The Influence of Dexter Cattle on other Breeds. 535 
with it, but it is not until the early part of the century that 
there is any record of special pains being taken to preserve the 
type. Mr. Dexter, agent to Maude, Lord Hawarden, is credited 
with having taken upon himself to establish the breed by care- 
ful selection. He recognised the valuable characteristics it pos- 
sessed both as a milk-producing and beef-making animal, and 
by his endeavours and example the type was preserved from 
total extinction. The breed being, as a rule, in the hands of 
small farmers, after his death little pains were taken to keep 
it pure, and it seemed probable that it would become extinct, 
when, some twenty-five years ago, Mr. James Robertson was 
attracted by it, and again brought it to the notice of breeders. 
He searched all parts of Kerry for the best specimens ; and, by 
opening up a market with England for the breed, aroused an 
interest in it which has been of the greatest value to the 
breeders in that hilly county. Since then, by means of its own 
undoubted merits and the formation of the Herd Book, it has 
been brought prominently forward, until, perhaps, at the present 
day there is no breed of cattle growing more rapidly in favour, 
or for which the price has increased so much during the past 
few years. Heifers less than three years old, not 40 inches in 
height, at their first calf frequently give daily three gallons of 
milk of good quality, with no food but that obtained from a 
moderate pasture. The frame is compact, and the loin, ribs, 
and hind-quarters are well developed, affording meat of excellent 
quality in those parts most appreciated by butchers. The flavour 
of the meat is so good that, taking into consideration its size 
compared with that of other breeds, it has been called the 
Southdown among cattle. For the sake of comparison a portrait 
of a Dexter heifer, My Queen , with which Mr. Robertson won 
several prizes, is given in fig. 3. This heifer, barely 40 inches 
in height, at her first calf gave over three gallons of milk per 
day for a long period, although only three years old. 
The early effort to establish fixity of type, together with 
later endeavours, has resulted in producing a breed which 
possesses that valuable characteristic of pedigree animals — pre- 
potency, or the power of transmitting its distinguishing pro- 
perties to animals of other breeds. The prepotency of such 
breeds as the Shorthorn, Hereford, and others carefully bred for 
a number of years, has had a marked effect on the less carefully 
selected animals in all English-speaking countries. 
We have seen how strongly the Zebu has been influenced. 
As the Zebu is a poorly-bred animal, it is not surprising that 
such a breed should undergo considerable transformation when 
crossed with a well-bred one, for it is an accepted rule of breeding 
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