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CALIFORNIA. 



THE JUDGING OF LIVE STOCK 



I. FAULTS OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM. 



i. // leads to erroneous Awards, This it does from three causes. 



(i.) Through a want of ability on the part of the judges. 



(2.) Through the hurried manner in which they judge. 



(3.) Through prejudice on their part for, or against, particular 

 breeds, or strains of blood, and through over or under valuing 

 particular points in the stock. 



The first cause is, up to a certain extent, at the larger shows at 

 least, of comparatively rare occurrence, but oftener than is generally 

 allowed ; for, when the entries are numerous, and the exhibits nearly 

 on a par some excelling in one point but defective in another it not 

 unfrequently happens that judges are led, by the present "rule of 

 thumb" system, to commit palpable mistakes. For example, cattle are 

 being shown in a class, some of which are high in " quality" but infe- 

 rior in " form ;" others, again, are good iri some points of ' form" but 

 defective in others, while some are good in both "quality" and "form," 

 but defective in "vigour" and "size." The judge is, of course, 

 anxious to act fairly to the exhibitors, and sets about summing up and 

 balancing in his mind the good and bad qualities or points of the 

 several exhibits, in order to arrive at a correct decision ; and any one 

 can see that this process of mental calculation stands a very poor 

 chance of leading to a correct decision under the perplexing circum- 

 stances in which the judges are placed. In fact, the decisions of all 

 but the very best judges are, in such cases, little better than good 

 guesses. If,, again, this be true as regards the judges individually, it 

 can easily be seen how very much worse the case is as regards the 

 judges collectively ; and how much more difficult it is for them if they 

 do not set down the marks for the value of the different points in black 

 and white to arrive at correct and unanimous decisions, where the ex- 

 hibits are of nearly equal but of diversive merit. There are gene- 

 rally three judges acting in a class, and it is no uncommon thing, at 

 first, at least, to find them all holding different opinions as to the merits 

 of the several exhibits, and each dwelling on the excellences of the 



