HISTORY OF HEREFORD CATTLE 



345 



districts in the counties of Gloucester, Wilts 

 and Somerset. Owing to this circumstance, and 

 being surrounded by sorts m no respect of equal 

 merit, the breeders in Herefordshire were fam 

 to be content with what they possessed, and 

 thus, by degrees, purity of blood and fixity of 

 type were established in their cattle. Much 

 uncertainty has existed as to the type of Here- 

 ford that prevailed in the past century. In 

 respect of this there should not be any. For 

 ages there has been no record or tradition of 

 any blending of blood, and in the absence of 

 such evidence, we may fairly conclude that no 

 fresh blood has been sought since the amalga- 

 mation of the white cattle of Brecknock with 

 the red stock of Herefordshire in the reign of 

 King John, which produced in the process of 

 time, the famous race now known everywhere 

 as 'Herefords.' 



"So recent as a hundred years ago there was 

 no recognized color for the breed ; they were 

 nearly every color; black,blacl' tints and irindle 

 alone excepted. Nobody set much store on 

 color, the test of value having been in the size 

 and working powers of the oxen. It was then 

 in the matter of color preciseljr what it is now 

 with cart horses ; for oxen then were bred quite 

 as much for draught purposes as for beef, and 



but few thought of fattening three-year-old 

 steers. To have done so would have been looked 

 upon not only as a waste of working power, but 

 also as a great loss in the production of beef. 

 The yeomen of the country were exceedingly 

 proud of their noble teams of oxen, and one vied 

 with another in breeding and working the best 

 in his neighborhood. Herds of repute were 

 then many, but a fine choice herd was then 

 termed a 'good stock' and to have a good stock 

 was considered a sufficient guarantee of purity 

 of breed. The grand old ox mentioned is a good 

 representative specimen of the TuUy's variety 

 of Herefords." 



Then again we find in the "Hants and Berks 

 Gazette" (1884) as follows: 



"How far is early maturity likely in future 

 to influence decisions at fat cattle shows, and to 

 what extent ought it to influence them, are 

 points not unlikely to become of pressing im- 

 portance. A decision in the agricultural hall 

 last week bears on this point and is particularly 

 noteworthy, as it brought two of the sets of 

 judges into direct collision. 



"The Shorthorn judges gave the breed cup 

 to the Queen's remarkably wealthy heifer, thus 

 placing her above all the first prize steers, as 

 well as Mr. R. Stratton's first prize cow, but 



HAMPTON COURT, LEOMINSTER. HEREFORDSHIRE. 

 The seat of J. H. Arkwright. 



