290 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



The Poland China of twenty years ago or more was a large and very 

 coarse type of hog. Fixed type has here again demonstrated the possibili- 

 ties of this great breed of swine, and today we see the big, medium, 

 smooth, nice-headed Poland in every leading market of this country. No 

 breed of swine has made greater advancement than has the Poland China, 

 and while I am not breeding that particular strain of hogs, I neverthe- 

 less fully realize what fixed type has done for that breed. 



The breeder of fixed type may not necessarily be popular in his day, 

 yet if his ideals are right it will only be a question of time until his 

 efforts will be rewarded. The greatest breeders of the past fifty years 

 were men who endeavored to do things. In other words, they sought to 

 improve upon the breed in which they were interested and ultimately 

 the result of their work was manifest in every leading market center 

 of this country. 



This great work could never have been accomplished had not :Lese 

 men had a fixed type in their mind's eye, and the I'esult of their work 

 brought millions to the producers of this class of live stock. If you 

 will permjv, me to digress for a few minutes I will call your attention tc 

 the grest work of Amos Cruickshank, one of the foremost breeders of 

 Shorthorn cattle in his day and age. History tells us that Bates cattle 

 were the popular cattle in his time. The Bates type of Shorthorn were of 

 the large, leggy kind that took considerable time to mature. Amoa 

 Cruickshank believed that a shorter-logged, more beefy type was more de- 

 sirable and sought to produce that kind. In his earlier life the rank and 

 file were against him. In fact, those who believed in the "fads ana 

 fancies" were not with him in his endeavor to better his favorite breed. 

 Had he not been a man of great character, of rugged constitution, and 

 of determination, he would never have accomplished what he did in this 

 breed of cattle. He had that fixed type in mind and he never wavered 

 from his ideal. It was nearing the closing of his life work that the name 

 of Amos Cruickshank became revered by every breeder of Shorthorn cat- 

 tle. The work that he accomplished lived after him, and today no strain 

 of Shorthorn cattle is more sought after than the Cruickshank. Had 

 this man not had his ideals or, in other words, had he not that fixed type 

 in mind, the great cattle world would have been the loser. As it was, 

 he did a work that lived after him and will go on for centuries to come. 



The great advancement of every breed of swine has been due mainly 

 to fixed type. Breeders should stick to it and endeavor to produce the hog 

 that will return the. most pounds for the amount of food consumed. I 

 have had my own idea of what fixed type really is and have always sought 

 to produce the ideal. I have sometimes fallen short in my calculations, 

 but this has never deterred me from going on with this great work. The 

 breeder who produces this fixed type must think for himself and he must 

 learn by experience how animals must be mated. No great results will 

 ever be accomplished if forethought and good judgment are not brought 

 into play. Study the characteristics of your animals and make up your 

 mind on the results before you ever breed. The breeder who does this 

 will sooner or later be the gainer thereby. In producing the ideal breeders 

 will soon find that there is a good demand for their stock, and financial 

 reward will sooner or later come to every breeder who does this. 



