THE HALF OF THE HERD— THE BUCK 105 



high grade herd is, " How closely related may he be to 

 the does of my herd? " 



In discussing this subject, it will be convenient to 

 start with a definition of the terms usually employed to 

 describe the different systems of breeding — cross breed- 

 ing, out breeding, line breeding, and inbreeding. Cross 

 breeding is the mating of two animals of distinctly 

 different breeds, to produce a new combination of char 

 acteristics. Out breeding is the mating of two animals, 

 both belonging to the same distinct type or breed, but 

 whose individual families are not related in blood. Lin? 

 breeding is commonly described as the mating of two 

 individuals both sprung from the same line but whose 

 common inheritance is less than 50 per cent, of the blood 

 of each. A granddaughter bred to her grandsire, a doe 

 to her grandson, a doe to her dam's half brother, would 

 be instances of line breeding. It results in the intensify- 

 ing of the blood of one of the lines in an individual's 

 inheri1;ance. Inbreeding is the mating of two animals 

 whose common inheritance, from one or both sides, 

 amounts to 50 per cent, or more of the blood of each. It 

 results in intensifying some line or some combination of 

 blood lines which has proved successful. 



It is not within the scope of a book of this sort to 

 enter into a discussion of this highly technical and com- 

 plicated subject. So interwoven is it, however, w'th 



