FIFTEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART I 77 



A class for military horses lias been provided during the past two 

 years. Mr. Chas. E. Perkins, of Burlington, Iowa, has annually donated 

 $100 in prizes for stallions suitable for siring cavalry remounts. 



A new policy was followed in providing a complete judging program, 

 giving the hour and place of showing every class scheduled in the horse 

 department during the entire fair, including the night shows. This 

 proved no small task, as there were over 300 separate rings to be shown 

 and judged. A definite schedule and plan for every event during the 

 show, however, proved to be of decided advantage, and this plan will, 

 undoubtedly, be followed permanently in this and other state fairs. " 



The yearling futurity stakes for draft stallions and fillies of the four 

 leading breeds proved again to be a feature of marked interest, and 

 unusual excellence. The plan for draft horse futurity prizes originated 

 at the Iowa State Fair four years ago by cooperation between the manage- 

 ment of the Iowa State Fair and the Chicago Daily Live Stock World. The 

 National Draft Horse Breeders' Futurity awarded at the Iowa fair in 

 1914 carried a total of about $4,000 in prizes awarded on yearling 

 stallions and yearling fillies of the four leading draft breeds. Since the 

 inauguration of this feature in the horse department of the Iowa State 

 Fair four years ago, draft horse futurity shows have been established in 

 connection with the International Live Stock Exposition at Chicago and 

 at the Ohio and Illinois state fairs, and during the past year the Ameri- 

 can Shorthorn Breeders' Association made provision for futurity shows 

 for Shorthorn bulls at the American Royal and at the International Live 

 Stock Exposition. The American Poland-China Association, in cooperation 

 with the Chicago Daily Live Stock World, has also conducted futurity 

 shows with marked success at the Iowa and other leading state fairs 

 during the past two or three years. 



Another new feature was introduced at the 1914, fair in the way of a 

 horse shoeing contest. Cash prizes, to the amount of $75, in addition 

 to silver and bronze medals and diplonias, were awarded for the most 

 skilled and intelligent work in shoeing draft horses. The work was 

 judged according to a score card, under conditions specifically set forth 

 in the rules governing the contest. This proved to be a novel and most 

 interesting and instructive contest. The tent provided was considered 

 liberal in size, but it proved to be altogether inadequate and much 

 larger quarters should be provided for the next contest of this nature. 

 The judging was done by Mr. R. B. Ogilvie, of Chicago, a practical horse- 

 man, and an experienced breeder and fitter of show horses, and by Mr. 

 Jack Seiter, of Libertyville, 111., a graduate veterinarian and an ex- 

 perienced and competent blacksmith. 



In submitting this report, I wish to call attention to, and recommend, 

 a plan for a spring stallion show to be held annually on the Iowa State 

 Fair grounds the latter part of February or early in March. The autumn 

 shows in connection with the various state fairs have served an excellent 

 purpose, but I believe that a spring stallion show might serve even a 

 better purpose in encouraging the production of high class draft horses 

 on the farms of this and other states. There are some formidable difficul- 

 ties in the way of exhibiting breeding stock from the farms at the fall 

 shows. Stallions and brood mares are generally in service at that time, 



