450 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



surprised and as a Missourian, humiliated to not a small degree. 

 His reply reminds me of the verse : 



Old Mother Hubbard, she went to the cupboard 



To get her poor dog a bone, 

 But when she got there, the cupboard was bare, 



And so the poor dog had none. 



He told me that the State had no stallion. To my mind this 

 sort of progress was like climbing a hill one step and sliding back 

 two. I lost interest in the State's ability to give me any beneficial 

 demonstration in draft horse breeding, and the only knowledge I 

 gained from the trip, so far as draft horses were concerned, was 

 an insight as to something of the type a draft brood mare should 

 be to perform her part on the Missouri farm for profit. Professor 

 Mumford was only in a position to give me or furnish me with half 

 the information that I should have received on that trip, for the 

 sire in a herd constitutes half the herd when it comes to reproduc- 

 tion. And I venture the assertion that every other visitor who 

 was interested in draft horses and visited the State college at that 

 time was as much disappointed. In. fact, I know that many were, 

 for their comments indicated as much. This was progress with a. 

 handicap. 



But the State has made progress with the draft horse outside 

 of the demonstrational work at the experimental farm. Following 

 the outside work or what they call here at the college, extension 

 work, I believe, of Dean Mumford, came the work of Prof. Trow- 

 bridge. For the last four years he has been doing a wonderful 

 work in. the interest and progress of the draft horse in Missouri. 

 A draft horse organization has been formed, largely through his 

 efforts. Men interested in the business have been brought to- 

 gether and made to feel that they are not standing alone in an 

 effort to push forward the great cause of breeding better horses. 

 Professor Trowbridge has secured the able assistance of Secretary 

 John P. Stinson of our State Fair and the assistance of the State 

 Fair Board, in offering better inducements and more classifications 

 for draft horses at the State Fair. And I was very glad to see 

 these efforts meet with success, when last year and year before 

 last the showing at the State Fair was increased by fifty per cent 

 more exhibits in the draft horse classes than any former year. 

 And those of you who were there will remember how well the seats 

 in the live stock pavilion surrounding the show arena were filled 

 not only with interested farmers, but their wives and children 

 were there with them to study the lesson in draft horse types and 



