1018 A HISTORY OF HEEEFORD CATTLE 



ing offspring more uniform in type and more uni- 

 formly equal or superior to either sire or dam. After 

 all, this is only another way of saying that 'like be- 

 gets like or the like of some ancestor.' 



"If it is possible that close-breeding in itself will 

 produce a weakness or defect in the offspring when 

 both sire and dam are of outstanding merit, neither 

 having this weakness or defect and both tracing 

 back to the same ancestors of equal merit, there must 

 be for such a result a demonstrable scientific reason. 

 So far investigators and students of the science of 

 breeding have not discovered any physiological or 

 other scientific reason. If neither sire nor dam, 

 however closely related, has a certain or particular 

 defect or weakness and none of their ancestors has 

 been affected with such defect or weakness their 

 offspring will not have it as a result of this mating. 

 The quite common notion that it is otherwisjs, and 

 that defects and weaknesses are the necessary re- 

 sults of blood concentration, undoubtedly had its 

 origin in sentiment and survives on 'common report,' 

 scarcely anyone having attempted to solve the prob- 

 lem by persistent, patient, personal effort. 



"Custom may make law, but tradition never estab- 

 lished or created a physical or scientific fact, nor can 

 folk-lore make or change a law of nature. ' ' 



Tow's Practical Work. — Cyrus A. Tow has to 

 his credit a marked success in breeding and devel- 

 opment of "classy" Herefords in the recent past. 

 In fact, he has proved quite a "disturber" in the 

 calculations of his competitors at leading shows. 

 He tells the story of the breeding of his cattle in 

 simple language: 



"It is about eight years ago since I became the 

 owner of my first registered Hereford cow. It was 



