Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1893-02-16
DUB HORSE INTERESTS.
Horse Market.


ing bred. They would seem to think
that the market will be soon and easily
supplied, and that the sale of them will
| shortly come to an end. And there are
not wanting those who predict that be-
fore long they can not be sold at all, or
Will be selling at mere song, what
ever amounts any may see fit to give.
But such prognostigators of evil, very
evidently have not studied very thor
oughly the situation. They have not
reflected, or awkened to the fact that
would seem perfectly obvious one on
a very little reflection, that not until
high bred horses have rooted out and
taken the place of all the mongrel,
scrub stock of the country can they be
expected to come down to the level of
the horse of no breeding.
Hardly one person in thousand will
be disposed to hang on to, and keep in
his possession low bred dung-hill
horse, when he can get better bred,
or a high bred one for anything like the
same money. People are not to any
extent milking Texas, or range COWS.
even though good grade Shorthorns,
Jerseys, Alderneys or Holsteines do
cost considerable more, and pure breds
many times more.
Before then the trotting pedigreed
horse can get down in price to that of
common stock, even the best of its kind,
usually brings. all such will needs have
been relegated to the boneyard, or to
the slaughter houses of the lovers OF
horse flesh, and so disposed of.
While crowbate, scrub, or low
mongrel half-breed remains in the
country there will be place for a bet
ter one in his room and stead, and at a
price somewhat above, what such infe-
riors command.
1t is a great wonder what some of
the pessimistic howlers ABOUT coming
prices of high bred horses think their
rubbage with no breeding will be
worth, when well pedigreed animals
get down so low as they talk of.
Scarceley their value for compbst
heaps, one would nationally judge.
But up to the present the trouble has
all been in the other direction. The
prices OF we'll bred, not to say high bred
horses, have beed so high that people
of ordinary means have not regarded it
worth while even to think about en-
deavoring to get into possession of
them, and even people of more ample
means have felt that they were too val
liable to employ for the ordinary uses
of horses.
And so imbued With this sentiment
are the masses of the people that it is
almost assumed if anyone breeds even
a half bred, or quarter blood trotter,
that it is to be put into the training
stable and on the race track as soon as
old enough, and the owner becomes a
race horse man at once. And indeed,
SO widespread is this view that animals
with only a remote relation to tIot-
ting ancestry and with barely a COM
mon roadsters gait are marked for trot-
ters and doomed TO have their lives and
usefulness pelted out of them to make
them race horse campaigners, and when
failure results. as sooner or later it
must, the owner is disgusted, and
everybody else who looks on. with the
whole trOtting horse business. And
well they may be, and ought to be with
it, in this feature that it has come so
widely to wear.
The training craze for race track
uses, which has drafted everything with
any breeding into its service, and much
stuff even without breeding to speak of,
has to account solely for all shortages
in the accounts of bloodei horse breed
ers and for the utterly false and absurd
roadsters, or light harness horse has as
his main or chief value and use this
purpose. And it will be happy day
and "a good work done by trotting horse
breeders when they can produce enough
high bred roadsters and make them
cheap enough TO put them in reach of
all classes of people of ordinary means,
and rotate out the common herd of cold
blood mongreI stuff that is neither a
credit or comfort to our country.
And alas, only that the time when
this will be accomplished seems so far
eff as it does at present! Only the
smallest portion of our people seem to
be aware that there is anything better
in store for them than the mOngreI.
pony, or common scrub; and even those
knowing and looking for something
better do so largely as to some luxury
or high priced article that they must
have fortune before they own, OF that
they must calculate to make a fortune
out of, if they do possess.
We are long way yet with our horse
interests, from where we are with the
vegetables and fruits we raise. where
we all expect to have only the best; OF
from where We are with our chickens.
turkeys, ducks, pigs, sheep, or even
cattle. where only the unthrifty, unam-