THE AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 



411 



Sulph. sub., 1 dram, or \ teaspoonful. 



Sodae salicylas, do. do. 



Sodae bicarb., 1 drm. or 1 teaspoonful. 



One of these powders to be given to each 

 pig in its food once daily. The sty to be 

 kept dry.— S. B. WOOLLATT, D.V.S., 

 Maritzburg.] 



rnOROUGHBREDS. 

 SlE,— In your issue of the 16th inst., I 

 note a letter headed " Hackney vs. 

 Thoroughbred," signed W. Heuwood, 

 criticising an article of the 2nd by F. 

 Hutchinson, V.S. I say criticising, but 

 truly it is no criticism but a personal 

 attack on Mr. Hutchinson when manager 

 for Mr. Darrell ISmith. 



Mr. Hutchinson was my neighbour 

 during the two years and four months he 

 held the position, and a more energetic, 

 painstaking manager would be hard to 

 find, and if Mr. Darrel Smith was in 

 Africa I am sure he would lead Mr. 

 Henwood aright. 



Mr. Smith brought his stock to my 

 farm before he purchased the adjoining 

 property, Ruiter's Kuil, and my first 

 remark to him was, " You have imported 

 the wrong class of mare." My reasons 

 were, as a rule, they were too old, had 

 mostly all been pampered for show pur- 

 poses for years, and my greatest objection 

 —money— they had cost too much, even 

 up to 450 guineas. I may mention Mr. 

 Hutchinson had nothing to do with the 

 purchasing of this stock. 



All food had to be purchased the first 

 year, oathay very scarce, 70s. to 80s. per 

 lOObdls., mealies and oats also high, and 

 to keep the mares in condition required 

 abnormal feeding. 



Mr. Hutchinson had to begin at the 

 the foundation, build stables, enclose 

 farm, break up land, and all other pre- 

 liminaries. 



His first crops were splendid, his second 

 an absolute failure — locusts. 



The first foaling season gave over 70 

 foals from imported and native mares. 

 The majority of colts sold from £15 to 

 £50, showing there was more than one 

 colt bred— and not the one-horse show 

 Mr. Henwood thinks it was, and the 

 breeding was not confined to Hackneys. 



The second foaling season was not so 

 good, pneumonia having played havoc 

 among the mares and foals ; colts were 

 sold again at good prices. 



The colt referred to by Mr. Henwood 

 was all Mr. Hutchinson had to show the 

 first year ; his dam arrived in foal, giving 

 her a start of months over the others. 

 The colt was certainly not bred from 

 unsound stock. Miss Syntax, his dam, 

 had been awarded loo many prizes and 

 passed before too many Home judges to 

 have a blemish, Mr. Smith thought so 

 much of her that he sent her Home again. 

 The sire is in the country to-day and 

 speaks for himself. 



Mr. Hutchinson came out on a two 

 years' engagement, and remained in 

 charge four months longer at the request 

 of Mr. Smith, and then left things in a 

 go-ahead condition, | 



Mr. Smith sold out close on two years 

 after this, not to cut his loss, as suggested 

 by Mr. Henwood, but to save himself in 

 case of war. He was right ; I wish I 

 had done the same, and he told me he 

 had come out square. In his book, 

 " Should I Succeed in Africa," he does 

 not write as a man who had lost 

 much by horsebreeding, but strongly 

 advocates it, only stipulating "don't 

 import mares " (page 35). 



Anyone who expects profit from horse- 

 breeding the first three years, especially 

 from imported stock, is asking too much, 

 as it is pay, pay, pay, and all expense. 

 The first three years are always con- 

 sidered the preliminary canter to the 

 real s'art. 



To condemn any breed of horses be- 

 cause it has not given profitable results 

 in two years and four months from start- 

 ing will only be done by those who are 

 absolutely ignorant of horsebreeding, as 

 no management can do impossibilities. 



The abo ye is a true statement, and if 

 Mr. Henwood will believe it, he will see 

 how unjust his insinuations are. 



I have been horsebreeding many years, 

 and my horses have paid me well. As 

 far as the argument of breed is concerned, 

 I am strongly in favour of thoroughbreds, 

 but I want a horse with a pedigree, not a 

 pedigree with an animal attached. I 

 desire a horse, not a bit of paper, and we 

 have too many sires to-day, if you destroy 

 the paper, you have nothing left. And I 

 in no way see that Mr. Hutchinson in his 

 article disagrees with me, but I find he 

 strongly recommends the breeding of 

 thoroughbreds. I note " Farmer " in the 

 Times reads his article as I do. Mr, 



