HISTORY OF HEREFORD CATTLE 



285 



ter grazers than the Shorthorns., says: 'You 

 had better take the Shorthorns.' 'Why?' 'Be- 

 cause it is easier to go with the current than 

 against it.' I have heard quite lately of this 

 same breeder paying quite fancy prices for 

 Shorthorns. 



"There is one point I should be glad to call 

 your attention to, and that is the make-up of 

 committees at our fairs. In England the Here- 

 ford men claim that they have been unfairly 

 beaten on sweepstakes and champion prizes, 



and for years have 

 sought to remedy 

 this, especially at 

 the Smithfield. Mr. 

 T. Duckham, a 

 prominent H e r e- 

 ford breeder, and 

 publisher of the 

 English Hereford 

 Herd Book, suc- 

 ceeded in securing 

 the passage of the 

 following resolu- 

 tion, to-wit: 



"'Resolved, that 

 the judges of each 

 breed select an ani- 

 mal that, in their 

 judgment, was suit- 

 able for. competition for the champion prize. 



"'Resolved, that each committee should 

 depute one of their own members to act as 

 judge on the champion prize or regard/ 



"These resolutions were passed at the meet- 

 ing in February, 1876, and will be in operation 

 at the next December meeting. If the same 

 or similar resolutions should be passed by the 

 managers of our State Societies, it would be a 

 good stride towards an equitable award on 

 sweepstakes premium. T. L. M." 



Editor's Remarks: "Of course our corre- 

 spondent will understand that our question as 

 to what Hereford cattle weigh at different 

 ages was not made because of our inability to 

 refer to statements upon this point in the agri- 

 cultural text books of the day. It was made 

 for no other purpose than to indicate the ab- 

 sence of statements covering individual experi- 

 ence with these cattle from day to day, 'month 

 to month, and year to year. It is these state- 

 ments, and the average results indicated by 

 them, that carry conviction to the public mind, 

 rather than results achieved by different breed- 

 ers in fitting animals for show. The general 

 public places the highest estimate upon what 

 can be accomplished where cattle are handled 



A. E. COOK. 



Of the firm of C. W. Cook & 

 Sons, Odebolt, la. 



in a practical manner for a practical purpose 

 i. e., when fed for beef by practical men with 

 the sole object in view of producing the best 

 beef in the largest quantity, with the greatest 

 economy. But sensible people require some- 

 thing more than the assurance that, in feed- 

 ing animals for show where they are forced 

 by all the arts and appliances the owner can 

 command, this one or that one was made 

 to object a greater degree of obesity than an- 

 other. The statements of farmers handling 

 these cattle, supplying daily almost fresh de- 

 tails concerning their merits, is what is wanted. 

 We desire to indicate that the gentlemen hand- 

 ling Herefords were, in this respect, neglect- 

 ing the true interests of their cattle. 



"As to the proposed test of the comparative 

 merits of Shorthorns and Herefords as feeding 

 cattle, we fear our correspondent will never be 

 gratified by receiving an acceptance of his 

 proposition. No person has such an interest 

 in Shorthorns, considered with reference to the 

 aggregate interest, as will justify him in engag- 

 ing in this matter. Besides, the reputation of 

 Shorthorns is so well established that there 

 would be but little for them to gain in such a 

 contest. Our correspondent, however, has two 

 courses open to him, either of which seems to 

 us much more consistent and in every way 

 preferable to a 'challenge' for a public and 

 formal test. First, he can go on quietly and 

 feed some Hereford steers for market, and 

 when they are sold let the public know what 

 they weighed, what they sold for, etc., and just 

 how they were handled. If handled as ordi- 

 nary prudent farmers handle their steers, rea- 

 sonable weights will go much further towards 

 increasing the reputation of the cattle than a 

 few hundred pounds of extra weight secured by 

 possible forcing or pampering. It would be 

 desirable to have a statement of this sort, ac- 

 companied by a statement of what good native 

 steers did alongside of them, for the contest is 

 not so much between Herefords and Short- 

 horns as between them and the common, infe- 

 rior stock of the country. If the general 

 farmer can be made to understand that there 

 is sufficient difference between Herefords and 

 natives to justify him in the expense of se- 

 curing Hereford crosses, the future of the Here- 

 fords will be bright enough, no matter what 

 that of the Shorthorns may be. The second 

 course open to our correspondent, if he is 

 really desirous of a test between Herefords and 

 Shorthorns, is to buy some Shorthorns and feed 

 them alongside of the Herefords, and then pub- 

 lish the results. If there should be any Short- 

 horn breeder dissatisfied with the result, he 



