The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-08-04
BREEDING BEEF BREEDS
PERTINENT HINTS TO SEEKERS
AFTER REFORMATION

General Run of Cattle Not So Good
as Il Dozen Years Ago-Dairy In
terest ana Lowering of Beef
Grades-Grow Only Good Cattle
Now Prevailing.
If the number of gu ries forthcoming ron
the Northwest as to the best methods of
breeding beef cattle affoi ds a true il dex %
the general interest prevailing in colrectit
with the subject there must socn r>sult not
only an increase in the numb rs raisel but
improvement in quality wei. The
fact that the prices of c@tt,e are row, nd
have been for some TIM past, very high
and that the ranges OF TIE MOI thwest are
gradually breaking up into smaller areas by
the advance of population and etlement
upon the La ds cannot fail to enlarge e
opportunities of smaller farmers in the d.
rection of live stock growing and feed ng.
But the existing interest VII, if the best ad-
vice is followed, have the usual desr>d e.
feet of introducing better blood everywhere,
and herein lies the bsntfi, that must accrue
to the farmer and the pub ic as vel.
Secure the best" is the stersotypod a sSer
to every inquiry directed to any source OF
information whose advice is worth he, ding.
The Iowa Homestead IS one of t-ese
sources. In reply t. the query. '.Wha of he
future in the breeding OF pure bed catt e
of the beef type" that Journal says:
future In FPy We can am only say mot mot what n
light of present AID past conditions, W. be
heve it viii be- # we Gu actual
prophesy, We could wear diamonds. Cattle
of tie beef producing states are ve:y con
siderably below the -rnal in p)nt OF III
bers The great mass OF Western cattle are
n n nrN- nv Won han orI
in point of quality. Every obs rvant man
whose calling and taste keep h m IN lou h
with the cattle interests, knows that cur cat
tie stock is not what it should be considering
the length of time we have been engage Ia
the work of improvement and having Eari
for the number of cltt.e ne alton during
which COED breeding stock has BEN available
to cattle growers. We know there are rea o S
that account for the undi5puted fact that the
1t was a dozen years ag--reaSons that
count Tor, but do not j1stf y 1t. a numb r
Of years of depression IN the cattle irdu try
discouraged both breeders and growers as a
class and led to neglect and retrogres ;ion
in quality. They did not quit breeding nj
growing entirely, perhaps, put they became
careless and quit breeding wisely. Their
hearts were not in the work, as on,'s heart
must be in order to SECURE the best results.
reason Tor going out OF the bus ness bG' it
was no excuse for becoming careless. In ad-
dition to the fact that anything that is, VIZ
doing at all is worth doing well, the :
preston rather furnished a motive for in
creased care for when things are boom ng
and an industry is on the top wave, aim st
any method will enable one to make moaey
out of it, but when it is down, then orly
the best and most careful nagement Ii
render it profitable. The rise of the d =. r.
industry, too, has had its share in low ri. 6
the grade of ca. tie from beef st nd mt.
The two purposes fer which cattle are grown
are, in great measure, opposed TO ca h
other, and just to the extent that ex 81 en- re
in one direction is attained, to that extent
the other is sacrificed In thc Sc sectors of
the West. therefore where there has h
great dairy progress. beef form and beef ex-
celence have suffered in cons equence.
AS depression in the cattle industry discour-
aged those in it, the number of really ccra-
pal atively limited. Ger an heroic ou!s hos
hearts were in the work hung 10 the wi VS.
and kept up their ideals to a high s,anca d,
and with the revival of Interest in cattle, they
are beginning to reap their reward. A good
many fell by the waysde, dropping out en-
tirely, while many more plodded along in
half-hear;ed way, without zsal and with u.
ambition, doing not nearly as we'll as they
knew. The last made the most serious mis-
take of any. They either exp c:ed revival;
have quit the business; if they did, they
should have prepared for it by keeping up ami
come, and the public is becoming a good
deal more critical about the beef it eat. The
Eastern and export demand for ca tie r.
Quires good cattle to meet it, and Westfrn
towns and cities have also rais5d their stand
ard.
Many feeders during the pas. year have
had a severe practical lesson teaching ths
great truth that "a silk purse caEnot be m d
out of sows ear and that highprcsd
beef cannot be made out of ill-bred cat lie,
even if the feeder should steal the corn To
make it. This fact is trickling down t. the
cattle grower, who is finding that he canno.
feed nor sell scrub stock pIoftably. G adu-
ally will come TO him the conviction tina. IL
he is going to grow cattle at ALL he must
grow good ones, and then he VIII lo5k to the
breeder for good breeding stack and the
breeder will have his innings. Nor will the
innings be brief, in cur judgment. Not only
is the stock of cattle low, which implies that
a number of years must elapse before the
supplies become abundant again, but the de-
mard for quality will never be reclde1 from
by the public. Instead of this it Is likely
to become still more eXacdng. The mand
upon the breeder for good breed ng cattle is
therefore likely to be continuous This indi-
Gates what in our judgment will be the I'd
ture of cattle breeding.
The man, whether growing cattle for beef,
or engaged in the more difficult work of p O.
ducing fine specimens of beef breeds, who
will breed and feed well, selsc ing bre ding
stock carefully in accordance wi h the
best standards, keeping his weathe- eye
upon pedgrees, but giving them due wsi?ht
ard no more, and who will gradually work
his herd into the best possible shape so tat
every pound of feed will tell in making fl sh
that will show to the best advantage, ami
that will kill and dress to the highest profit,
will find the cattle industry remunerative.
The man, however, who thinks that he can
handle scrubs in the breeding he'd, en-
though they have pedigTees long as the
moral law. or who tries to feed scrubs of the
other kind for market will, in tie fare cf the
present and probable future demand, fall ig-
nominiousy.
THE MERINO SHEEP.