The Globe-republican., 1900-07-12

the Shorthorn breed, at the meeting
of Shorthorn breeders held in Kansas
City. Feb 9Th and 7th- Superiority in
size over all other beef breeds is one
of the peculiar merits of the Short
horns One of the main purposes for
@hich pure beef herds of beef cattle
are maintained is to improve the size
and feeding quality of the common
cattle of the country The average
native scrub is fine enough in bone and
body to satisfy the most fastidious
packer, but he is a most Improbable
beast for the raiser or the feeder. No
breed will improve the size and feed
ing quality of the millions of native
scrubs SO quickly as the Shorthorn.
And while improving size and feed
ing quality he Will improve the milk
Ing quality OF the scrub in an equal
degree.
From my earliest experience when
I held a grade Shorthorn heifer calf
for my father at a local fair in West
ern Indiana forty years ago, to the
present time, 1 have been a close OBJ
server under widely different condi-
tlons of the effect Of the improved
breeds upon the native cattle. Dur
ing a considerable portion of this time
have been an extensive feeder of beef
cattle, handling all kinds impartially
under the same conditions, and with
out prejudice, except as created by my
experience in the feed lot. I was old
enough to observe the rapid improve
ment of our cattle in Western Indiana
by the use of registered and grade
ShorthOrnS. That Improvement con-
tinued until we were sending steers of
| the highest class to Eastern markets
That era of Improvement reached its
maximum nearly twenty years ago.
| During the same time I had an OPP
/ pOrtunity to observe the same process
| IN Central Illinois
No experienced range man, however,
| can doubt that the Shorthorn made
| far greater Improvement on the native
| Texas and Mexican cattle than could
| have been made by any other i'm
| proved breed. Those qualities In
| which they were most deficient were
| the ones in which the Shorthorn par
| tlcularly excelled all other breeds, SUI
| perlor size, width of back, depth of
| rib, fulness of ham and natural do
| clllty, and the power to transmit them
| in a marked degree Those desirable
| qualities were all implanted to some
| extent in our western herds before the
other beef breeds were introduced.
The Shorthorn has been the pioneer
and the great improver. There has
been marked deterioration in the
cattle of all sections in proportion as
the Shorthorns have been supplantd by
other breeds. There is scarcely a cat
tie raising section in the agricultural
states where the cattle are as good
as they were fifteen years ago. The
inferior quality Of the cattle that &C
to our public markets is matter OF
common observation. They show 3
motley mingling OF all strains Who
can doubt that if the raisers of cattle
had faithfully adhered to the Short
horns, continuing to use the best sires
they were able to procure, the result:
would have been far better.
But the farmer well the range
man began to imagine he wanted
rustler, an animal that could sur
| he he dGI1 in M
neglect. He did not then realize, as
he does now, that what he really need
ed was an animal that would give the
most liberal response in beef and mill
to the most liberal treatment, and thai
the breeder was the one who shoule
do the rustling' if he was to expec
the best results. Tried by the rigi6
law of ttthe survival of the fttest,
under range conditions, the pure bre6
Texas 1onghorn was immensely supe
rior to any breed ever imported.
must be apparent to every close OBJ
server that the ability to withstand
neglect and adverse cond> lions is te
some extent impaired we increase
the size of our live stock Extreme
size, whether in horses, hogs, OF cat
tie, requires better feed and attention
to preserve the growth and thrift O.
the animal, in order that it may reacl
the limit of it's development.
Beef production, in the natural evo
and more under farm conditions where
the farmer and feeder, and not the ami
NAL. must do the rustling- AS popu1a
ton increases, milk must play a mor'
and more important part in the econ
omics of beef production 1t does no
require the gift of prophesy to SCI
that the time is approaching when tn,
invaluable qualities combined in tn
Shorthorn in no other breed will
from force of necessity, be more AM
more in demand Then will the nob1
Shorthorn come to its own and TAX
its rightfu1 place far in advance of al
proven
One Many
The amateur poultry raiser frequent
| " makes the mistake of trying to keel