170 



HJSTOJiY OF HEKEFOKD CATTLE 



1st, when shi: became dry. 1 kept her on a 

 good bite of grass, on a light sandy soil, as 

 long as the grass lasted, then put her up to feed. 

 She was economically fed (and nol "xliiffcd") 

 until the last of March, when I started to Bos- 

 ton with her. 



Tills was the extent of her feeding. 



1 will now for a finality, propose to meet Mr. 

 Clay's "challenge" in a fair way; I have two 

 heifer calves, "Prudence," calved Augnjst 29, 

 185G; "Woodlark," calved September 'M), iHr,G. 

 These are all I have left this season. They ran 

 with their dams as long as any grass; when the 

 cows came to winter quarters, they were allowed 



'^124 



HEREFORD. SHORTHORN. 



(The thicknes.s of Hereford and Shorthoro roasts compared. 

 Actual 7Jhotograpb of roast.s from Hereford aod .Sbort- 

 horn bullocks dressed at Chicago Fat Stock Show. 1879. 

 showed Hereford 3.'i 1-3 per cent thicker than the Short- 

 horn.) 



to suck their dams once a day; about the 20th 

 of December they were taken away, and now 

 live on oat chaff and cut cornstalks, miixed with 

 about a pint of oatmeal each per day, mixed 

 with their chaff, one common sized rutabaga 

 per day, cut up between them regular, and are 

 in growing store order, as I do not believe in 

 forcing calves; as spring and warm weather 

 approaches I shall increase the roots, and keep 

 to about the same quantity of oatmeal. These 

 calves shall be turned to grass in the spring, 

 until next fall, when I will bring them with 

 me to Kentucky, at the National Show, place 

 them in any honest Kentucky grazier's hands, 

 against anv two heifer calves now owned by 

 CJassius M. (.'lay, or Brutus J. Clay, of a similar 

 age; if tln'V have not any exactly the same-age, 

 a few months difference must be allowed for 

 accordingly. 1'he four calves shall be weighed 

 when delivered to the receiver, the feed to be 

 weighed the whole year, and at the end of it 

 all four of them again weighed. The following 

 year shall he pursued with the same treatrnent ; 

 coming in at three, again at four years old. 

 Thev shall lie rnilkerl both seasons, each as long 

 as she will hold out in milking under the just 

 and economical management of their receiver; 

 the butter regularly weighed, and disposed of 



by him, he reporting quality and giving a just 

 account at different times, as he deems right. 

 At the end of this trial they will be five years 

 olrl ; they shall be fed for one year, or two, as 

 agreed upon, the two heifers that make the most 

 butter and most beef, for the food consumed, 

 to be the winners. The quality of beef at the 

 "block" to be taken into consideration. Each 

 fiair of- heifers to be charged wilh vjhat they 

 eat, of each kind of feed, all living on the same, 

 and allowing them a good and sufficient 

 grazier's quantity through the whole trial, the 

 losing heifers to be forfeited to receiver, to pay 

 expenses, f-'edigrees of heifers to be given at 

 the time of delivery. There are plenty of men 

 in Kentucky that will act fairly betw-een us. 



One more question, Mr. Clay, and I have 

 done for this time. Did you ever see a "Dur- 

 ham," "Shorthorn," or "Teeswater" with a 

 "long, silky coat" that you would "venture" «,s 

 a breeder to jjronounee "th.oroughJjred/^" I will 

 "venture" to assert that kind of coat is de- 

 scended from the Scots. The original "Bur- 

 hams" have no claim to it, or ever possessed it; 

 so say all the old breeders in England with 

 whom 1 am acquainted, and they are not a few. 

 Most of them speak from knowledge descended 

 from their ancestors. Every effort "Shori- 

 Itorn" men have made to contradict this charge 

 has created a stronger desire in me to believe 

 it and that it was bred into them clandestinely. 

 I have every reason to believe the noted Hub- 

 back was half Scotch, no "proof" has ever been 

 shown to the contrary, but the more breeders 

 try to hide this pdausible "history'' of him, the 

 more likely to be true. 



I hope Mr. Clay's next letter will contain 

 more practical teaching, and I heartily wish 

 him success, though we differ widely in 

 " ojiinion." 



I am, etc., 



Wm. Hy. Sotham. 



WM. HY. SOTHAM's LETTEK TO B. 1'. .JOHNSON, 

 ESQ. 



Secretary New York Agr. Society. 



Owego, N. Y., Aug. l.j, 18.55. 

 Ij. r. Johnson, Esq. : 



Sir : As you have undertaken to write an un- 

 called-for article in your "New YVjrk State 

 Journal" of that Society, placing the Short- 

 horns predominate in your opinion, in value, 

 weight, early maturity, etc., I think you have 

 done great injustice to the Society. No such 

 body has the right to endorse the opinion of any 

 man, without his producing the weight of each 

 breed satisfactorily, and prices sold for to the 



