HISTORY OF HEREFORD CATTLE 



379 



until the present, a continuous experiment of 

 nearly one-half of a century from 1837 to 

 1884. We were desirous of knowing as nearly 

 as possible the character of this work. We 

 found that he used bulls from such breeders as 

 Mr. Turner, of The Noke ; Mr. Jeffries, of The 

 Grove; Mr. Stephens, of Sheep House; Mr. 

 Stedman, of Bedstone Hall; Mr. E. Price, of 

 Court House; Mr. Thomas Rea, of Weston- 

 bury; Mr. Tudge, of Adforton; Mr. Phillip 

 Turner, of The Leen; Mr. Thomas Rogers, of 

 Coxall, and Mr. Myddleton, of Llynaven. 



These breeders, from whom Mr. James se- 

 lected his sires, will be recognized as among 

 the leading ones in England; Mr. James does 

 not 'milk or work his dairies himself. He keeps 

 eighty cows in milk. These are rented to two 

 dairymen, 40 cows to each. The cows com- 

 mence calving in March, and the calves put 

 upon the pail until the 15th of May; to which 

 time the milk is used for making butter, and 

 from that time for making cheese and butter. 

 The bull calves go to the butcher, and the 

 heifer calves are carried on to keep the herd 

 good. The rental is so much per head for each 

 cow, and if from any cause the cows of another 

 breed are brought in, the renters are not as well 

 satisfied as when they have the entire comple- 

 ment made up of Herefords. Mr. J. has not 

 kept a record of their breeding, but the animals 

 show as good a character as any Hereford herd 

 we saw in England. This is especially shown in 

 the three-year-old heifers, the two-year-olds, 

 and the yearlings; and had a record been kept 

 the character of the cattle would have placed 

 Mr. James' herd among the best. There were 

 nearly or quite 20 three-year-old heifers that 

 had lost their calves; and Mr. James, instead 

 of holding them for further breeding, was graz- 

 ing them for the butcher. 



It was early in August when we were there, 

 and we had seen no better three-year-olds. They 

 would have compared favorably with any others, 

 as would the yearlings; all were raised on the 

 pail to the 15th of May each year, and then 

 on grass from that on. The cows of the herd 

 are drafted out for the butcher at from 6 to 8 

 years old, unless an exceptionally extra cow 

 for the dairy is kept further on. The rule is, 

 however, to draft for the butcher at from 6 to 

 8 years. They are then grazed and fed, and 

 bring the top price for butcher's beasts, either 

 from local butchers or at Smithfield. 



Mr. James is satisfied from this half cen- 

 tury's experience that he can make more 

 money from thoroughbred Herefords than from 

 any other breed, or mixture of breeds. The 

 spread of -this blood in the vicinity of Mappow- 



der for 15 or 20 miles is constantly on the in- 

 crease, and the different dairies seen, passing 

 through the country, show a large proportion of 

 white-faced cattle. Since the herd has come 

 into the hands of the present Mr. James, he has 

 taken some pains to exhibit cattle largely at the 

 county and district fairs, and has kept a record 

 of the winnings, a copy of which we took. He 

 has not only taken prizes at local shows, but at 

 the Bath and West of England, the Royal, 

 Smithfield, and the Birmingham Shows; and 

 whether showing in competition for dairy hon- 

 ors or in competition for the butcher, he has 

 been a very successful exhibitor. In the dairy 

 competition his competitors have been largely 

 of Shorthorn and Devon blood, and these tests 

 have been made strictly in view of the dairy 

 class of animals. The use of Herefords at 

 Mappowder for half a century as dairy cattle, 

 or, if you pl'ease, as general purpose cows, com- 

 bined milk and beef, has given a record that 

 scarcely any other breed can show for the two 

 purposes of beef and milk combined. 



Anyone at all conversant with the production 

 of beef, milk, butter and cheese who will come 

 and examine this herd and inform themselves 

 as to its best doings, will recognize that Messrs. 

 Berry and Youatt were not properly informed 

 when they made the statement that the Here- 

 fords were not a desirable milk breed, and 

 those who have adopted the theory promulgated 



SILVIA (V. 17, p. 288) 8649. 

 Bred by P. Turner, Herefordshire. 



through "Youatt's History of British Cattle" 

 would find occasion to change their views after 

 becoming well posted as to the results of these 

 48 years' use of the Herefords in the dairy. 



We here make the statement, based upon 

 this experiment, that the Hereford used as a 

 dairy cow may be made a success; and that 

 the bullock produce from such a dairy, and the 

 draft cows, will pay more money than any other 



