300 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



ported Yoimg JNlary or imported anything else. I thiuli they have been 

 long enough on American soil to Avarrant us in stopping these ailusions to 

 the importation. That plan will untie our hands. 



At the St. Louis and Chicago shows, where the cream of everything 

 was found, one of the most beautiful animals 1 have seen for years stood 

 first in its class. It was a yearling, and the owner said he would be glad 

 to sell it for three hundred dollars, although he had been pricing some 

 other animals not so good at one thousand dollars. At the bottom of the 

 animal he priced at three hundred dollars was Young Phyllis. Now, what 

 was the ma'tter with Young Phyllis? One animal traced to some far-off 

 animal in Scotland and the other to Young Phyllis, and the latter was 

 the better animal, although offered at a price away down below the other. 



We should not lose sight of the underlying merit and go in entirely 

 for the paper part. A dozen leading breeders in this country could rem- 

 edy this whole thing. I can pick out a dozen gentlemen in this country 

 who, if they would take a bull bred as I have said, tracing on the side of 

 the dam to the old fashioned cattle, which were the best of their kind at 

 the time they were imported, and which were as good, many of them, as 

 those imported today, this thing would disappear. I have asked some of 

 them why they did not do it. They say when people come to their herds 

 to buy animals they want the straight Scotch sire. What is a pure 

 Scotch sire? There is no sych thing in the world. They all have a mix- 

 ture of Bates and other cattle in them. There is no more pure Scotch than 

 there is a pure Ohio or a pure Indiana strain of cattle. It is absolute non- 

 sense and we want to broaden the field and recognize merit. We need 

 all the good bulls we have, and a gi'eat many more. There are too many 

 poor cattle being bred, and if we let down the bars and let everybody's 

 hands be free to use rightfully and properly all the ocean of good blood 

 there is in the herd book Ave would do much better in the Avay of breeding 

 good cattle. 



The American Short-horn Breeders' Association is a representative 

 associatioh, and it is a question Avhether they will perpetuate in the herd 

 books this policy, Avhich, by the use of the name of the imported cow 

 continues this discrimination, or Avhether they Avill adopt a better method. 

 I have been trying to ascertain Avhat is necessary to broaden our trade 

 with Mexico, the Argentine Republic, Cuba, and many other places. I 

 tind this to be one of the barriers. We ourselves put an artificial dis- 

 tinction upon some of our cattle and thereby drive away would-be pur- 

 chasers. 



While Missouri is supposed to be well supplied with short-horn cattle, 

 I have had access to some statistics Avhich shoAv tJiat but five per cent, of 

 all the cattle in that state haA-e short-horn blood. I don't know Avhether 

 your state can show a better record. We need all the good cattle here 

 at home, but Avhen we come to send thorn abroad we find that Argentina 

 has acted more Avisely than other countries. She will take only the l>est 



