Lynchburg Virginian

From the New England Farmer.

THE DAIRY.

I have generally found that those cows which gave the greatest quantity of milk, gave the poorest quality. It is not, however, always the case.--I have also thought heifers did not give so rich milk as when they come to 4 or 5 years of age; the quality of milk is always less rich soon after calving, and becomes richer, constantly, till the cow is nearly dry; and in the fall, milk is always richer than in the spring: all these circumstances must be taken into consideration in determining the value of a cow by the Lactometer. An ordinary cow, as to richness of milk, may be a good breeder for draught and fatting stock, but, in our country, I think the butter and cheese properties are of first consideration, and as fine animals for labor and beef may be obtained from them.

In using the lactometer, the whole milk should be drawn from the cow, and then stirred before filling the glass; otherwise you do not get the fair average quality: in warm weather, the cream rises slowly: I generally let it stand 48 hours, and note its rising every 12 hours-and in cool or cold weather I have not known it to rise any after 12 hours.

S. X. notices several cows that have proved great Butter makers-these have all been very high fed animals.-I somewhat doubt, if a farmer gives his cows good English hay, and enough of it, and also has real good pasturage whether he gets by extra feed of meal, skim milk. &c. &c. sufficient extra butter or cheese to pay for it -I think S. X. proves this in Essex county.

I wish some of our public spirited individuals would import a few bulls and heifers of the Ayrshire stock that give 900 gallons of milk per year, and also of the Galloways, the cows of which produce their weight in cheese per year. They would be great acquisitions to us, notwithstanding the fine stock we already possess in Short Horns, Alderneys, Herefords and Devons-and might be easily imported from Glasgow, via New York or New Brunswick, as from Boston there is little or no trade with Scotland, and the expense would not be much.

Sept. 29, 1829.