HISTORY OF HEKEFOKD CATTLE 



295 



stock is largely due to the fact that while you 

 have carried improvements forward, you have 

 not carried them to such an extent as to en- 

 danger the stability of the breed for the hardy 

 character which it originally possessed, and 

 for many years past, it has been my pleasure to 

 refer to the Hereford breed as representing the 

 cattle of which there was a sufficient power for 

 the production of meat rapidly, without it be- 

 ing accompajiied by weakness through over 

 feeding and neglecting the milk, and, depend 

 upon it, the great future of this breed will be 

 determined by this moderation that you have 

 shown in the past. There is nothing peculiar 

 to the Hereford breed, any more than the 

 Shorthorns, to prevent you going too far in the 

 alteration you make in the structure of the 

 body, and in its general healthy character. It 

 is quite possible for you, and you may have 

 seen instances of it, to produce a Hereford 

 quite as tender and as delicate as the most frail 

 of the Shorthorn breed. But the interests of 

 breeders in the past has been shown by carry- 

 ing the improvements to a reasonable extent — 

 making them good flesh formers, good feeders, 

 but not overdoing it by bringing your animals 

 into too delicate a condition." 



Prof. Tanner concluded by saying : 'T know 

 that some of the breeders of Shorthorn cattle 

 will think that I am doing them an injustice, in 

 reference to the quality of Shorthorn beef, but 

 it is my duty to speak the truth, to the best 

 of my ability and knowledge, whether it 

 pleases or not; and I feel convinced, that the 

 excessive limitation which is placed upon the 

 Shorthorns, tends greatly in the direction of 

 producing beef which is decidedly -of an in- 

 ferior character. We know, however, that it is 

 a point of excellence with Hereford breeders, 

 that you are :^ther liberal in regard to exercise 

 — you allow your stock to -take rather a liberal 

 amount of exercise, and this is really a loss of 

 food producing power; but you cannot have it 

 both ways. The great end is to obtain that 

 happy medium that gives you the rich flesh, ac- 

 companied by a fair proportion of fat, and not 

 to fatten to such an extent that the muscular 

 growth shall attain to a fatty degeneration." 



We ])resent Dr. Sprague's report on marbling 

 qualities of beef from the dressed bullocks at 

 the American Fat Stock Show and from others 

 obtained at the markets. We would call 

 special attention to the clause which we have 

 placed in italics: 



"So, after thoroughly weighing and sifting 

 every feature of the structure, of fiber and fat, 

 in the two breeds as represented by specimens, 

 we conclude that superiority must be deter- 



mined by EARLY MATURITY, POUNDS OF 

 GAIN UPON A GIVEN AMOUNT OF 

 FEED. RELATIVE WEIGHT OF OFFAL 

 AND OF BEST TO POOREST PARTS." 



Or as we would state it, economy of produc- 

 tion and value of product. There is no doubt 

 that the Doctor reached the rule that must be 

 the true test. But a further and more careful 

 investigation reveals the fact that by the touch 

 and handling, the quality can be determined 

 with tolerable accuracy. The butcher of long 

 experience by the eye and handling, will de- 

 termine whether the animal will die well or 

 not; he will determine with almost unerring 

 certainty on the points. This fact is well es- 

 tablished, but there is as much difference in 

 butchers as there is in any other calling. We 

 will find butchers that by the outside of the 

 animal will tell almost to a certainty what is 

 under the hide, and this class of butchers 

 should be called for Judges. Another point : 

 When a society shall reserve the right to 

 take competing bullocks that are brought be- 

 fore them for slaughter, then will they reach 

 results that will be valuable. Dr. Sprague 

 says, ''The butcher is the only one that 

 could establish the presence of these desirable 

 qualities" (marbling). We advocated this and 

 urged upon the attention of the Illinois State 

 Board of Agriculture the necessity of making 

 this test. An offer was made in the following 

 language in 1879 in a communication to the 

 Board: 



"The object of your Board is to determine, 

 among other things, the comparative value of 

 different breeds of beef animals. Among other 

 ways, expert judges of beef animals are called 

 upon to pass upon the merits of such animals 

 as are brought before them. This will de- 

 , termine the merits excepting the errors of 

 judgment and prejudice in favor of different 

 breeds. To correct such errors and prejudices 

 if any exist, I will submit my cattle, that have 

 come in competition with other breeds, to the 

 direction of your Board to be slaughtered." 



We agreed with Dr. Sprague, that the 

 butcher's test was needed. The Board could 

 offer such premiums as would make it an object 

 and inducement for breeders and feeders to 

 bring their cattle to such a test. 



The Duke of Bedford did this over seventv 

 \ ears ago, and the correctness of that judgment 

 has been recognized, from that time to the pres- 

 ent, by the graziers and butchers of England. 



At the request of the State Board of Agri- 

 culture of Illinois, Dr. G. Sprague of Chicago 

 prepared an exhaustive paper giving the re- 

 sults of a series of careful microscopical 



