1858.] SENATE— No. 4. 43 



GRADE OR NATIVE STOCK. 



The term breed, properly understood, applies only to animals 

 of the same species, possessing, besides the general characteris- 

 tics of that species, other characteristics peculiar to themselves, 

 which they owe to the influence of soil, climate, nourishment 

 and habits of life to which they are subjected, and which they 

 transmit with certainty to their progeny. The characteristics 

 of certain breeds or families are so well marked that if an indi- 

 vidual supposed to belong to any one of them were to produce 

 an offspring not possessing them, or possessing them only in 

 part, with others not belonging to the breed, it would be just 

 ground for suspecting a want of purity of blood. 



If this definition of the term breed be correct, no grade ani- 

 mals, and no animals not possessing fixed peculiarities or char- 

 acteristics which they share with all other animals of the class 

 of which they are a type, and which they are capable of trans- 

 mitting with certainty to their descendants, can be recognized 

 by breeders as belonging to any one distinct race, breed or 

 family. 



The term " native," is applied to a vast majority of our New 

 England cattle, which, though born on the soil, and thus in one 

 sense natives, do not constitute a breed, race or family, as 

 properly understood by breeders. They do not possess charac- 

 teristics peculiar to them all, which they transmit with any 

 certainty to their offspring, either of form, size, color, milking 

 or working properties. But though an animal may be made up 

 of a mixture of blood almost to infinity, it does not follow that, 

 for specific purposes, it may not, as an individual animal, be 

 one of the best of the species. And for particular purposes, 

 individual animals might be selected from among those com- 

 monly called natives, equal and perhaps superior, to any among 

 the races produced by the most skilful breeding. There can be 

 no impropriety in the use of the term " native," tlierefore when 

 it is understood as descriptive of no known breed, but only as 

 applied to the common stock of the country, which does not 

 constitute a breed. But perhaps the vrhole class of animals 

 commonly called " natives," would l)e better described as grades, 

 since they are well known to have sprung from a great variety 

 of cattle procured in different places and at different times on 



