THE CULTIVATOR. 
158 
do 
upper 
do 
do 
lower 
left 
do 
upper 
do 
!hardly be made, together with the possession of no great- 
jer assurance for the integrity of the records than may be 
I found at home, and the propriety of at once establishing 
an American Herd Book, will be apparent. 
A work of this kind has long been agitated by various 
gentlemen connected with cattle breeding in America; 
but no one has hitherto ventured the experiment, although 
earnestly called for by a numerous body of breeders. 
Its demand then being conceded, it remains to be seen 
whether the public will sustain an effort to accomplish it. 
It is a labor involving industry, research and discrimina¬ 
tion; and in its proper execution, demanding no ordinary 
degree of firmness and decision in resisting undue ad¬ 
missions within its pages. It may, perhaps, be deem¬ 
ed an act of presumption in the undersigned to assume 
this responsibility; but he can only answer that some one 
must undertake it, if it be undertaken at all; and having 
been a considerable breeder of Short Horns for many 
years, and more or less conversant with most of the prin¬ 
cipal herds of this country, he considers his observation 
and experience, together with a familiar acquaintance 
with the volumes of the English Herd Book, somewhat 
of a guaranty for the performance. Be it remembered 
however, that the task is n.ot assumed without mature re¬ 
flection, and after the repeated solicitations of several dis¬ 
tinguished breeders in different sections of the United 
States; and if pursued, the co-operation of skilful and ex¬ 
perienced individuals will be rendered. But for the in¬ 
tegrity of its execution, the undersigned will be solely 
responsible. 
-- jj A s this work is not proposed in the anticipation of pri- 
3999i!vate gain, so neither will it be expected to involvepecu- 
i;niary loss. It is therefore necessary to ascertain the ex- 
| j tent of encouragement which will be given to it before 
proceeding; and for that purpose the undersigned re- 
The inconvenience arisin ? from the want of a work of [spectrally asks the publication of this notice by the agri- 
this kind is already greatly felt in the United States; and cul . ural P res . s generally m the United States and the Ca- 
with the rapid multiplication of our herds, is continually :i nad,an Provinces, for which, together with a copy of the 
increasing. There may now be estimated, at least two paper containing it, directed to him, lie will present the 
thousand thorough-bred Short Horn cattle onthis side the I Proprietor with a copy of the work, if prosecuted. 
Atlantic, distributed in the hands of perhaps five hundred He also requests all who approve the plan to write 
different breeders. These animals, in most eases, have jj him, post paid, if by mail, previous to the first day of July 
been selected from among the best herds in England, and next, stating the number of animals they propose to re 
REGISTERING SHEEP. 
The above cut illustrates the German mode of ear¬ 
marking and regularly numbering the sheep belonging to 
a flock, so that each individual can be distinctly reg¬ 
istered. 
Each slit in the lower rim of the right ear represents, 1 
5 
300 
500 
The central hole in the right ear, 25 
do left 50 
In the above figure 
7 slits in the upper rim of the left ear, 500 each 
4 do lower do do 100 do 
The central hole in do 
4 slits in the upper rim of the right ear, 
4 do lower do do 
The central hole in do 
do 
do 
do 
3500 
400 
50 
20 
4 
25 
Number of the sheep. 
AN AMERICAN HERD BOOK. 
imported at great expense; and their descendants widely 
disseminated into every State of our Union, and the Ca¬ 
nadas. Strict attention has been given to their breeding, 
and great care bestowed to maintain their original excel¬ 
lence. The climate and soils of America have proved 
congenial to their growth, and from the rapidity with 
which they have multiplied, and their present compara 
ister, together with the number of copies they will take. 
If a sufficient number of responses are made to encourage 
the undertaking, the work will proceed; if not, it will be 
'given up. The determination of going on with it, will 
be announced through the agricultural papers as early as 
|September next, and those proposing to patronize the 
I work will then he notified to forward their respective 
tive cheapness, we may anticipate thafcbut few further jjregisters of cattle immediately, together with the neces- 
importations will be made from abroad. Still, the deci- jjsary evidence of their correctness, that it may be issued 
ded advantages conferred upon one of the most important j.as early as the spring of 1845. 
branches of our agriculture by the introduction of the!j As it is n °t expected that the sales of the book will 
Short Horns into this country, have distinctly established jj more than pay for the printing and publication, a small 
them as a race to be perpetuated in their purity; and the 
progressive improvement in American husbandry is a 
sufficient guaranty that they will hereafter maintain their 
exalted character in elevating the standard of American 
cattle. 
So important was it esteemed by the Short Horn breed¬ 
ers of England to establish and record the lineage of 
their unrivalled herds, that in the year 1822 the first vol¬ 
ume of Coates’ Herd Book was published, containing the 
pedigrees of over 2,500 animals; and so strongly has the 
public mind sanctioned the utility of the work and its 
continuance^ that three successive supplements have from 
time to time been issued, and another is now in the press, 
embracing altogether, a list of probably 12,000 cattle. 
In the great mass of these, the American breeder has 
little interest; although from the absence of a domestic 
record, many of our citizens have encountered the incon¬ 
venience anti expense of transmitting a list of their herds 
to England for registry. A moment's reflection will con¬ 
vince us of the absurdity of a perpetual dependence upon 
foreign records for the pedigrees of American stock; and 
the great expense of obtaining the entire English herd 
book, comprising five large volumes, at a cost of not less 
than forty dollars, are subjects not unworthy of conside¬ 
ration; add to this, the probability of errors in printing 
the registry at such a distance, where corrections can 
charge for admission will be required, say from twenty- 
five to fifty cents for each animal, as the number may de¬ 
termine. 
Well executed portraits of animals, the plates being 
furnished by the owners, will be inserted with the regis¬ 
ter. 
The full pedigree of each animal will be given, run¬ 
ning back through its whole extent in the English Herd 
Book, if thus furnished, together with its reference num¬ 
bers, so as to render the American Herd Book a perfect 
record of every animal’s genealogy. 
An index containing the name and residence of every 
breeder whose cattle are registered, will be inserted. 
Another index will contain the name of every animal 
and the page on which it is recorded. 
The work will be prefaced with a full and accurate his¬ 
tory of the Short Horn breed of cattle, drawn up from the 
best English authorities, together with a particular ac¬ 
count of their extraordinary productions both in the dairy 
and at the shambles. 
It will be executed as near as possible, in the style of 
the English Herd Book, well bound, and delivered to 
subscribers at a price not exceeding three dollars a copy,, 
either at New-York, Albany, or Buffalo, at their option 
Lewis F. Allen. 
Black Rock, N. Y, April, 1844. 
