CATTLE BREEDING.

Waikato Times, Volume XV, Issue 1310, 20 November 1880, Page 2

CATTLE BREEDING.

The price of cattle, unlike that of sheep, is affected entirely by local causes. Our sheep market obeys the fluctuations of the English wool market, but the cattle market is ruled by the home consumption of beef and dairy produce, though it is to be hoped that these products will, ere long 1 , by means of the freezing process, have the same advantages with regard to markets that wool has. The cattle grazing and dairy operations of the country are at present on a smaller scale than sheep farming, and must always be so, on account of the nature of the country, and therefore the value of cattle would be enhanced by an increase of population, which would be powerless to affect the price of sheep. It is the ambition of almost every industrious labourer with a family to become the possessor of a cow, and there can. be no doubt that the wages of working men thus invested have assisted very materially in maintaining the price of cattle. A working man cannot expend his savings more judiciously than in buying a good milch cow if he has the means of keeping one, for he not only effects a great reduction in his housekeeping expenditure, but with good management lays the foundation of a small fortune. A really good cow is a mine of wealth to a poor man. It is not, however, an easy matter, to procure a good milch cow, such animals being almost as scarce as good hacks. The greater part of the cattle in this country are of a rough description and cannot lay claim to merit, either as fatteners or milkers, and are of no particular breed. We may expect to see an improvement in the course of time, resulting from the efforts of those breeders who have incurred the trouble and expense of importing animals from the English herds. There are some magnificent cattle in the country (though only a limited number), and the inlfience of these herds will gradually expend until the whole of the cattle stock have undergone a change for the better. The shorthorns are here, as in England, the fashionable breed. This breed is among cattle what the Leicester is with sheep. Ithaß been used extensively in modifying the other English breeds, in order to improve their form and fattening qualities. The shorthorn breed is supposed to have originally came from Holland, and has long been esteemed in the northern counties of England for its superior milking qualities. But the shorthorn oxen were ill-formed, had coarse skins, and were bad feeders. Towards the end of the last century the improvement of this breed was taken up with great spirit, and the present breed of shorthorns was produced. There seeps to be some doubt as to the precise crosses which were resorted to in effecting the desired change ; but the chief aim of the breeders was to improve the foi m and increase the fattening quali ties without lowering the reputation of the breed as milkers. It was long thought au impossibility to comprise good milking and good grazing properties in the same animal ; but shorthorn breeders consider that they have effected this union, or at least that they have succeeded in immensely improving the grazing qualities of the Dreed at the expense of a very inconsiderable quantity of milk. ForJJbeauty of form, tendency to fatten, and early maturity, the shorthorns stand unrivalled ; but as milkers it may be questioned whether they are entitled to the first place. In a mob of cattle of mixed breeds ifc will almost invariably be found that the beasts which fchow the most Rborthorna are in the best condition, but they are seldom the best milktrs. High condition is not generally considered to indicate good milkers, indeed in a dairy cow in full milk it is rather a bad sign. A beefy cow should be fattened off for the butcher. Breeding cattle for dairy purposes ia much too neglected. Those who give their attention to the improvement of cattle allow themselves to be unduly influencpd by what is supposed to be the prevailing weakness of the age, namely the passion for show, and aim at producing animals that will catch the eye of spectators at a live stock exhibition. Notwithstanding all that may be said in favor of any particular breed, it can scarcely be doubted that when cattle display a marked aptitude for fattening, unless care aud judgment are exercised to prevent this quality from becoming unduly developed, their value as milkers must be lessened The breeder should endeavor to balance the claims of the grazier and the dairyman. But the dairyman requires something more than good milking qualities in order that he may fatten his cows for the butcher, after they are past their prime as milkers. The Ayrshire is an admirable breed of milch uattle, which owes much to the care and selection of judicious breeders This breed has found its way uot only into England, but also into Ireland and Wales ; recommended by the excellency of the cows as milkers, although they are under the middle size. It is estimated that a good Ayrshire cow , well fed and properly looked after, will yield sufficient milk in a year to make 2001b of butter, or 4001b of cheese. The Ayrshire is a breed better fitted for the dairy farmer than the grazier ; nevertheless in rich lands the oxen fatten with considerable facility, and even the cows accumulate flesh ; but then they cease to yield much milk. Cattle-breeding, as a rule, is carried on in this country in a very unscientific manner, and in consequence, the bulk of the cattle are a very mixed nondescript lot, the bad very largely predominating over the good. Little or no attention is given to the selection of cows for breeding. All are bred from indiscriminately, and so long as this plan is followed the benefits which should arise from having a few really superior breeds in the country can only be slowly felt. The habit of half starving calves, of which so many of our dairymen are guilty, has a most deteriorating effect upon cattle stock. This ia done with the idea of swelling the profits ofthe dairy, but is false economy of the most narrow-minded description. A calf that is kept short of food during the earlier stages of its growth can never grow into a fine animal, no matter what advantage it may afterwards have in the way of pasture. Let any one observe the difference between a calf remaining with its mother and one that has been fed on sour skim milk, and he will see the effects of good and bad food illustrated in a striking form. The man who aims at producing a superior class of cattle must not be sparing of fodder, or his attempts will assuredly fail. In regard to climate and soil there is no reason why we should not have as fine a class of cattle in this country as any in the world.

The anniversary of the taking of the Bastile was celebrated at Paris with great success. England, Italy and France are claiming I compensation for the damages caused by the bombardment of Peruvian and Bolivian towns. Francois Auguste Bonhenr, the painter a younger brother of Rosa Bonheur is dead,