PROOF PILED ON PROOF 793 



under adverse conditions, which I attribute as much 

 to his placid and equable temperament as to his 

 compact and easily nourished frame; (2) his gen- 

 erally superior coat; (3) his popularity with steer 

 buyers, though this is less marked in recent years. 

 His disadvantages are: (1) a want of scale; (2) less 

 breeding activity when young (this latter is, I be- 

 lieve, not generally acknowledged, but I am con- 

 vinced of its correctness, although it is partly com- 

 pensated for by the superjor condition that the 

 Hereford maintains in consequence of that fact) ; 

 (3) a weight of horn and lightness and angularity 

 of hindquarter which is not well calculated to re- 

 move these same defects from the native cattle of 

 the southwest. 



"The popularity of the Hereford on the range is 

 due undoubtedly to his conspicuous, uniform and 

 attractive coloring which proclaims the blood even 

 to the most inexperienced. At the time of the first 

 introduction there was excessive mortality among 

 the Shorthorn bulls, and while the Hereford is gen- 

 erally regarded as having saved the situation, his 

 breed sometimes receives the credit for survival 

 which was really due to more judicious stocking of 

 the ranges. I do not know of anyj-ange herd in the 

 front rank as regards -quality that has been pro- 

 duced by the use of Hereford bulls alone on the na- 

 tive scrub cow. I am convinced that there is a 

 tendency where one Hereford cross is followed -by 

 another for a long period towards some loss in size 

 and weight. This might perhaps be avoided by the 

 careful selection of Herefords of large frame. The 

 obvious remedy for this is the use of a Shorthorn 

 cross. The exclusive use of Shorthorns has its 

 drawbacks also. Nevertheless, I am free to confess 

 that I do not believe that Herefords can ever be dis- 

 pensed with on the range." 



