506 



HISTORY OF HEREFORD CATTLE 



about the 16th day of November, 1882. The 

 indictment further charges and sayeth that on 

 or about the 16th day of November, 1882, the 

 aforesaid D. M. Moninger did enter, or cause 

 to be entered, a number of Shorthorn steers 

 under false ages and misrepresentations, there- 

 by defrauding honorable exhibitors out of large 

 sums of money and valuable premiums. And 

 the indictment further sayeth that on or about 

 the 16th day of November, 1882, the aforesaid 

 D. M. Moninger did wilfully, knowingly and 

 fraudulently enter the Shorthorn steer Cham- 

 pion of Iowa, as being one and under two years 

 old, when the aforesaid Moninger knew said 

 steer to be three years and eight months old. The 

 indictment further sayeth that the horns of the 

 aforesaid steer, Champion of Iowa, had been 

 filed, scraped, shortened, and otherwise dis- 

 figured for the purpose of deceiving the public, 

 in making said steer appear much younger than 

 the said D. M. Moninger knew him to be. 



"A motion was made to quash the indictment 

 on account of informality, but was overruled 

 and the defense forced to trial. 



"A. Herdsman was the first witness called, 

 and testified that the ages of cattle could 

 readily be determined by an examination of 

 their mouths ; that he had examined the mouth 

 of the steer, Champion of Iowa, entered by the 

 defendant as a yearling, and found that said 

 steer had six full grown, second-growth teeth, 

 and that he was about three years and eight 

 months old. 



"On cross-examination he said that he had 

 examined the mouth of the Shorthorn steer 

 Red Major, entered and exhibited by Potts & 

 Son as the same age to a day as the defendant's 

 steer; that the Potts steer had but two second- 

 growth teeth, and that the Moninger steer had 

 six second-growth teeth and must have been 

 about .two years older than, the Potts steer. 



"John Ranchman was then examined and 

 testified that he had bought and sold thousands 

 of cattle in Texas and Colorado ; that whenever 

 there was any dispute or doubt about the ages 

 of cattle when delivering and, classifying them, 

 they were lassoed, thrown down and their 

 mouths examined. If the animal had no 

 second-growth teeth it was classed as a calf or 

 yearling; if two second-growth teeth, as a two- 

 year-old; if six second-growth teeth, as four 

 years old, which is the highest and most valu- 

 able class they have, and are commonly called 

 beeves. The two first second-growth teeth' ap- 

 pear at about eighteen months, and at twenty- 

 four months they are fully developed, and so 

 on each twelve months, until the animal has 

 what we call a full mouth. 



"The counsel for defense then produced some 

 printed matter clipped from the 'Breeders' 

 Gazette' and the 'Chicago Times,' which they 

 asked leave to read and submit to the jury as 

 evidence, to which the prosecution objected, 

 and after some discussion the court ruled that 

 the printed matter could be read, but that the 

 jury were at liberty to use their own judgment 

 as to the value and weight of the same. 



"The articles were then read to open court, 

 and represented that the world-renowned Dr. 

 N. H. Veterinary had examined the mouths of 

 the steers in question and found that they were 

 entered in accordance with the ages their 

 mouths or teeth indicated. 



"J. H. Gazette then volunteered his testi- 

 mony ; was placed upon the stand and testified 

 that he had known the defendant many years, 

 and had always considered him a very fine 

 Shorthorn breeder. He admitted that de- 

 fendant's cattle had an unusual number of 

 large teeth for their age, but he thought they 

 had been forced out by the feeding of very 

 hard, flinty corn, which was known to grow on 

 Mr. Moninger's farm ; and the crushing of this 

 flinty corn (in his opinion) had forced the 

 second growth of teeth through the gums at a 

 very early age, and thought Dr. N. H. Veteri- 

 nary based his conclusions upon the same 

 theory, and that the Doctor was very high au- 

 thority in steerology. 



"T. L. Whiteface, believing that Dr. N. H. 

 Veterinary had been grossly misrepresented 

 and used as a scape-goat, to his detriment for 

 the benefit of the defendant, asked that the 

 Doctor be subpoenaed and brought into court, 

 which caused quite a rustling throughout the 

 court room, that did not subside until the Doc- 

 tor had been sworn and placed upon the witness 

 stand. 



"He testified that he had not authorized the 

 statement made in court by Mr. Gazette, much 

 less the articles read by the defense; that he 

 was not interested in the matter, and did not 

 know any of the steers involved, either by name 

 or number, and very much regretted that he 

 had been dragged into so disagreeable a posi- 

 tion. 



"Court then adjourned until Monday, when 

 it is expected the prosecution will introduce 

 testimony of a startling nature. 



"Yours ever, BOVINE. 



"Grass Plot, Kansas, Dec. 25, 1882." 



That the Hereford winnings made a decided 

 impression on the breeders of Shorthorns is 

 shown by the following from the "Breeders' 

 Journal" : 



