HISTORY OF HEREFORD CATTLE 



71 



vigor and success, was established in 1797, its 

 object being "to carry the breed of cattle and 

 sheep as to fleece and carcass to the greatest 

 points of perfection." 



The old minute books of the society have not 

 been found, and for notices of the early shows 

 we are indebted to contemporary newspapers. 

 At the show of June, 1799, the first prize for 

 best bull not exceeding 20 months old was 

 awarded to John Apperley, Withington; and 

 that for the best bull not exceeding three years 

 and seven months old, to Samuel TuUy, Hunt- 

 ington. 



At the show in June, 1800, it is reported that 

 there was an exhibition of cattle, of very supe- 

 rior form and beauty. "Great praise," says 

 the Hereford Journal of that date, "is due to 

 those gentlemen who so warmly patronize this 

 institution, which, whilst it ultimately pro- 

 motes the interest and advantage of the farm- 

 ers and breeders, will extend and perpetuate the 

 fame of the county for a species of stock al- 

 ready in reputation with competent judges." 



The first prize for best bull was awarded to 

 Mr. Croose, Sugwas, for a bull bred by Mr. 

 Jones, Fawley, for best yearling bull to Joseph 

 Tully, Haywood, and for best heifer to Mr. 

 Skyrme, of Stretton. 



At the show in March, 1801, it was an- 

 nounced that the following gentlemen and 

 farmers intended exhibiting bulls : Mr. Wey- 

 man, Moreton; C. Bodenham, Rotherwas; H. 

 Moore, Wellington ; J. G. Cotterell, Garmons ; 

 E. Waring, Lvonshall; T. A. Knight, Wormes- 

 ley Grange (2); S. Tully, Huntington (2). 

 Thirteen bulls were presented for the two 

 premiums, and the most successful exhibitors 

 were Mr. Smith, of Sufton, and Mr. H. Moore, 

 Wellington. 



Another show was held in June, 1801, when 

 the prize winners were Mr. J. Tully, Haywood, 

 and Mr'. Williams, Thingehill. The report on 

 the show in March, 1802, states that it seemed 

 to be the general opinion that so many fine ani- 

 mals of the sort were never seen together be- 

 fore. The successful exhibitors were the two 

 Messrs. Tully, of Huntington and Haywood; 

 Mr. Powell, of Titley ; Mr. Galliers, of King's 

 Pyon, and Mr. Apperley, of Withington. The 

 bulls of Lord Essex, Colonel Cotterell, Mr. 

 Croose, of Ocle ; Mr. Lowe, of Gatterton ; Mr. 

 Lewis, of Burghill, and Mr. Moore, of Barton- 

 sham, were also, it is added, much admired. 



Certificates were received from nearly all the 

 candidates that their animals had not been fed 

 with corn or straw imperfectly threshed, during 

 the last six months; and in future, says the 

 chronicler, this is to be made an express condi- 



tion, without which no animal is to be entitled 

 to a premium. 



At the first show of the Royal Agricultural 

 Society at Oxford, in 1839, the Herefords made 

 a very good appearance, and the Rev. J. R. 

 Smythies, of Lynch Court, won the first prize 

 for the best cow in milk, "which," in the opin- 

 ion of the judges, "was best calculated for dairy 

 purposes." Mr. T. Jeffries, of The Grove, was 

 first for Hereford bulls with Cotmore (376) 

 150, full of Hewer blood. Mr. Walker, North- 



HOPE (439) 324, CALVED 1836, BRED BY T. JEFPHIES. 

 {From an old painting.) 



leach, was first for cows ; Mr. J. Hewer first 

 for' yearling bulls, Mr. J. Walker, Burton, first 

 for bull calves, and Mr. E. West first for heifer 

 calves. 



The favor in which the breed was held by 

 graziers, the numerous challenges, most of them 

 resulting successfully for the Herefords, the 

 victories at Smithfield, and the spirit exhibited 

 at the meetings of the County Society — all 

 tend to show that the breed was constantly im- 

 proving; that the farmers of Herefordshire 

 were proud of their cattle, and that their mer- 

 its were attracting widespread attention. 



Narrow in its treatment of the Herefords 

 and partisan to the Shorthorns as was the orig- 

 inal Youatt's work, the American revised and 

 abridged edition was narrower and more parti- 

 san and fraudulent, eliminating most of the 

 little that Youatt had admitted. The Ameri- 

 can edition, edited by Ambrose Stevens, issued 

 in 1851, and purporting to be Youatt's work, 

 was purely a Shorthorn advertisement. The 

 almost criminal fraud against the Herefords 

 being thus introduced in the preface : 



"In presenting an edition of Youatt to the 

 American public, the American editor mav 

 justly say, that of all the treatises on cattle, 

 none is so valuable as his. Mr. Youatt was a 

 man of rare ability; a scholar, distinguished 



