78 WEST OXFORD SOCIETY. 



a herd or flock because of some apparent excellence, will taint the 

 blood most likely with defects inherent in his own. The slab side, 

 the bad head, or the blue hard muscle of some ancestor, is sure to 

 appear. It is said by a breeder of the Leicester sheep, that the 

 oldest and purest flocks, produce from time to time, gra^ faces and 

 black legs. Earl Spencer said to a friend who consulted him on a 

 point of breeding, " Your cross will not justify a very high priced 

 bull, but to secure you against anything monstrous, you must as- 

 certain that you have several generations of good blood." Who 

 has not noticed the diversity of shapes, quality, color, and aspect, 

 in a drove of Short horns or Ayrshires, or modern Jerseys, on the 

 one hand, and the uniformity of appearance in a drove of Devons 

 or Herefords on the other. High breeding, it is said, is at the sacri- 

 fice of fertihty. 



Mr. Edge of Strelley, England, is mentioned as an instance of a 

 breeder who conceived a model of size, symmetry and aptness to 

 fatten, and then spared no pains to reahze it. Aided by a correct 

 eye, and free from prejudice, he selected at any cost and from any 

 quarter, animals, both male and female, which he deemed most 

 likely to answer his expectations. Nor was he disappointed in 

 this respect. But after some years when about to attain his beau 

 ideal, the females ceased bearing. Thus ended his experiment. 

 Lord Spencer, an enthusiastic advocate and admirer of Short horns, 

 in a speech, admitted that fecundity had diminished in his herd, to 

 an inconvenient degree. The reason given is, that the females are 

 too fat. This is not the only reason says an English writer ; for a 

 herd of Herefords of equal fatness were very prolific. Barrenness 

 is said to be a fault in cheese-making districts where Short horns 

 are kept. A Kentucky breeder recently said this was not a fault 

 with his herd of Short horns. 



The Short horn breed are naturally coarse and of delicate consti- 

 tution, rccjuiring a mild climate, a productive soil, careful tending 

 and feeding, or else the refined touches of careful breeding, nursing 

 and feeding will soon deteriorate ; and if carried to the highest de- 

 gree of perfection, sterility is the result; another serious evil. The 

 beef is said to be inferior to that of the races. But in quietness, 

 composure and docility, they have no equals. A small native 

 scrub bull, steer or cow, will rule a herd of Short horns. Breeding 

 seems to have subdued their combativeness. Early maturity is 

 claimed both for the Short horn cattle and the Leicester sheep. 

 True, but have they not had possession of the most fertile districts 



