The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-03-28

II las been said csaf ali conditions are
favorahls IN Eastern washington for the
bss~4ing % the finest norsss r. tie world.
standard bred noE<za IF Washington
farmers" said at enthusiast. "wogIi raise
fine aozses instead OF d@vosing AL their
snenzfAs 20 czyuseS cattle and hogs. they
would make more money nan sasy 90
now" II r.. OF course. n very general tn
preston shat tas h0ESs L. passing from
the earth. This may be true, 50 Tar as
common stock Is concerned. I; probably H.
but weil-informsa horssmen believe tAat
with the conditions surrounding the horss
breeding Industry. no business onefs
greater r1turTAE with TIE same degree OF
certainty than the breeding and raising
Of a nigh class OF troitsng horses suitable
Tor track and read purposes. having
s4ze substance. good looks. good benaV-
for snd speed, ordinary or great. and the
more the ba;ter.
That Is the belief Of Henry Exall. man
aver Of the great Lomo Alto farm Ia Tex
as ExalI II the owner OF Electric and
Palisades two famous stsiii0nS. Tie al
so has on his big farm over forty stand
ard bred mares and Il an authority on
horse breeding. In a paper recently pre-
pared for the Live Stock Association OK
Texas Col. E1al said bis reasons for the
belief expressed above were as follows
breeding has been almost totally
abandoned for the past four Year,. ana
n Il estimated that there are not az
many horses ~ the United States in isS3
as there we're IN 1890 BY about z9y0.wSi,
the decrease being prOportionately rnuen
larger In the high grades OF horses than
fn the cheaper and less desirable onFs.
Nothing but very HAN prices VIII
stimulate the people 90 start DTeedlns
asain, ard when they do start the
scarcely OF merchantable stock win be
intensified by the ntmbsr OF mares that
will le Withdrawn from ordinary use ana
put 20 breeding. IL vii be al least SIX
years after the breeding Industry - well
under way again before the colts result
Ing from such breeding viii be old
enough 20 be Ia general use.
I'm the meantime there VIII be a very
great scarcity OF horses ard correspond
II have received from Mr. L. Broad
brad. manager for many years Of the
great Woodbarn farm ia Kentucky, and
one Of the most correct and intelligent
breeders ia America. a statement giving
In detail the sales Of all trotting stock
made on that farm for the past thirty
years from 1855 TO 1896. Inclusive. This
statement shows that the prices OF horses
steadily advanced from isas 20 1870. and
prices ranging very low from 1873 10 1876,
1T further shows that prices then
steadily advanced until the climax of isso
10 isa3, when rapid dscline set IN. eul-
minatIng I'm the extremely low prices OF
1Ss and Iess For fear that I may oc-
cupy too much time / VIII simply give
the extremes OF Mr.. Isroafhead's figures.
'ffe states that In 1886 ssxty-eigbt head
OF horses were sold for an average OF xfs3.
There was steady Improvement Ia
prices uEtil 1870. when twenty-one head
were sold for an average Of fsH each.
There was then a gradual decline until
1876. when nfty-one head were sold for
an average OF sd The next rise began
tn ISL, when thirty-three head were sold
for an aVerass OF sos
"In 1880 thirty-nine head were sold for
an average OF f553.
In 1855 seventeen head were sold for
an average OF 81. SO.
''Iu isss forty-four head were sold for
On average of g. ssS
In 1880 the climax was reached. when
thlrty-four head were sold for an aver
age Of t.7es each. amounting TO the
round sum OF si2s.i3a A decline began
IN 1891. and In iss2 nineteen head were sold
for an average OF ,s12. In 1S5 thirteen
head were sold for an average OF 81 .sii.
in 1894 fifteen head were gold for an aver
age 81 500, since which time the Wood
burn farm has offered very few for sale.
Probably the mos interesting feature
Of this statement Is the remarkable aver
age price for which tho entire output OF
Rod If years. 80 head bringing the snug
sum az sst7,Sa. an average OF a9o each.
