THE HERD OF THE FUTURE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 60, 21 June 1907, Page 2

THE HERD OF THE FUTURE.

EXAMPLE HEX BY LEVIN. RESULTS OF JUDICIOUS BREEDING AND CULLING. PRACTICAL ASSISTANCE TO FARMERS. No amount of literature or lectures by divisional ollicers could have so impressed the overflowing assemblage of representative dairy fanners at Palmerston North on Wednesday as did the address delivered by the Hon. Mr. MeNab. J n our telegraph report yesterday, little more than the outline of Mr. McNab's schemes were given, and fie subject is one that will bear handling in more detail, and our correspondent forwards the further fuller report of the meeting.

'l'lii'i'e was no dissentient voice to the Minister's assertion that the improvcnie:'.; and advancement of the industry now depended on the producers—on the iiiiin who farmed and milked the cow. 'J'lie manufactures had reached a high state of ellieiency, and could not accomplish more until the quality of the milk sent for manufacture had improved in cleanliness and purity. The remedy proposed by the Government, to appoint practical, inspectors to keep a close but instructive eye on the farmyards, the cost to be borne by the State, was received by the meeting with the heartiest approbation. The news (hat the experimental station is not to be delayed in starting longer than is absolutely "necessary to guard against possible mistakes, and that it is to be furnished according to the very latest in the world of dairy science, may be taken as an assurance that within two or three seasons dairy farmers and manufacturers will have available to Uiem scientific information relating to their industry equal to the best procurable by .any dairying community in the world. Similarly the announcement that the Government is to take in hand the supervision of our butter on the Home market will at once remove, if they exist, the disabilities under which our produce is believed to sulfur at Home. No better way could be found than that proposed by the Minister—to appoint in turn, for terms of two years, the experienced graders in the colony's service. Under such a system the colony will learn, what it has been impossible to determine up till now, how the voyage and the present means of transit alfects the quality of our butter and cheese, and also exactly to what extent butter is being remanufaetured and faked in the, name of New Zealand. No portion of the Ministerial address, however, was received with more manifest interest than the Hon. Mr. McjVali's proposals having for their object the improvement (in their wealth producing rapacity) of the herds of the colony. Under this heading the Minister was able to prove, as the result of the practical dairy farming at the Levin State farm, that it was possible to improve, by 10(1 per cent., the standard of the miik-produ'-ing capacity of the dairy herds. For some years past, the department had been quietly engaged at Levin in achieving that object. The results had been carefully noted, and he proceeded to give the figures showing the rate of improvement during the past four years, simply by exercising wise and judicious selection, and. of course, adding to the herd from time In time as opportunities presented themselves for buying outside, and what had been done at Levin could have been done on any dairy farm in the colony. The figures showed over the whole herd how the, milk-production per cow had increased by judicious selection. During the season 1(103-4, the average per cow per month was 401.371b of milk, and that had increased till now an average of 8!)!).C211> per month had been reached. The following table, which he quoted, will show at a glance the actual average improvement over the whole herd, month by month, during the last four seasons: Monthly Average Milk Yields from Ist

October, im>3, to 31st May, 1907. 1003-4 1004-5 1005-0 1900-7 \ u </ Sept. .. Oct.. 520.98 038.0 593.25 80(1.25 Nov. .. 583.2 750.9 059.10 1013.5 Doc. .. 000.88 778.58 800.18 1071.8 Jan .. 523.4 722.4 774.0 05.3.0 Feb.. 380.2!) 584.48 028.58 830.77 March .. 450.5 453.70 "812.0 953.5 April .. 402.10 430.50 028.0 824.0 May .. 31)1.« 572.37 495.94 744.14 June .. 300.0 338.27 503.88 July .. 339.3 373.87 573.5 Aver. .. 401.37 010.88 074.G4 800.02 Finished Milking, 1900-7. lbs. Princess 8,829 Oipsv 8.709 Darker 9,210 JTiUidie 11,000 Peggie 8,712 Mary 13,091 59,071 0 cows averaging .... 9,945 Cows Still Milking, 18/6/07. lbs. Phyllis 10,920 Kitchener 10,050 Maidie 8,894 Rothsay 0,721 Cornwall 9,440 Maid.. '.. ..' .'.' .. .'. 10,549 Thistle .. .; 9,888 ltuby 9,080 79,700 i

