for any kind of labor. They have clean, firm legs, well placed muscles, and are remarkabl}^ quick walkers. The advantages of a Registry, or Herd Book, for this breed of cattle, are too obvious to require argument. For the Shorthorns, Herefords, and. Devons registers have been prepared, and the benefits which have been derived therefrom are such as will insure their continu- ance . An accurate record of the pedigrees of animals, together with a recced of such pre^^'ums as they may •have taken, cannot fail to*afford a gu-Kk_ u -^ :tent, in breeding 'with reference to special objects ; the principle that "like begets like" being admitted as a general law. The subject of publishing a Herd Book for Ayrshires, in Scotland, has been agitated on several occasions, but down to the present time no direct action has been taken on it. The enterprise of the American breeders of this variety of cattle, in taking the lead in this matter, is highly creditable, and, if properly follow^ed up, will be sure to bring a just recompense of rew^ard. 58 AYRSHIRE CATTLE. C. M. WINSLOW. I am occasionally inquired of b}' persons un- acquainted with Ayrshire cattle: "Are Ayrshire cows profitable cow^s for a milkman ? " "What are the}^ for butter cows ? " "Are the\" quick growing, and do they make good beef cattle ?" "What kind of a cross are the}' on Jerseys ? " I AYill try to answer the above questions in the following article : AYRSHIRES FOR THE MIEKMAN. All the breeds of 'cattle that are of any special value show a tendenc}' to excel in some one line of product, and, w^hiie the}' ma}' be prett}' good in several, are extra good in one definite line. If I were asked to give my personal opinion of the place where an Ayrshire cow would do her best and be the most profitable to her owner, I should say in supplying milk for retail trade in towns and cities, because she is a medium sized cow which is acknowl- edged to be the size best adapted to economical production. * She is a tough, hardy cow, seldom having anything ail her, either in body or udder. She has a vigorous appetite, not at all dainty in her food, eating with a relish whatever is placed before her, good or poor. She is a rapid feeder and soon gets her fill and goes to chewing her cud, which she is always doing in a very rapid manner even while being driven along the road, and I have often seen them when being started into a run, keep on chewing as they ran. If there is any food in the pasture, either good or poor grass, browse, or weeds, the Ayrshire cow will find it and get her fill. 59 She is a very uniform and persistent milker, drying off slowly and milking well up to calving. She is quiet and pleasant in her disposition, if kindly treated or if let alone, but will resent abuse. She is intelligent, quick to learn and of a retentive memory. Can easily be taught to take the same place in a stable and will alwa3^s go to that place until moved to another. She is not easil}^ disturbed at milking time, pays no attention to noise and gives her milk as readily to one milker as another. She is a very economical producer of milk, giving a large amount of good qualit}' for the food consumed. Official tests have shown her to produce 4 per cent, milk at a cost of less than two cents per quart on an average. The milk itself is particularl}^ adapted to the various requirements of the trade. It is produced at a small cost, is of good quality for inspection, has a good bod}^ to it and never looks blue, has good keeping quality and will bear transportation without churning or souring. Will, after standing over night, easily remix the cream into the milk, and when once remixed will not readily rise again. The milk is particularh' adapted to table use and for food for invalids and ^children, being attractive looking and evenly balanced in casein and butter fat, making it a complete food and easily digested. Another peculiar qualitj^ of the Ayrshire milk is that the curd instead of being leather}^ and tough is easil}'- crumbled to pieces, which renders it much more easily digested. There is no milk so healthy as Aj'-rshire milk, and people with w^eak digestive organs, and young children, thrive on it and are uniformly free from stomach and intestinal troubles. I have just received the report of the Vermont Experiment Station for 1899, where the}^ have a herd of 6o 59 Jersey, and high grade Jersey, and three A^^rshire cows. The report shows an average of 5296 pounds of milk for the 42 cows, and an average of 6879 pounds for the