HISTORY OF H E R E F R I) C A T T L E 



197 



least suspicitn rested, except from the maniac 

 prices given, which, in the mmds of prudent 

 men, was a caution to prevent them from enter- 

 ing into this mad extreme of speculation so con- 

 trary to reason and prudence. Being supported 

 by men of supposed moneyed influence was the 

 principal cause of its long continuance. Even 

 now some of the aristocracy of England con- 

 tinue the farce, but they, like their fat calves, 

 decline as the "milk fails." Those who laid 

 great stress on the traveling exhibition of the 

 "Bijou" and -the "White Heifer," knew nothing 

 of the rules of good breeding, or they might 

 have known at once that both of these animals 

 were very injurious patterns by which novices 

 in breeding wished to guide them. Every de- 

 scription of them has been of extreme coarse- 

 ness of frame and softness of flesh, and a 

 paunch purposely made to consume expensive 

 provender without profit. 



Mark how the brains of L. F. Allen and Am- 

 brose Stevens used this supposed elevation of 

 the Shorthorns — this portable caravansary, con- 

 taining the show ox and white heifer as an 

 example of exaltation in "American Shorthorn 

 Herd Book" (page 5 or 6 of A^ol. II). What 

 would either of these gentlemen say now should 

 they see an exact picture of either, without flat- 

 tery, transferred to the "American Shorthorn 

 Herd Book" to compare with the flattering ones 

 of John E. Page? 



When all of these flattering gentlemen speak 

 of these "wonderful animals" they think "they 

 struck lie," at the same time the Messrs. Col- 

 lings -were taking a cross with the Galloways to 

 reduce the Durhams' coarseness and improve 

 their quality. Both were overgrown, overfed 

 and forced to the extreme to create wonder, by 

 which they did much to the injury of good 

 breeding. Notice what stress Mr. L. F. Allen 

 made on the craft of the Messrs. "Collings" 

 when they started this wonderful caravansary. 

 Barnum never succeeded so well. This, his 

 strongest plea for Shorthorns, in the second vol- 

 ume of the "American Shorthorn Herd Book." 

 There were hundreds of Herefords that out- 

 weighed them of far more compact character, 

 supported with less feed and expense, less bone 

 and offal, that were of far superior quality and 

 held to their original character, which had been 

 established for over a century without, like the 

 Shorthorn, changing their pedigree into hodge- 

 podge confusion, of which all the hidden secrets 

 are coming to light. 



Old Father Time does much when he under- 

 takes to search into the secrets of men's hearts. 

 Mr. Allen also says in the same volume that 

 Mr. Ceilings was a close man. Are we to infer 



from this that lie kept the stock bull in the dark 

 and the show bull in the sunshine ? What will 

 he say now, as he discovers those secrets are 

 exposed? Probably Collmgs will "be in a fix" 

 when he is compelled to reveal those secrets he 

 kept in that closet. 



There has been more ni}'stery in breedma" 

 Shorthorns than m any other course of breed- 

 ing, but why should there be such mystery, un- 

 less these breeders like darkness better than 

 light? The deceit is far more injurious. It is 

 now generally believed that the Shorthorns are 

 a mixture of Durhams; the white cattle with 

 red noses and red ears of Chillingham Park ; 

 the Dishley; the Devons; the Galloways; the 

 West Highland, and last, though not least, the 

 Herefords; at least in the Seventeens, which 

 are now generally conceded to be the best of 

 the American Shorthorn tribes. 



I have no objection whatever to this mixture ; 

 such experiments are beneficial, and are the art 

 of good breeding, had they not been kept iu 

 the dark; but the deception kills the merit due 

 to it. Dukes, Duchesses, Lords and Ladies were 

 superfluous names to exalt, and a sham to de- 

 stroy "good breeding." They were fascinating 

 to the moneyed man, who had more of it than 

 brains, and who 



was extremely „_ _^ 



anxious for a con- 

 spicuous title. The 

 white-faces hold 

 to their color and 

 keep up their 

 character for sym- 

 metry, substance 

 and quality, prin- 

 cipally derived 

 from good breed- 

 ing. Their breed- 

 ers have not stud- 

 ied pedigree so ex- 

 clusively; they 

 have not pinned 

 their faith en- 

 tirely to it: know qualitv by the band, s\-m- 

 metry by the eye. and. being aware of the su- 

 perioritv and purity of their own breed over all 

 others, have jealously exerted everv effort to 

 keep it pure. Here let me quote a letter written 

 to me by Wm. Cother, Middle Aston. Oxford- 

 shire, England, which! had published in the 

 Albany "Cultivator," page 132, August number, 

 1841, soon atter my first importation. [This 

 letter we omit as it is produced in full in Chap- 

 ter XI, to which the reader is referred. T. 

 L. M.] 



I always considered Mr. Cother one of tha 



-^iso 



A. A. CRANE, HOtJSTON, TEX. 



