THE "CREAM POT" STOCK. BY WILLIAM HI. SLINGERLAND, NORMAN'S HILL, ALBANY, NEW YORK. THE original dam of the "Cream Pot" breed of stock was a large, light roan, short-horn cow, and her pedigree is as follows: Bred by II. & I. Carpenter, New York; got by imp. Duke of Exeter, 449 (10,152); dam, Cream Pot 7th, by Fontiac, 125; g. dam Cream Pot 2d, by Guazirone, 68; gr. g. dam Cream Pot, by imported Lord Althorpe, son of Firby (1,040;) gr. gr. g. dam Flora Hills, by Young Eclipse, son of imported Eclipse; gr. gr. gr. g. dam imported Jenny. "Lord Althorpe" was bred by Lord Althorpe, afterwards Earl Spencer, and got by Firby (1,040) out of his cow "Lady Althorpe." She gave thirty quarts of milk per day, for months in succession, shortly after calving, five quarts of which yielded eight and a half ounces of butter. The original cow, "Cream Pot,” gave, when in her prime, thirty-six quarts of milk per day, and made eighteen pounds of butter per week, while the property of John F. Sheaf. The "Young Eclipse" above referred to was got by imported "Eclipse" out of imported "Jenny," and both were imported by Henry Hills, esq., about the year 1820, on account of the milking qualities of the stock from which they were descended. The cow I first purchased of this breed gave, by actual measurement, from seventy-three to seventy-five pounds of milk per day, when fed on grass alone, from which was made twenty-three pounds twelve ounces of butter in ten days. She was awarded the first prize at the fair of the New York State Agricultural Society, in 1859, as the best milk and butter cow of any breed, and each of her descendants has taken the same prize in succession. Thus this peculiar family of stock has been bred exclusively for milk long before their importation, and ever since their introduction into this country; and great caution has been exercised in selecting milking stock throughout all their line of descent. I have never seen a heifer of this kind of stock whose milk could not be readily distinguished, by the richness of its color, from the milk of any other kind of stock. I have been experimenting in this kind of stock for the last twenty years, and I am entirely satisfied with the result, as this breed combines fattening with its milking qualities, and I have never known one of the old cow's progeny that was not, at any season of the year, on ordinary feed or pasturage, fit for the shambles. The idea in this country generally is, that the short-horns are not generally good milkers, from the fact that many of the breeders have been experimenting for fattening qualities, size, and beauty, with little, if any, regard to milking qualities, and this is especially the case in the western States, where stock-raising for beef is very remunerative. But while this is true of many families of short-horns, there are others which have been bred solely for the dairy, and it long since occurred to me that if we could find a cross that would combine both of these essential qualities, it would be just what is wanted by the fariner of the eastern and middle States. With all the culture which the improved short-horns have received, it has taken nearly a century to get the milking qualities of the "Cream Pot" breed, and, at the same time, they are quickly prepared for the shambles. Their geneeral appearance is as follows: The head short and fine, broad across the eyes, but gradually tapering to the nose; the nostrils full and prominent; the nose itself of a rich flesh color; eyes bright and placid; ears small and thin; horns small and thin, and very much curved. The head is well set on a thin and somewhat drooping neck. The chest not very extensive; shoulders high, fine, and well formed; fore legs short and very thin; barrel round, broad, and very deep, with extraordinary milk veins below the barrel, which is very wide and level on the back, straight from the shoulders to the tail; the udder is broad and flat, with the teats set wide apart. They are very hardy, have strong constitutions, and are good feeders. The importance of these points is not sufliciently regarded by the dairymen and farmers of this country; but I think I can discover a great change, in the last few years, in the public opinion on this subject. It is generally conceded that every householder desires a good milch cow for his family use; and while all may desire beef, no family can dispense with the use of milk and butter, and, therefore, it becomes a subject of great importance to almost every individual in the whole community, whether farmers shall improve our stock, or continue to breed from degenerated animals. THE JAQUES "CREAM POT" STOCK. BY J. R. DODGE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. THE native stock of New England has occasionally produced milkers scarcely to be excelled by the best of any breed. Well authenticated statements of excessive quantity of milk or cream products, or both, could be adduced in illustration. The early importations often included some of the best specimens of English or Dutch dairy stock. Many farmers, holding practical and sensible views of breeding, with little knowledge of its scientific principles, have maintained the high character of their stock, and even essentially improved its dairy qualities. Thirty years ago, Mr. Samuel Jaques, of the Ten-Hills Farm, Charlestown, Massachusetts, had attained very satisfactory results in his efforts to establish a breed of dairy stock, founded on crosses upon selected native stock, by a shorthorn bull belonging to a family famous for perpetuating milking qualities. Mr. P. W. Jones, the owner of the cow herewith pictured, says that