Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1889-09-25
HORSE BREEDING IN NEW YORK.
A Valuable Lecture on Horse Breed
ing I'm New York, Delivered at
the Syracuse and Albion
Farmers Institute

Farmers Institute
BY JAS. WOOD, OF wESTCHEsTER co.
The first question with farmers in the
Eastern States now Is, 'How can We
successfully compete with the great
West?" On the long-established theory
that the value of land is in proportion
to the population, We cannot abandon
our faIms and We must stoutly resist
the tendency to destroy their value
which the uneXampled productions of
the virgin soils of our newly peopled
States, and the unprecedented cheap
ness OF their transportation to our mar
kets, 50 persistently encourage. We can
no longer rear and fatten a bullock
without pecuniaTy loss What is left
10 usl Our orchards and vineyards
still yield us fair profits, but we cannot
devote our whole farms TO apples, pears,
peaches and grapes. Our dairy products
hold the first rank for their quality, but
great regions of the Northwest give Us
impressive warning that we cannot long
maintain this. We find an encouraging
answer to our inquiry, in part at least,
in the fact that the soils and the cli-
mate of our State are admirably suited
to raising horses. We find still further
encouragement in the fact that a horse
raised in the State of New York Is
worth more in our city markets than is
a similar animal reared anywhere iii
three quarters of our Western States.
AS horses reared upon the rich pastures
of Holland and Belgium cannot COM
pare in stamina and soundness with
those raised upon the hitler and harder
soils of Northern France, and the horses
of the fens of Lincolnshire and its ad-
joining counties, III England, are "soft''
when tested beside those from dry up
lands and well-turfed hills, so the horses
from great portions of the West are
deficient in endurance and defective in
their feet. when compared with horses
reared here.
Other important considerations give
us still further announcement. The
demand for horses is constantly increas-
ing. Europe cannot supply her own
needs Great Britain annually Imports
2O,OO0 from other counties. The i'm
mense armies of the continent are
making an ever-increasing demand. ami
if the threatened war cloud bursts, the
destruction of horses will be so great
that this demand Will be beyond the
possibility OF supply. 1t is freely an
nounced i'll Europe that America can
meet these demands. Competent Of
Gcers from the German, French and
English armies, have made extensive
examinations in this country as to our
equine resources, and have made very
full reports TO their respective govern
ments. Even I'm times of peace they are
drawing upon Us. The writer saw, not
very long since, a regiment of cavalry
stationed at Dion, in France. mounted
"a .nWr ..aH..a
The demands OF our home markets
are constantly increasing. In New
York city alone IA, 600 horses die every
year, and as many more become lame,
OF are otherwise disabled, ard are sent
into the country. from which they never
return Increasing business makes in
creasing demands; and while the sub
stItutiOn If electricity for horse power
upon the street railways, will doubtless,
IN the near future, injure the market
for inferior OThSes, yet the requirements
of new industries will more than coun-
trrbalance this; but, probably, in supe-
IloT grades. 1t Is, therefore, quite evI-
dent that our farmers can z We their
attention to and invest their capital in
this important industry. with a reason
able certainty of finding ready sale for
its products.
Besides the promise of pecuniary re-
ward thus held out, there many
attractions found in such enter
priseS. There is peculiar in
teTest in the growth of domestic ami
mails, and this interest increases in pro-
portion as skill IS required and intelli-
gence is exercised i'll their breeding and
development. BY the side of this,
grain-growiDg is but drudgery. Again,
in rearing animals, the fertility of our
land is not exhausted as it is by selling
grain and other products.
At the outset every one must stop to
consider what kind of horses he will
raise The general purpose horse" is
a very convenient and useful animal
upon the farm, but be is no. wanted
anywhere else. and he is generally a
low priced horse in q c market. We
do business to make money, and the
money return must be our first consIG-
Grafton. We must, Therefore, breed for
a definite purpose. What shall it be?
Our country has achieved distinction
In the production of two remarkable
animals-and only two These are the
American Merino sheep and the Ameri-
can trOtting horse. The latter is unique
He is as distinct from, as he is superior
10 any similar horse in the world. A
chance product he may have been orig
inally, since no one knew the peculiar
value Of the great Messenger when lie
was brought across the Atlantic; nor
how his blood would ''nick'' in crossing
with others, nor how the bringing to-
gether in after generations of different
strains of his get would produce SUCH
marvellous results. But all this has
now been demonstrated. and the world
looks on in amazement as second after
second is reduced from the record,
while development in stoutness and
perfection of temperament keep equal
pace with action. And the best types
Of trotters are in every way perfect anil
mails, beautiful to the eye and delight