HISTORY OF HEREFORD CATTLE 



291 



" 'We believe that beyond the interest the 

 experiment will have to the Hereford and 

 Shorthorn breeders, it will result in a very great 

 good to the entire stock interest of the coun- 

 try. Signed, MILLER & POWELL, 



"'Beecher, 111.'" 



"Now it is important, in a test that shall be ( 

 of value, to make the basis alike, that is, to start 

 with the same grade of cows and that the cir- 

 cumstances of their keeping should be alike. 

 The proposition of Miller & Powell above stated 

 would secure this. If Mr. Jones starts with a 

 high-grade cow and Mr. Smith with a scrub, 

 the test is not equal ; now if no one breeder has 

 an interest sufficient to test this, then let our 

 own State Society offer premiums for fat steers 

 without regard to breed or grade, that will in- 

 duce the farmers of the state to compete for 

 such premiums. If any of the breeds that are 

 before the public are worth anything to the 

 public, it consists in their value to produce a 

 beef steer. Let our societies make a class for 

 fat cattle, say: Under 2 yrs. 6 mos,; over 2 

 yrs. 6 mos., and under 3 yrs. 3 mos.; over 

 3 yrs. 3 mos., and under 4 yrs.; over 4 yrs.; 

 for fat cows that have bred at least four calves, 

 and offer a first, second and third on each. 

 There will be fifteen prizes, and the farmers to 

 compete for say as follows: 



Steer 2 yrs. 6 mos $100, $60, $40 



Steer 3 yrs. 3 mos $100, $60, $40 



Steer 4 yrs $100, $60, $40 



Steer over 4 yrs $100, $60, $40 



Fat cow $100, $60, $40 



"There is only $1,000, and it is my belief 

 that it will create more interest than all that is 

 now done. I would suggest these premiums as 

 only preliminary to something better, and let 

 the committee to pass on such awards be 

 butchers of experience. 



"It is undoubtedly the large and main fea- 

 ture of the fairs the cattle interest. It is 

 desirable to have pure breeding, and of such 

 quality as to carry character to their produce, 

 and it is desirable to follow this produce and 

 see what it is like. In 1874 the Illinois State 

 Society paid in premiums to: 



Beef breeds, thoroughbreds $1,860 



Fat cattle 30 



Dairy breeds 745 



Dairy products Nothing 



Horses '. 3,500 



"I have never been in the management of a 

 State Fair, and have no doubt that there are 

 reasons that govern the action of the manage- 



ment that I cannot see, but from my standpoint 

 there would seem to be occasion for a change. 

 Especially does this seem to be true in the prod- 

 uct of the beef and dairy breeds of cattle. 



"T. L. MILLER/' 



The foregoing is substantially the case as 

 made in 1876. The Shorthorn interest had 

 been accepted and the cattle interest of the 

 country adjusted to it; and it was not surpris- 

 ing that the introduction of another breed that 

 promised to interfere with and supersede that 

 interest should meet with the most determined 

 and bitter opposition. This had been manifest 

 from 1839, when Mr. Sotham introduced the 

 Herefords into this country at Albany, N. Y. 

 With the press and agricultural societies in 

 their control, it was not strange that they should 

 be intolerant, and that a personal fight should 

 be made upon anyone who should press the 

 claims of a rival breed. With the agricultural 

 societies under their management, there was 

 no difficulty in arranging their judges and ob- 

 taining the awards. This year (1876) the Illi- 

 nois State Board passed on the comparative 

 merits of the Herefords and Shorthorns, five 

 prominent Shorthorn breeders being judges. 



When the agricultural journals permitted the 

 discussion as to the merits of the Herefords as 

 compared with Shorthorns, it was not surpris- 

 ing that prominent Shorthorn breeders should 

 say, "If you propose to make a Hereford jour- 

 nal of your paper, let the Hereford men support 

 it." It was not surprising that a leading 

 breeder and writer should say: "The question 

 of merit as to -which is the best beef breed, has 

 already been decided, and should not be opened 

 or discussed." It was not surprising that un- 

 der such a pressure, journalists that had been 

 led to believe the claims of Shorthorn breeders 

 valid, should be influenced, and that while they 

 did not refuse articles that were intended to un- 

 settle old beliefs, found it difficult to find room 

 for them in their papers. That a journal in the 

 interest of the Hereford movement should seem 

 a necessity, was not strange. The necessity ex- 

 isting, the "Breeders' Live Stock Journal" was 

 established and put upon its merits, and it met 

 the necessity not under any false statements, 

 but declaring in unmistakable terms its belief 

 in the merits of the Hereford breed of cattle, 

 and its determination to press those claims, and 

 show why they were the best. The establish- 

 ment of this journal was not without the ex- 

 penditure of a large amount of labor and 

 money. As the movement that placed the Here- 

 fords on the plains, and put them at work where 

 they could show their produce, had proved a 

 large success and hastened the acceptance of the 