Ayr^hires. The average cost of 100 pounds of milk for the whole herd is 93.4, and for the A5r5hires 64.5, which w^ould make the Ayrshire milk cost a fraction over i 1-2 cents per quart. The}^ state that the cost of milk is from the cost of food laid down in the barn, but that the roughage is rated at prices more than high enough to cover cost of raising and harvesting in averasre seavSons, BUTTER. While the Ayrshire seems by nature adapted to the production of milk to be used on the table and for food in its original form, still she is no mean butter cow^ her milk being rich in butter fat, but as the cream rises slowl}^ it is much more profitable to use a separator, for, wath a separator the cream is as readily extracted from Ayrshire milk as from any other, and there is no noticeable difference in the churnability of Ayrshire cream from that of an}' of the butter breeds. The report of the Vermont Experiment Station for 1899, just received, with a herd of 39 registered and - high grade Jerseys and three Ayrshires, gives the average cost of one pound of butter for the whole herd at 15.6 cents, and 14.7 cents for the Ayrshires, making the Ayrshires produce both milk and butter at a less cost than the Jerseys. The average proceeds from the sales of butter from the whole herd was $80.55, and from the Ayrshires $77.71. While the average of the Ayrshires for butter fell below the Jerse3^s $2.84, thej^ averaged 1583 pounds more milk, which for feeding purposes would more than offset the $2.84 less butter, making the Ayrshire the 6i more profitable as a butter cow taking the extra milk into consideration. At this same Station, a few years ago, an Ayrshire cow, Rena M^^rtle, made a record of 12172 pounds of milk and 546 pounds of butter in one year, being the largest yield made at the Station by an^^ cow of any breed. My opinion is, that next to supplying milk for the trade the Ayrshire cow is particularly adapted to supplying sweet cream for the trade because she gives a large quantity of smooth, even, cream that is superior for table use and for the manufacture of ice cream. * BEEF. We do not claim the Ayrshire to be a beef animal or even a general purpose cow, but as she is of fair size and an easy keeper, she will pay the cost of raising whenever it is desired to turn her into beef. She has heavy hind quarters and thick loins, and her meat is nicel^^ flecked with tallow even as a two year old. The steers, pure bred and grades, mature early and are of fair size, and are as profitable for beef as it is possible for a dairy breed to be. I have seen Ayrshire oxen and they appeared to be good ones. They were of fair size, handsome looking and sprightly, and were said to be tough and enduring. TOP CROSS ON JERSEYS. A favorite cross seems to be that of an Ayrshire bull on high grade Jerseys, the result of which appears to produce a cow larger than the Jersey with more hardiness, not so nervous as the pure bred Jersey, giving more milk, and making a good all-round dairy cow. This cross began to be tried several 3'ears ago and there is a continual call for Ayrshire bulls for this purpose. 62 CONSTITUTION. PREAMBLE. We, the undersigned, breeders of Ayrshire cattle, recognizing the importance of a trustworthy Het-d Book that shall be accepted as a final authorit}^ in all questions of Pedigree, and desiring to secure the co-operation of all who feel an interest in preserving the purit}-: of this stock, do hereby agree to form an Association for the publication of a Herd Book, and for such other purposes as may be conducive to the interests of Breeders, and adopt the following Constitution : . ARTICLE I. This Association shall be called The Association of Ayrshire Breeders. ARTICLE II. The members of the Association shall comprise onl}^ the original signers of this Constitution, and such other persons as maj'- be admitted, as hereafter provided. x\RTlCEE III. The officers of the Association shall consist of a President, four Vice-Presidents, a Treasurer, a Secretar^^ w^ho, together with six members of the Association, all chosen by ballot, shall constitute an Executive Committee. The President, Vice-Presidents, Treasurer and Secretary shall be elected annually. The six members who make up the balance of the Executive Committee shall be elected as follows : Two members for one 3'ear ; two members for two years, and two members for three 3^ears, and hereafter two members shall be elected each year for a term of three years. 63 The Treasurer shall present at the annual meeting