COLOUR OF THE SKIN IN JERSEY CATTLE.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 322, 5 December 1888, Page 5

COLOUR OF THE SKIN IN JERSEY CATTLE.

The intensely deep orange colour of the skin of the Jersey cattle, says the Jersey Bulletin, is one of the marked peculiarities of the breed— most valued and admired by those making selections of their breeding animals — and one possessing this attractive feature always obtains high preference over another of equal individual merit and pedigree, bufc lacking this beautiful quality. Ifc is the popular belief that a golden yellow colour of skin is a true indication of a rich milker, and that a cow showing this beautiful tint to a hieh degree must naturally be a heavy butter and milk producer, but this has not been borne out by the facts. Careful comparison by experiment places the matter in some doubt. All Jersey cows are not so fortunate as to possess yellow skins— many of them have very white skins at all seasons-- and often the latter will produce richer milk and make more butter than the former. This causes some disappointment, because the yellow skins look richer and are expected to be better producers, but it does not necessarily follow. In a series of experiments made with rows selected from the herd, where both yellow and white ekiris, were found in their extremeej'jpur 'werachosen having the whitest ' skins, and an equa't'humber of the deepest yellow. The milk was .drawn from each,

and placed in a separate graduated glass ; after standing twelve hours, a perfect s-eparation of the milk from the cream had taken place. The result demonstrated that the tnilk from the cow having the whitest skin in that lot gave 32 per cent, cream, while nono of the others produced more than 25 to 29 per cent., the latter being also from a cow with a white skin. Other experiments, with about the samo goneral results, were afterwards made. These animals were selected with a view of having them all ahout bho tamo time for calving — this condition always regulates the proput Lion of cream to milk — so as to equalise the advantages and placo them all on the same fooling. The food was the same m all cjfos and everything possible was done with u mow to fau-ncse, so' a* to determine the real merit of the case, with a decided partial loaning towards the "orange" colours This does not, of course, prove conclusively the relative i capacity of the cows a*> butter makers, but it is one long step in that diiection, for it the amount of cream be not present the yield of butter cannot be expected, and as a rule, though the quality of cream varies, tho more cream obtained from the milk the / greater will be the result in butter. Cows of the b»ced most liberally marked with white — spotted cows they would be called if they were other than Jerseys, hut that term applied to tlicrn would be sacrilege -- ha\ c the yellowest skint? , and j indeed under no other colour of hair upon the body doc-* iL appear. This is universally so, and there aie no exceptions. Solid colours found in all the different shade", groy — dark and light- the different tints of bronze, all uniformly show the unattrarbivo, dull, dark colour under the hair. "Many of these, howevei, pos^es^ in an intense cle;jiee a yellow udder and the &>p.ice in the rear urnning upward covered bj the escutcheon and aro md the vulva and pait adajcent. where natuie has provided that no lonu hair should grow, a& well as inside the ears— all these are often very yellow, buc un 'er no colour of hair but while is bins popular shade ever found. This facb ought to go far towards breaking down tlie common prejudice against, paiti-colours in Jerseys, for the yellow tint is certainly veiy beautiful to lo.ik upon, and to the eyes of most admirers an indispensable, or at lea&t, a most desirable lequibite, and when it is considered that under no other colour than white can in be found in perfection, it seem« a little paiadoxical that the white markings upon Jer&eys aie so much undeirated.