312 



CATTLE 



vicinity, etc. Thus Ai refers to a foundation cow in the Elm- 

 ham herd named Primrose; Bio to a cow in the Manfred 

 Biddell herd named Bury, etc. Differing from other cattle asso- 

 ciations, the registration number of the cow precedes the name, 

 as 421 Primrose Ai, while the number of the bull follows his 

 name in the customary manner. None of the above groups 

 trace far back of the first volume of the herdbook, some being 

 comparatively recent. 



The introduction of Red Polled cattle to America no doubt 

 first occurred in colonial times in English settlements, as, for 

 example, in Virginia. MuUey or polled cattle of a red or red and 

 white color, similar to Red Polled, have been known in the east- 

 ern United States for over a century. In 1 847 a Suffolk polled 

 heifer was presented to the captain of the vessel Jamestown, 

 that took provisions to Ireland to relieve famine, and she was 

 brought to Massachusetts. From her descended a line of stock, 

 termed Jamestown cattle in Massachusetts, that produced polled 

 animals of superior character. In 1873 G. F. Taber of Patter- 

 son, New York, made the first importation of breeding Red Polled 

 cattle to this country, consisting of a bull and three heifers, and 

 later in 1875 four more cows, and again in 1882 three bulls 

 and twenty-three heifers. Also in 1882 Mead & Kimball of Ver- 

 mont brought over a bull and eleven females, and in 1883 G. P. 

 Squires of New York and Geldard & Busk, an English firm, made 

 importations. In 1886 J. McLain Smith of Ohio made his first 

 importation, and until his death in 1905 he was a prominent 

 advocate of the breed. Captain V. T. Hills, also of Ohio, a 

 leading American authority on the breed, imported in 1887. 



Red Polled characteristics. Animals of this breed present the 

 dual-purpose type in its truest form, for good specimens yield 

 milk liberally and fatten satisfactorily on drying off, producing 

 a good grade of beef. The head is lean in type, and presents 

 the characteristic poll. The neck of both bull and cow lacks 

 the fullness of the beef breeds, the cows being notably thinner 

 in this respect. The withers are only moderately broad, and 

 the shoulders resemble those of the Shorthorn rather than the 

 Hereford. The body is usually very well ribbed and the back 

 strong, but is not fleshed over in a prominent degree. The hips 



