90 PRINCIPLES OF RURAL ECONOMICS 



yoke of oxen. It was the smoothness of this prairie land as 

 much as anything else which led to the rapid development 

 of farm machinery during this period when the prairie states 

 were being settled. When these states began to be cultivated 

 by means of effective modern machinery, and when the rail- 

 roads began to transport the products of these states to the 

 eastern seaboard, it became impossible for the farmer on the 

 hilly lands of the Appalachian slopes to hold his own in 

 competition with them. 



Sheep and cattle. During the period now under discussion 

 there was practically no increase in the number of sheep. Cattle, 

 on the other hand, increased very rapidly on the Western prairies, 

 which furnished natural pastures of high excellence. This was 

 a period of great activity in the importation of breeding animals 

 for the improvement of the native stock. These importations 

 came commonly from England. In 1834 the Ohio Company 

 for Importing English Cattle was organized. This company sent 

 agents to England for the selection of the best specimens of 

 the leading breeds of cattle. Nineteen head were sent in the 

 first shipment, and other shipments were made in subsequent 

 years. After 1840 these importations increased very rapidly, 

 and surprisingly high prices were paid, especially for Short- 

 horns, individual animals sometimes bringing upwards of $5000. 

 One result of these importations was the rapid improvement in 

 the cattle, especially in the Ohio valley. There has never been 

 a time since 1850 when herds of Shorthorns could not be 

 found equal to any in the mother country. In 1840 five bulls 

 and seventeen cows and heifers of the Hereford breed were 

 brought to Albany, New York, and other importations followed, 

 though some had been made earlier, notably by Henry Clay 

 in 1817. It was not until a later period, however, that the 

 Herefords began to attain a wide popularity. It was during 

 the period of the development of the cattle-ranching business 



