38 Types and Market Classes of Live Stock 



distance is great between the last rib and the hip, it is impossible to 

 get that part filled out smoothly; instead there will be a large "hunger 

 hollow" which detracts much from the appearance. Once more, there- 

 fore, the necessity for compactness (shortness) of middle is emphasized. 



The side of the animal should be smooth and even, and the side 

 line should be straight from shoulder to hindquarter. The fleshing 

 over the ribs should be thick and smooth, and the hind flank should be 

 well filled with flesh so that when the hand is placed under it and lifted, 

 it is found to be thick, full, and heavy. If the front and hind flanks 

 carry down properly, the underline will be straight, as it ought to be. 



At this point it is well to state that though the middle of a beef 

 animal should be wide and deep, a distended condition of the paunch 

 is not desirable. When this occurs, the animal is referred to as 

 "paunchy." The lines of the middle, both at the sides and along the 

 belly, should be straight and trim, giving a neat, tidy appearance. 

 Given good arch and depth of rib, a steer may be straight and trim in 

 his middle without sacrificing proper feeding capacity, and such ani- 

 mals suit the butcher much better than paunchy ones, because an 

 excessive paunch means much waste when the animal is slaughtered. 



The loin is that portion of the top lying between the back and the 

 hips. It has no ribs below it, but consists of large muscles, affording 

 the very choicest cuts of the entire carcass — the porterhouse and 

 sirloin. The loin should be very wide and very thickly fleshed to afford 

 as high development of this part as possible. The covering of flesh 

 should also be smooth and firm. We like the loin to be thickly padded 

 and plumped up with muscle having the proper degree of fatness. 

 Such a loin may be described as a "live" loin — one that exhibits resil- 

 iency or springiness when handled. A loin that is flat and that handles 

 soft and "dead" is deficient in lean meat and has too much fat. The 

 loin-edge is sometimes rough and patchy, due to an uneven distribu- 

 tion^ of the fat, whereas it should be smooth and even. 



The hips should be laid in snugly, and nicely covered over with 

 flesh. The eye should not be able to locate the hip of a well-fattened 

 animal; only when the hands are used should the point of the hip be 

 possible of location. This helps to give the smoothness desired in both 

 the living animal and the carcass which it ultimately yields. Wide 

 hips cannot be covered over with flesh, and the animal has a rough 

 and ragged appearance. 



The rump is the top between hips and tail-head. It should be level 

 so as to carry out the top line straight and square to the end of the 

 body. Some animals droop in the rump, and some rise prominently; 

 in each case the conformation is faulty. The rump should be as long 

 as possible and as wide as the rest of the top. This permits a maxj- 