Average .. .. ~ .. 0,970 Nine others still milking, and from records expected to average 10,000, making total sstimatc for the year 21 as against 12 last year, Cows averaging 10,0001bs last season: 1, Rothsay, 10,775; 2, Mary, 12,107; 3, Thistle, 10,874; 4, Grade, 12,721; 5, Jcivel, 0,035; Nana, 0,477; 7, faiey, (1,370; 8, Bugle, 0.211; !), "Elsie, 0,(140; 10. Tiny, 8,055; 11, Ruby, 8,(143; 12, Cornwall, 8,870—120,038; average. 10,0031b5. It was thus shown that in a miscellaneous herd the average production per cow had very nearly doubled in four years. The figures for individual cows was even more surprising. The Departments aim was to produce at Levin—which was to be specialised for dairy matters and nothing else—a. herd which when milked seasoii after season would produce not less than an average of 10,000 lbs. of milk per cow per annum. The twelve best cows in (lie season preceding this one gave 120,038 lbs., an average of 10,0001bs„ and three over 12,7211h5, and the highest yielded 12.721 His, and the second' 12,1071b5. The Minister impressed on the farmers that it

was not the outlay of monetary wealth that had produced this improvement, nor was it any scientific knowledge that was not at the disposal of any intelligent farmer. Coining to this season, four of the cows not out of milk, (lie top one, which was second the year before, yielded 13,()0llli.—about (i toils of milk—for the season. Another gave 11,000 lbs, mid the lop six already finished gave an average of 0045. There were eight still milking, and the average came to 0070. There were fourteen already that had finished or were stilt in mlik, some of hem giving 25 lbs to SOllis. a day. The 'ourteeu would have reached the averige of 10,0001bs weight by the end of lie season. There were nine others in he herd si ill milking that were likely ■o pass that fi«iiro. making a total of 23 ows in the 1i...-,l that had reached the tandarcl fixed. The process had only to ie carried on for n year or two to be ble to relain a standard,.which, when e lirsl suggested it. had ecu laiudicd ( by the farmers. The -esnUs onlv

I served In nr..v.. wnl ,t j 1(1 ],., S||il , ~, oast that Hipi-o were hundreds of tliou- , sands of cows milked in tliis country that won. not paying for milk;,,™, anil , M.III more dial were not paving for the . grass Ihcy ate. wasting llmir time carrying something tlmt could bo turned info a profitable hide round the paddocks. The sonner tliev realised that, i the better it would ho for the industry T, Dealing with his proposals to help the farmers to living about a hotter state of tliincs— (the precis of whirl] was telegraphed yesterday)— Mr. MeN T ab said. f after the Government had a first-class herd, they would have the nucleus to the colony. 1ml; he was going to propose a course of action 1 hat would still fur- 1' trier improve the material available, for ' unVss (hey altered Hioir prescnl lino of '' nolicY. I)ioir ond would be defeated. Or " all the cows Levin was now dealing with ? scaiT-c.lv am- of them were pure-bred " animals, and. therefore, thev were at a " loss when ihcy sought to supply farm- ;l ers with stock animals. Thev' wanted fi to bridge over the ean between the h cross-bred animals of the Stale farm S1 and the pure-bred stock that would mo- fo duce the some ,obiiH. and enable them "' to supnlv the farmers all over flie no- >'' Innv with what they want, from a milk- bl iiif; herd of pedigree stock, whether they cf wanted bulls or cows. They would in a Jl short time be aide to send out milking l '

cows, kit not sires, and ho was coins o propose tiiis: n u was going to b sc)m to the best-known milking strains of cows in the world, and buy animals from these standard herds, both on the milk test and pedigree. They would not conlni" their attention to one breed, but woi.l I try two or three—three for preference—if it was possible to get good mi king strains from 'America, England, or ( nr rivals on the European Continent. After referring to the offer from a gentleman to give £11)00 to provide the nuclcm of a Shorthorn herd, at Levin, from the finest milking strains to lie .'""'"'I i" the world, Mr. MeNab said he lmcnded to ask a number of the wealthy men in the colony to stand shoulder to slnn.der with the man who had offered a thousand pounds, and give him C100I) each. From two of them he would not lie surprised to get three thousand pounds. If this was done, the (iovernnicnt would establish the animals at three different herds of the best milking strains at Levin. Then, with these purebred animals at their command, they would lie able at once to bridge the gap that separated them as an experimental dairy station at the present time from the farmers all over the colony, and supply them with breeding stock of whatever breed they preferred, whether Shorthorn, Holstein, or any other kind. Me believed that a remarkable development would follow such distribution at once in our dairy institutions.