STOCK-RAISING : ORGAXISATIOX AXD HXCOURAGEMEXT I303 



The figures for the year 1915 are not yet known. 



To sum up, the total subsidies allowed from 1907 to 1914 amount to 

 £6834 for bee-keeping ; £5140 for goat breeding and £4172 for rabbit 

 breeding. 



492 - The Adaptation of Different Breeds to the Livestock Industry in the United States. 



— WentworthE.X., in The Field, Vol. XXXI, Xo. 6, p. 501-503, 542, 544, 546. New York^ 

 June 1916. 



The adaptation of a breed of livestock to different agricultural condi- 

 tions depends inversely on its degree of specialisation Avith a view to a given 

 purpose. The result of this is a restriction of adaptation which practically 

 determines the distribution of the different breeds. Those breeds which 

 are most perfectly specialised predominate in specific localities, while those 

 which have least deviated from the original conditions of non-specialisa- 

 tion are the most widel}- distributed throughout the agricultural regions of 

 the globe. 



Cuttle. — The vShorthorn breed has been the principal source for the 

 impro\-ement of beef cattle. Cattle intended for dairy production in New 

 England and Longhorn cattle in Texas received their first impetus by the 

 inheritance of the characters of this pioneer in cattle improvement. In the 

 blue-grass region the descendants of the Durhams have found the best en- 

 vironment, and the vShorthorn breed has since then become and remained 

 the principal breed in the corn belt and the one prefeired by farmers. 



In the West and vSouth-West of the United vStates, the first impulse to- 

 wards the replacement of livestock of mixed breed and Mexican livestock 

 likewise arose through the introduction of the Shorthorn ; the development 

 of the meat industry in Argentina is closely linked up with the spread of 

 the Shorthorn; and so is that of Australasia, in the proportion of at least 

 60-80 %. The high degree of adaptation of this breed has resulted in its 

 forming, so to .speak, the vanguard which prepares the way for the introduc- 

 tion of other more highly specialised breeds. This is what took place in 

 the corn belt, where the valiie of the lands requires the quickest possible 

 growth and early maturity. 



The Aberdeen- Angus, with its splendid body, its early maturity and 

 economy in feeding, enabled a fresh margin of profit to be secured ; neverthe- 

 less, the Shorthorn still retains its popularity, as is proved by data shov/ing 

 distribution, which are largely in its favour. The Aberdeen-Angus fur- 

 thermore proves that it possesses in the highest degree the quality of a show 

 animal in competitions with a view to obtaining very high-class products 

 at shows and exhibitions. At the last international exhibitions, ten live 

 champions and fourteen killed champions belonging to this wonderful 

 breed gave fresh its proof of its superiority. 



In those belts where forage production is unlimited, but where there is 

 little grain growing, the Hereford breed has gained the upper hand over'the 

 Shorthorn, and has been sub.stituted for the latter in the prairies of the West. 



In the pasturage belt of the North and the cold region of Alaska, the 

 Galloway breed has demonstrated its great powers of resistance and its 



