FARM & GARDEN NOTES

Waikato Argus, Volume V, Issue 359, 27 October 1898, Page 8 (Supplement)

FARM & GARDEN NOTES

Curing Hides for Whips—Take a fresh hide from the animal, fold it in the ordinary way, and bury it in sand for about three days by which time the roots of the hair will be decomposed. Then spread it cut'on the barn floor and pour a couple of bottles of strong vinegar over it. Give it a rub over with a brush or a broom occasionally, until all the vinegar is absorbed, when the hide may be removed and hung in the shade to be used as required. As a rule the hair will be found" on the floor on the removal of the hide. The fleshy substance can bo removed hs the hide is cut for une, when after a few minutes, rubbing, it will be found tough and pliable. t t t

Dairt Cow Judgino.—ln judging the beat dairy cow, the judges have a perfect right to examine the vessel of each animal and prove to their owu satisfaction that the quarters are right. If, in doing so, a little milk was drawn from each teat, the circumstances might influenoe another set of judges, if the cow subsequently camo before them. However, to prevent such contingency, it would only be necessary to bring under their notice the fact that some had already been drawn from the animal. 2. The scale of points for an Ayrshire cow, as adopted by the committee of the Herd Book Society, is as follows:—Head, 10 ; neck, 5 : forequarters, 6 ; back, ] 0 ; hindquarters, 8 ; udder, 33; legs, 3; skin, 5 ; colour, 3; average live weight, in full milk, 8; general appearance, 10 ; total, 100. t I X

"Competent" Judges.—Decidedly more blunt than complimentary, says a oontributer to the Melbourne Leader, were the remarks levelled against the judges at country shows by some of the speakersat the Adelaide Show Conference. "Is it right," asked a Yorke's Peninsula delegate, " when a prize is offered for a dairy bull for the prize to be given to a bull stag ? That has been done. A prize was also offered for five hens. Four hens were brought along. They took the rooster and pulled out his tail to make up the number required, and got the prize." The conference was conuulsed with laughter. "Oh, its a fact," said the Yorke's Peninsular delegate. Another representative from Millicent remarked that an imported judge at a local show gave a prize " to a 2-year-old gelding for a blood horse." "He played the trick the second time," added this gentleman, " and was disqualified for further service." " I remember once at a show at Quorn," observed another delegate, "that a prize was offered for a pair of duoks, and it went to two drakes." t I t

The Importance oe a Good Udder.— Within the past decade breeders of dairy stock have learned to appreciate the full significance of a good milk vessel in a cow. Not only that, but they have in some respects radically altered their views as to the best formation to produce the largest quantity of milk. Of course, in all cases it is not the largest udder that produces the greatest quantity of milk ; but, undoubtedly, unless the capacity is considerable, the yield of milk must be small. Dr. Miles, in bis volume on stock breeding, deals as follows with the importance of a good udder:—A cow whether Shorthorn, Hereford, or Jersey —that gives but a small amount of milk, and that for a short time, needs but a small udder, while a cow that yields 1001 b a day must have both a lurge reservoir to hold the milk and milk glands sufficiently developed to secrete it. Between these two extremes all gradations exist. The organ, thcreforo, to which the greatest importance is attached, and in which the greatest differentiation may be expected, is the udder. To conform perfectly to the standard, it should have a long connection with the body, extending well forward under the belly, and be continued with looso skin well up behind. The front quarters should be the same as the hind ones, and should hang to the same level. For the sake of easy milking the teats should bo of good size and be evenly placed. After the udder, the size of the belly is the point of greatest importance. The best cows are well provided with immense paunches and excellent digestive organs as is evidenced by the large rations they have consumed, the avidity with which the food has been eaten, anil tho universal freedom from indigestion or other ailment. Tho magnitude of the udder and belly gives these cows the wedge shape as viewed from the side. A large girth behind the shoulders is as important as a large belly. To do the work involved in tho digestion and assimilation of the requisite food and the secretion of the milk for a largo butter yield, tho system of the cow must have an abundant supply of oxygen and great lung capacity combined with size and activity of tho thoracic organs. The wedge shape of the dairy cow must not be due to any constriction of the form at this point, but to extra development of the belly and udder.