412 



HISTORY OF HEREFORD CATTLE 



little the residents of Brisbane know about this 

 valuable district. 



"When we see a long-established herd of con- 

 summate excellence, the result of one man's 

 mind, we naturally ask ourselves the question 

 how that man becomes possessed of the judg- 

 ment and accompanying qualifications to enable 

 him to do that work, the results of which are 

 before us. Accident could never accomplish 

 such high and uniform results. Some men are 

 amongst stock all their lives and never acquire 



1T316 



REPRESENTATIVE SUSSEX COW. 



that knowledge. They can multiply animals 

 already improved for them, but for their lives 

 they could not breed up a family or tribe to any 

 preconceived pattern. This Messrs. McConnel 

 and Wood have done; their good example is* 

 well worthy of imitation. The great error many 

 make is expecting, after the purchase of high- 

 bred animals, that great results will come with- 

 out effort and unsought. The best animal is 

 nothing unless well fed. Their growth and .de- 

 velopment comes of liberal feeding, and full 

 growth and symmetry from full feeding to fat- 

 ness. 



"The cattle on these runs are a proof of our 

 argument; witness the eagerness with which 

 they are sought after and the quantities sup- 

 plied. The man who, after buying select ani- 

 mals, retreats to his shell like a turtle under 

 the idea that he is possessed of property which 

 through the innate force of circumstances will 

 retain all the good it has about it at the time 

 of purchase will wake up Rip Van Winklelike 

 to find out the error of his ways. This fault 

 Messrs. McConnel and Wood have not beenguilty 

 of. Slowly, step by step, with every possible 

 care and forethought, they have sought to im- 

 prove their stock. Well have they succeeded, 

 and if breeders have any wisdom for their pains 

 they ought to reap a rich harvest in the future ; 

 they most certainly have deserved it." 



In closing this section of our work we quote 

 again from the special U. S. Consular Reports 



(page 645) on cattle, heretofore mentioned. 

 Consul Griffin, of Auckland: 



NEW ZEALAND CATTLE IN THE UNITED STATES. 



"The high class of cattle in this colony, and 

 the low price at which they can be obtained, has 

 very naturally attracted the attention of cattle 

 breeders in the United States. In August, 

 1883, Mr. A. W. Sisson, of California, dis- 

 patched Mr. Rolin P. Saxe, a cattle expert, to 

 \e\v Zealand, to purchase for him a band of 

 pure-blooded Herefords. Mr. Saxe arrived in 

 Auckland in September, 1883, and after visit- 

 ing several of the cattle districts in the colony, 

 purchased 20 two-year-old heifers in calf and 

 24 bulls from one to two years from the New 

 Zealand Stock and Pedigree Co., of Auckland. 

 Mr. Saxe was not only surprised at the superb 

 condition of the company's cattle, but at the low 

 prices at which they were sold. They were 

 shipped to San Francisco by the Pacific Mail 

 steamer City of Sydney, in October last, being 

 the first shipment of New Zealand-bred cattle 

 ever made to the United States. 



"Mr. Saxe is of the opinion that Hereford 

 cattle can be more easily and economically 

 brought to California from New Zealand than 

 across the continent by railway from Illinois 

 and other states celebrated for this particular 

 breed. In Illinois these cattle sell at from 

 $500 to $5,000 per head, whereas they can be 

 bought in New Zealand at from $100 to $700 

 per head. * * *" 



NEW ZEALAND HEREFORDS. 



"The New Zealand Stock and Pedigree Com- 

 pany of Auckland has one of the largest herds 

 of pure-bred Herefords in the world. This 

 breed has long been a favorite one here. They 

 are tough, hardy, and able to pick their food on 

 poor soil, and when two or three years old out- 

 weigh any other breed, and are famous for their 

 high-priced meat; that is to say, their loins 

 are well developed, and their yield of succulent 

 porterhouse and sirloin are proportionately 

 heavy. The hindquarters of the pure-bred 

 Hereford are long from the hip backwards. The 

 thighs are large and full and well meated at 

 the hocks. The whole carcass is set square on 

 good, short legs, standing well apart. The flesh 

 is firm, the hide mellow, with soft hair, not too 

 fine, but giving the impression that it can be 

 stretched to any extent. 



"The color of this breed is a distinct red with 

 white face, mane, and white breast and legs 

 as far as the knee. As an evidence of how they 

 stand hard feed, it is said that during the long 

 drought of 1878 and 1879, in Australia, about 

 five per cent of the Herefords were lost on a 



