170 FIRST PRINCIPLES OF AGRICULTURE. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

 Principles of Breeding; The Pure Breeds of Farm Stock. 



The various breeds of horses, cattle, sheep, and swine, 

 are the result in large measure of attempts to secure the 

 best. A single breed of cattle, for instance, could not meet 

 in the best manner all the requirements that the numerous 

 conditions now demand. We must have animals adapted 

 for a definite specific production, rather than for general 

 purposes ; viz., work, speed, endurance, butter, milk, meat, 

 wool, and fat. A distinct breed is one which possesses 

 distinct characteristics of color, form, and habit, which 

 are transmitted without material change to the offspring. 

 The best breed is that which best meets the demands 

 in any specific case. 



Principles of Breeding Breeding is an art rather 



than an exact science, though it is scientific in that it 

 is based upon scientific principles or natural laws. These 

 must be observed in order both to attain and to retain 

 the specific characteristics desired. 



Heredity, or the law that "like begets like," is the 

 most important. It is regarded as the corner-stone of the 

 art. This law applies not only to outward form, but also 

 to the entire characteristics; animals inherit the quali- 

 ties, habits, and tendencies of their parents, both good and 

 bad. The results of this law of descent are observable 



