100 POLLED DURHAMS 



give abundant evidence of carrying high percentages of 

 Shorthorn blood. 



" ' Native muley ' cows were selected which conformed as 

 closely as possible to the Shorthorn type. These were mated 

 with registered Shorthorn bulls, and the female offspring if 

 polled reserved for the breeding herd. This line of breeding 

 was continued for from three to six generations, when the 

 polled cattle thus produced were mated in order to fix the 

 polled characteristic. Founders of the breed report that it 

 was necessary to discard large numbers of the cattle produced 

 in this way, as many did not compare favourably with the 

 Shorthorn's individual merit. Many, too, were not polled. 

 The plan, then, was grading up with the Shorthorn and not 

 cross-breeding. The majority of Shorthorn breeders looked 

 with much disfavour upon this venture of certain men to 

 produce a hornless type of Shorthorn. A notable exception 

 to this was that now. venerable breeder of Shorthorns, 

 William Warfield, of Kentucky. 



" In the early history of the breed, many outsiders 

 suggested the use of cross-bred Shorthorn Red Polled 

 bulls to hasten the fixing of the polled characteristics. 

 These animals were, however, not used, nor were they 

 admitted to the first volume of the record." 



Regulation four of the American Herd Book of Polled 

 Durham Cattle says : " They must not have less than 87 \ per 

 cent, of Shorthorn blood after 1893, 93 J per cent, after 1896, 

 and 97 J per cent after 1899." Also conditional upon the 

 animal being one year old, without horns, and possessed of 

 the " colour and markings characteristic of the Shorthorn." 



The Farmers' Tribune (U.S.A.) explains that : " The 

 pure-bred branch of Polled Durhams has come of three 

 families, viz., White Rose, Young Phyllis, and Gwynnes. 

 The honour of founding a family of hornless Shorthorns rests 

 upon ' Oakwood Gwynne 4th ' (vol. xv., page 803). She was 

 a roan cow of the Gwynne family, bred by W. S. King of 

 Minneapolis, Minn. She had very light horns or scurs, yet 

 she produced three calves (1881-83) that were entirely horn- 

 less, when bred to the * 7th Duke of Hillhurst' (34221) a 

 superior animal and a pure Duchess, closely related to the 

 cow that sold for $40,600 at the New York Mills Sale the 

 result was two heifer calves ' Mollie ' and ' Nellie Gwynne ' 

 (vol. xxxiii., page 728) both entirely hornless. She was then 

 bred to 'Bright Eyes Duke' (31894), and the result was a 

 polled red bull calf, recorded as 'King of Kine' (87412). 

 W. S. Miller of Elmore, Ohio, bought ' Mollie ' and ' Nelli ' 

 Gwynne ' and ' King of Kine ' (all descended from ' Medorae) 