the original cows were two selected by Mr. Jaques, after months of search, and purchased from a Mr. Lawrence, of Groton, Massachusetts; that they were of Danish origin, one a "large milker," the other "an extremely fine butter cow;" and that he kept the two branches distinct, preserving thus a "milking strain and a butter strain." The bull Colebs, a short-horn, was the sire of the race. Mr. Jaques was firm in the belief that he could breed to order, with positive certainty, any peculiarity or improvement desired. In this he was, doubtless, too sanguine. Mr. Henry Colman, in his official report as commissioner for the survey of the agriculture of Massachusetts, says: "The dam of this stock was a noble-sized cow, raised in Groton, Massachusetts; but the owner knew nothing particularly of her origin. She was sold to a gentleman by the name of Haskins, residing in Dorchester, about five miles from Boston; and her cream was of such extraordinary richness that it would become separated into butter by the motion of the carriage in bringing it into the city. The stock owned by Mr. Jaques is descended from this cow by a cross with the improved Durham short-horn bull Celebs, imported, some years since, by a gentleman of that city, and owned afterwards by Mr. Jaques. This bull was without a pedigree; but it is said that there is good reason to believe that he was a regular descendant from Mr. Collins' celebrated bull "Comet." He further says: "I have repeatedly seen cream from these cows, and its yellowness and consistency are remarkable; and, in company with several gentlemen of the legislature, I saw a portion of it converted into butter, with a spoon, in one minute. The color of Mr. Jaques' stock is a deep red, a favorite color in New England. They are well-formed, and thrifty upon common feed; and, if they continue to display the extraordinary properties by which they are now distinguished, they promise to prove themselves, for dairy purposes, the most valuable race of animals ever known among us; and as remarkable as any of which we have any information." The following statement was made by Colonel Jaques himself: "It has been my object to effect such an improvement in milch cows as should produce the greatest quantity of rich milk, affording the largest quantity of butter. There is a greater difference, in pecuniary profit, between a good and a poor cow, than among any other domestic animals. In some yards there may be found those which will not produce more than three pounds per week, and others that would make nine, and all on the same keep. As we sometimes hear of cows which have produced seventeen pounds of butter per week, and even more, it occurred to me to inquire why a breed or race could not be formed with the same valuable properties. This I have attempted, and have carried it to the third generation, and I am confident of success. I have a cow whose milk has produced nine pounds of the best butter in three days; and this on grass feed only. This I call my Cream Pot breed. I have bred my Cream Pots with red or mahoganycolored hair, yellow noses, with mahogany-colored teats, yellow skin, silky and elastic to the touch. I have obtained the breed by the cross of a Durham shorthorned bull on a selected native cow, with certain extraordinary points and properties, anxious to retain as much of the form of the Durham as to insure capacious udders, and with the valuable property of affording rich milk. Though an admirer of the Durham short-horns, I have not found them producing so rich milk, nor making so much yellow butter, as I could wish. The Durham race are round and straight in the barrel, full in the twist, and inclining to be thick in the thigh. I have wished for some improvement in the form of the bag. Generally, cows, which I have examined, giving the largest amount of the richest milk, have had capacious bags, full behind, extending far up into the twist, and also well formed, hanging moderately deep when full of milk, and after the milk is drawn, quite the reverse, for I would avoid a fleshy bag. My Cream Pot breed are full in the body, drop deep in the flank, are not quite so straight in the belly, nor as full in the twist, nor as thick in the thigh; but in other respects I wish them to approach the Durham as near as may be. My Cream Pot breed excel particularly in affording a great quantity of rich cream, and that cream capable of being formed into butter in a short time, and with little labor, leaving a small proportion of buttermilk. Their cream produces more than eighty per cent. of pure butter; and it is not unfrequent to form the cream into butter in one minute. It has been done in forty seconds. I have a heifer, designated as Betty Cream-Pot, one of the third generation, which produced her first calf at two and a half years old. Mr. Brown, my foreman, made the following experiment upon her milk, without my knowledge at the time: After milking, he took two quarts of her milk out of the pail, and, having strained it into a pan, allowed it to stand twenty-four hours. Having then skimmed the cream into a bowl, he churned it with a tablespoon, and in one minute, by the clock, he formed the butter. It was then pressed and worked in the usual way, and amounted to half a pound of pure butter. After this, the following practice was pursued for eight or ten weeks in succession: At each of four successive milkings, two quarts of the strippings were strained into a pan, and then churned. The average time of churning did not exceed ten minutes; in some instances the butter was formed in five minutes. After being properly worked over it was weighed, and never |