1922.] Live Stock and Horse Breeding iMrRovEMENT. 



With reference to the licensing of stallions under the Horse- 

 breeding Act, 1018, it is of course premature at present to expect 

 any good results to be noticeable from the operation of the Horse 

 Breeding Act, but the Ministry has evidence that owners of 

 licensed stallions no longer suffer as they used to do from the 

 competition of the unsound travelling staUion, whose chief qualifi- 

 cation, in the estimation of the careless mare owner, was the 

 cheap fee at which it travelled, and the clearance of such stallions 

 from the road must in course of time secui'e improvement in the 

 Horse Breeding Industry. 



During the travelhng season of 1921 the Ministry's Inspectors 

 were instructed to stop stallions they met on the road and to 

 require the production of the hcences, and it is satisfactory to be 

 able to report that in only comparatively few instances were the 

 stallions unaccompanied by their licences and only in seven in- 

 stances were the stallions unlicensed. Failure to comply with 

 Eegulations was also reported to the Ministry by the Police, 

 who took proceedings for offences under the Act and in the great 

 majority of cases convictions were obtained. 



It is evident from the working of the Act during the second 

 year of its operation that the necessity of having stallions licensed 

 and of the licences being carried by the grooms when leading 

 the stallions is now generally recognised, and the plea of ignor- 

 ance, which was so common in the first year, was but seldom 

 made during the season of 1921. 



Foaling Results for Service Season, 1920. — The foaling per- 

 centage of the 60 stallions awarded King's Premiums in 1920, 

 calculated on the returns furnished to the Ministry by mare 

 owners, works out at an average of 49, which is a decrease of 

 three per cent, on the figure for 1919. The highest percentage 

 (67) was obtained by " French Eagle," belonging to the 

 Llawes-v-Coed Stud. 



The average foaling percentage of the 26 Board's Premium 

 stallions was 47, as compared with 44 per cent, in 1919. 



Earnings of Premium Stallions for Service Season, 1920. — 



The average amount paid by the Ministry for the 48 King'^s 

 Premium stallions was ,£324 and the maximum £404, the 

 corresponding figures for the 12 Super-Premium horses being 

 £455 and £500. The average earnings of the stallions (including 

 the service fees paid by mare owners) were £890 for' the King's 

 Premium horses and £532 for the Super-Premium horses, the 

 maximum earnings being £494 and £590 respectively. 



