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exceedingly slow when it comes to improving their herds throngh 

 the pnrchase of high class pedigreed sires, and seem to think that 

 the end may be gained as well through the use of one-half, three- 

 quarter or seven-eighth cross-bred bulls, many of which can now 

 be purchased here, and some of which are splendid individuals 

 besides costing much less than pure-bred animals. These breed- 

 ers, however, do not realize that such animals lack that unfailing 

 breeding potency inherent in the pure-bred sire of an old estab- 

 lished breed, and which makes even the first cross with a com- 

 mon-bred cow worth twice as much and mature a year earlier 

 than the offspring of a cross-bred or common sire with the same 

 class of mother. It may be argued that the local market doe."^ 

 not call for such heavy beeves or for such large cuts as those 

 resulting from 1500 lb. steers, but that is simply because the con- 

 sumers have become used to the smaller cuts and never have had 

 an opportunity to learn that the larger the cut the smaller the 

 waste. Another discourag'ing feature in this connection is the 

 present system of the wholesale trade in butcher animals, all of 

 which are practically bought on the block, that is, after they are 

 butchered, and very rarely on the hoof, as is done everywhere 

 else. This throws the entire loss from shrinkage — from the time 

 a steer leaves the pasture until it has been butchered, bled and 

 well drained, in many cases more than a week — on the stock 

 grower, and the cjuality of the carcass, so apparent in the live 

 animal in the feed yard or on the range, becomes almost insigni- 

 ficant. Whereas, for instance, a bunch of high grade Hereford 

 or Shorthorn steers in the stables averaging 1400 or 1500 lbs. 

 would bring the top market price, say seven or eight cents per 

 pound on the hoof, a bunch of fat common-bred steers of all 

 colors l)Ut fairly even size and weighing about 1100 pounds would 

 bring at best five to six cents per pound. In the local market, 

 however, the ranchman ships liis cattle to Honolulu, taking them 

 off the pasture and after a strenuous trip lantHng them in the 

 slaughterhouse pens, where they remain until butchered, getting 

 nothing but dry hay and water, a i)rocc(lure which is obviously 

 mucli more trying on well-bred cattk' thtUi on scrub stock and. 

 as stated, when the final (k-al is ma(k^ the carcass of the latter 

 will in most cases l)ring as much as the former and possibly be 

 preferred on account of their smaller size, the larger carcasses 

 being classified as stags even if they average a year younger 

 than the others. So long as this condition continues there is little 

 incentive for the ])rogTessivc cattle raiser to improve his herd 

 with expensive sires and only concerted action on their i)art for 

 the sale of the live animals to be consummated eitlier i >n the 

 ranch before shipment or else immediately aftir arrival in 1 lono- 

 lulu, will give the producer of high class beef his just duc<. and 

 help to elevate the live stock industry to the standpoint which 

 the ideal climatic conditions and the almost total absence of dis- 

 eases of live stock warant. 



