To sum up the points of a good dairy cow, we should find the whole fore quarters thin in front, and gradually .increasing in depth and width backward, yet being of sufficient breadth and roundness to insure constitution. The back should be straight, the loins wide, the hips high and well spread; pelvis roomy, long, broad and straight, hook bones wide apart; quarters long, tolerably muscular, and full in their upper por tion, but moulding into the thighs below, which should have a degree of flatness, thus affording more space for a full udder; the flanks well let down, but not heavy; ribs, behind, springing out ' very round and full, affording space for a large udder—the whole carcass thus acquiring in creased volume towards its posterior portion. The points as given are those of utility, and we see the udder points and body points are corre lated. In connection with the body and the udder, the skin is of great value in assisting our judgment. Between that portion of the external covering used for leather and the muscle, there occurs a layer of cellular tissue, which contains a larger or smaller amount of fat cells, and the mellow handling caused by these cells indicates a free circulation throughout this meshwork. The skin 'varies from a thin, papery hide, cov ered with silky hair, to a thick, supple, elastic hide, well coated with hair, on the one hand, and a similar variation, with harsh hair and coarseness, on the other. The thin, papery hide indicates quick fattening and a delicate constitu tion; the thick, elastic hide cushioned on fat, and which, on the flank, comes into the hand almost without grasping, indicates the height 'of vigor, accompanied by the fattening tendency, and the possessor of this handling endures climatic changes, low quality in his food, and neglect, with remarkable hardihood, and quickly responds to full feed and good care. The harsh handler is a dull feeder, consumes much food, and generally contains more than just propor tion of offal or waste. In the Ayrlhire cow we desire neither of .these extremes, for it is in the milk product that we wish the food to be util ized, and it is almost an unchanging law of nature that deficiency in one direction must be compensated for by excess in another direction, and vice versa. At any rate, the cow that lays on fat too quickly is seldom a first-class milker, and how well known is it that the cow of large yield milks down her condition. A cow that has a moderately thin, loose skin, of sufficient elas ticity and suppleness of touch, without being fat cushioned, as it were, with hair soft and mossy, or woolly, if of correct form otherwise, will usually milk a large quantity, and when she be comes dry, will rapidly come into condition. In truth, the handling of the Ayrshire cow must be good; it can not be too good; but it must not be of exactly that quality sought for in the grazing breeds. There, as everywhere, the dairyman must keep to his line; milk, not fat, is his profit; and in seeking excess of both, he will be liable to fall below the average of either. It is an axiom of breeders to diminish the useless parts of an animal as much as possible; or, in other words, reduce the proportion of thqse parts not condu cive to profit to as great extent as possible. Ap plying this rule to a dairy breed, we should deSire a small neck, sharp shoulders, small brisket and small bone. Moreover, small bone usually accompanies thrift, and is universally found in improved breeds. We thus have a reason for these other points, which are here quoted: Shoulders lying snugly to the body, thin at their tops, small at their points, not long in the blade, nor loaded with muscle; brisket light; neck of medium length, clean in the throat, very light throughout, and tapering to the head; tail long and slender; legs short, bones fine, joints firm. If the dairyman's policy were otherwise, he would have to supply extra food for the supports of parts useless to him, and whose larger development is of no especial value. The head should be small, in shape either long and narrow, or broad in the forehead and short, according to the type of the animal preferred by the breeder, generally preferred somewhat dishing; the nose tapering to an ex panded muzzle, with good, clean nostrils. Opin
ions differ as to the general shape of the head. A broad forehead and short face occurs more frequently in bulls, and is generally esteemed a masculine characteristic; a more elongated face is called feminine. Yet some families of well bred and good milking Ayrshire cows have the broad and short head, and such were, at one time, if not now, the favorites in the show-yards in Scotland. The eye should be moderately full, lively yet placid-looking. The eye is a mirror of the disposition, and interprets the character of the cow; a fretful, irritable animal is seldom a quick fattener, and usually disappoints at the pail. It also gives expression to the features, and physiognomy aids our judgment. The ears should be of a good size, but thin, and their skin of rich yellow color. Coarse ears are usually found on ill-bred animals, and thus may be considered, to a certain extent, indicative of general coarseness. The color of the skin, as shown inside the ear, is usually considered indicative of the richness of the milk in butter. The horns should be of medium size, of fine tex ture, with an outward and upward turn, or inclining upwards and coming slightly inwards, according to the taste of the breeder. They should be set on rather widely apart. A coarse horn may indicate a coarse and thick hide, as there seems an intimate relation between the composition of the horn, hair and hide; and the influence of climate on the horn and hair gives an appearance oftentimes of correlation between the two. The neck should be of medium length, very light throughout, ands tapering to the throat, which should be free from loose, hanging skin. Yet a too thin neck is not desirable, as it usually indicates a delicate animal. A thick-set neck, well covered, yet not overladen with mus cle, accompanies hardiness and vigor of constitu tion. The junction of the neck with the body and over the shoulders is called the crops; on a horse it would be called the withers A hollow behind this point is a never-failing sign of weak ness. The crops should blend in easily with a thin shoulder, lying snugly to the body. This shoulder and a well-defined spine produce the sharpness of shoulder so much admired. The back should be straight, with spine well-defined, especially forward. The tail long, firm in the bone, and set on a level with the back, without depression or notch. A fine tail usually accom panies fine bone, and fine bone is not only de crease of offal over heavy limbs, but accompa nies early maturity and a tendency to thrift. The limbs should be fine-boned, flat-boned. and with joints of moderate size. On the forward limbs the cow should stand low. Large joints and round bones are found very frequently on dull feeders and on animals of little profit. The teats should be of medium length, evenly set, and project slightly outward when the bag is full; of even thickness throughout; and of fine texture. They should be placed about one-third of, the vessel apart in one direction, and about one-half the other. When the udder is not distended, they should hang perpendicularly. Large teats, however desirable to the milker, are usually accompanied by coarseness of build in the cow. They are seldom found on well-bred animals; yet exceptionally they so occur, and are much liked. A, teat should be large enough to grasp, say from two to two and a half inches in length. A shorter one would be an objection; with larger I should fear coarseness. To return to Ayrshires: In color they vary greatly. Brown red and white appears to good advantage, and is fashionable. A good quantity of white, well distributed, adds style and showiness to the ani mal. Yellow and white is frequently seen, yet while this color is sometimes stated as indicating lack of hardiness, I am not aware of any proofs