These ngures are worthy OF the most
thong htful consideration. What other
branch OF live stock business can show
OF yearsT
The great decline in prices in 1866
was In a large extent brought about by
the fact that during the prosperous times
when horses We're very high, thousands
OF parties without any practical knONi-
stga, rushed into the breeding business
using anything in the tine ~ stations and
mares that was even remotely related 20
nything That had trotted. paying no at
fengton 30 size. looks or sOundness
In great many Instances the stallions
end faarcs uTon so-calicd troiting farms
failed 60 produce more than or 3 per
cent Of horses that could BE made 10 so
~ ESQ of course this meant ruin and
Disaster whenever this character Of stock
was forced upon the market. a. intelligent
breeders would rot buy them and 70 she
general public they were % no more value
tian he ordinary horses OF the country.
sers that could not tFot and had very few
other desirable qualities very materially
hsipssd 20 inerva@s the number or horses
in the Intted States from about u.e1oeo
IN iSf6 30 about i6.0a 90 IN 1891 About
this time the country began - fee4 the
approach ef an Impending panie. money
hrFan 20 ~ aca7ee afd moHy parties who
had other business interests ~ protect
found ft necessary 20 crosse cat their horse
business - as to concentrate their funds
au1 accordingly consigned 1heir stock to
fhn auction markets
The decline ia prlc5 was preeipttated
and intensified hy the fact that thou
sands OF breeders al over the country.
Discouraged Al the outlook ard inglu-
eucett 90 saffa extent trN the example Or
others. unre.' sos,iFsly or IN ss's',e oas,''s
Their horses. regardless - condition or 1T
ness Tor sale. 80 the auction markets. As
~ one az thls time Was buying ereeding
sts-sk the majority of theas horses sod
sar rulnousiy Low prices ard the very pnh-
atshinR 90 these low prfces tended % Keep
up the panic and caused almost total
abandonment % the ho-re- Dressing In
Today the condition - abnormal and
cannot long remain As % -. to-wff, Goca
horses ready for use sre already scarce
and bring rensuN~rafiVe priets tn the
shlcf markets 81 the country. bot brood
mares and immature ycunE stock the
sources from which "a future supply -
understandable horses must ccrne. are
abandoned and almost without price.
will illustrate:
"At ! resent .ucfton sale ln New York
swe nlNes. s 81 ycsrs old. wcre sold for
s. SD. the dam - these TWO atitss heavy
tn faai. about 80 produce a fuh brother
o. sister ~ che tNe bringing these BAND
sssrne figures. was o~ere5 Tor sale. aai
a,egwfthstandinx the fast that che was
comparatively young mare. s1urt
handsome ard vel hr-t and that tac
sale VAS weN attended the pinful sum
of SiN was the best cffcr made Tor her.
T'his instance = fair example ~ tX-
asf4uE conditions, ara 10 shsuid te ap-
VarVnf go au that thev cnnno, last
with tie dawn - fSae brighter
future Tor thc horsc eu-inesa - ALREADY
g. sight The rrc~nt atlrs ia NeW YORK
f.eNinEton and ChtcaEo ekVe aEeFaxfsi
e most soahie the prizes realized IN fhs
same markers Tor tire sane ciars ~
sEock ore year aEo.
-'Euusgraa rETffss tg,s. are s-..vs buy
efs 81 alf sales n me tnltr8 S-Ases rese
emf fhe r@~~rt wlnrtug % tha graa trss
race ever trattea fE te~ ga we're :
Krara prlEe ~ s. rFgsrseurE. Esisssa-
rs aH American srottsEE wsre wslt E5xa
ar snrrcaa sssi irsesEus % the rarsBsy
ErawSnE harses fn Etl-ap~ This Is svf
s'eneest IS fha fact tea1 ~tthia ere rssst
gen teFs sfsa tE-~ ven rscAty teeS sres-