LIVE STOCK breeders' ASSOCIATION. ^ l8l 



one to help them make him dollars, it is queer, I repeat, that the printing 

 press is not kept running over time to supply the urgent demand for 

 them." Missouri has good, helpful agricultural papers; close acquaint- 

 ance with and careful study of the pedigree of animals is of great service, 

 and often adds dollars to the price. Books, descriptive of the different 

 breeds, and also those which treat of feeds, care, etc., pay a big premium 

 on the investment; you see this point often, that it pays and pays big 

 for the breeder to keep up with the times by reading and study. If 

 the farmers of my county or of any county in our grand State could 

 only see the possibilities of their farmholds, if they could only be 

 so united as to see that they could become at least independent if 

 not rich by disposing of the scrub stock, and all breeding any one of 

 the breeds of beef cattle, of dairy cattle or of horses, or swine or sheep, 

 anything in the line of pure-bred stock, according to the sort of land 

 they have, and the kind of stock they like to work with best, if they 

 only could and would do so, what a difference there would be, but when 

 I say if I lean back in my chair and close my eyes and let my imagina- 

 tion run riot as in a dream. I see my county blossom as the rose ; I 

 see fertile fields, bearing heavy crops ; I see blue grass and clover 

 pastures, and, best of all, alfalfa, giving of their substance to big beef 

 cattle, or to dainty dairy cattle; I see hogs whose eyes stick out with 

 fatness, and whose backs are as broad as a farm mortgage, ready for the 

 market, or show ring; I see the golden hoof of the sheep drifting like 

 a white cloud hither and yon over the pastures ; I see good fences, good 

 roads, roomy barns, silos and comfortable dwellings, and I see a steady 

 stream of money pouring into these farmers' pockets for all these well 

 bred animals. Oh, if, then comes that awful if again, and with a rude 

 hand knocks down my castle in the air and I can no longer dream, but 

 must face the stern reality of the situation as it is. It is bad enough, 

 and it stands just about like this : A well-to-do farmer here and there 

 has bought pure-bred stuff, cattle mostly or hogs, paying a fair or 

 perhaps a long price; these animals are well fed and cared for, and 

 given some extra attention, since their owner considers that he has 

 quite a sum of money invested in them. Thought is given to breeding 

 them, and the young things are well fed out. Presently these men have 

 good stock for sale. With the same sense they have shown all through 

 the transaction, they advertise and sell this stock, making something in 

 the deal. The stock becomes better and better through introducing 

 new lines of blood and the farmers make a good thing of their in- 

 vestment. There are a few of this class, and it is to be hoped there 

 will soon be many. They are the leaven which we trust will soon 

 leaven the whole lump. They are. in wonderful contrast to the other 



