No. 9. 



Crack Stock. 



287 



For the Farmers' Cabinet. 

 Crack Stock. 



Mr. Editor, — A communication under the 

 above caption in your last, signed " Sub- 

 scriber," surprised me not a little, and doubt- 

 less has excited strong feelings in the minds 

 of many others of your readers. I would not 

 unnecessarily impugn the motive of your cor- 

 respondent, but the tenor of his remarks war- 

 rants, I think, the suspicion that he is an 

 enemy to improvement, or is jealous, and 

 hates it in others. To say the least of it, it 

 is ungenerous and unfair. 



Is it not ungenerous and unfair that spirited, 

 enterprising agriculturists, who spend their 

 time and money liberally in the production of 

 fine cattle, should not only be derided, but 

 have the character and value of their property 

 depreciated in such envious terms? But 

 what surprised me most was, that such re- 

 marks should find place in the columns of a 

 paper devoted to agriculture ; for the enemies 

 to Durhams and other imported stock, are to 

 a man, opposed to what thoy call book-farm- 

 ing. A blow aimed at the one is sure to reach 

 the other. " The improved short-horn Dur- 

 hams" is the most prominent feature in the 

 agricultural improvements of the day. — The 

 periodicals come next. The spirit and liber- 

 ality of the importers of fine stock led to the 

 establishment and increase of the agricultural 

 press. So mutually dependent are they, that 

 the one must fall and rise with the ebb and 

 flow of the other. If the wretched cattle that 

 have so long disgraced the fields of Pennsyl- 

 vania, are to be placed on a level with the 

 distinct breed "Subscriber" sneers at, then 

 may we let well-enough alone — import no 

 more stock, nor subscribe any longer to agri- 

 cultural papers. 



The stock that is now to be found in many 

 places, is the only improvement, I might say, 

 that agriculture can boast of in the present 

 century — cropping and field-labour, with some 

 trifling exceptions, have advanced but little, 

 Bome hold that they have retrograded ; be 

 this as it may, the improved short-horns, with 

 other imported stock, is the most visible, in- 

 trinsic improvement that can be referred to 

 in our agricultural history. These splendid 

 cattle, with the sheep and swine we now 

 possess, may be pointed to by every lover of 

 his country with becoming pride, while to 

 their owners they are as oil to the lamp — they 

 brighten their existence, and shed a light 

 around to illumine the path of their neigh- 

 bours. 



No one, Mr. Editor, can rejoice more when 

 any excellence is found in our native breed 

 than I do. Indeed I have done, and am doing 

 my very best to raise them from their original 

 unprofitable condition, to a size and form that 



may indicate easy feeding and good milking, 

 but I confess it is an uphill work — without a 

 cross from a pure-blooded Durham, it is a 

 hopeless task, for though you may sometimes 

 happen on a solitary calf that gives encour- 

 agement to hope, and in itself individually 

 may repay for the pains bestowed on its breed- 

 ing, yet you cannot venture to breed from it, 

 for its calves will be found to take after the 

 degenerate stock of its dam or sire. This is 

 inevitable, but to cross it with the noble and 

 beautiful Durham, would lead to quite a dif- 

 ferent result. 



The cow, " Queen of Chester," alluded to 

 by your correspondent " Subscriber," is, or 

 was the property of A. S. Roberts, Esq., Trea- 

 surer of the " Philadelphia Society for pro- 

 moting Agriculture." This cow is all but 

 full-blooded Durham, I believe three-fourlha 

 or seven-eighths, which will at once account 

 for her excellence: if every cow in the state 

 had but half the pure blood Queen of Chester 

 cqn boast of, it would enhance the value of 

 the whole stock some hundreds of thousands 

 of dollars. As to Mr. Potts's stock I know 

 but little. I do know, however, that some 

 two or three years since he sent cows to one 

 of the best improved short-horn Durham bulls 

 in this country. His " red cows" as they are 

 called, may be very fine, and I hope his eflbrts, 

 either in distinct or cross-breeding, may be 

 crowned with signal success. 



One of the least of " Subscriber's" errors, 

 for in tone and character he is all error, is 

 that because an animal has been adjudged a 

 premium, it is then comparable with other ani- 

 mals which have had premiums. This in- 

 ference shows " Subscriber" to be ignorant 

 of the practice that obtains in distributing pre- 

 miums by the Agricultural Society. The 

 premium obtained, is proof only of the excel- 

 lence of the animal in a relative sense; for 

 instance, if an imported improved short-horn 

 takes the premium, it stands first of all, be- 

 cause it is of the first class. If a mixed breed 

 takes a premium, it does not raise it to the 

 value of the former, but shows that it is the 

 best of its class ; so with the native, common 

 breed, its premium may not entitle it to rank 

 with the mixed breed, and shows it was dis- 

 tinguished only among its own family. To 

 be more explicit — there were animals awarded 

 premiums at the late exhibition, which, had 

 they had to compete with the worst Durhams 

 on the ground, would certainly have sunk into 

 comparative insignificance; for the truth of 

 this assertion I appeal to the judges who were 

 appointed to award the premiums. It there- 

 fore follows, that an animal of an inferior 

 character, though a premium animal, is not 

 from that circumstance raised to an equality 

 with those of higher character and purer 

 blood. I have often been amused to hear 



