Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1902-06-12
~ z 5E.L!EzlY

we 10 not uttu registered culLlt IDT
the ordinary stockyard, but the man
who starts with common cows and al
ways has a fine registered bull at the
head is getting something which is
pretty close to registered cattle This
is the secret Of maintaining a herd up
to a standard which Will make the an
imals as good for all practical pur-
poses as any in the market. Farmers
who raise beef cattle are not breeders,
but they must be peculiarly alive to
the methods observed by the best
breeders. They must recognize the fact
that a herd quickly degenerates if left
to itself. 4 very practical way to keep
the animals from degenerating is to see
that full blooded bulls head the flOcks.
A beef grower should have Il herd O
hand at all times large enough to war
rant the expense of keeping a fine bull
at the head. Cost what it will, such n
bull must be had, and if raised on the
farm it must meet all the requirements
Of the case Pure bred bulls must be
constantly added to the flock to prevent
degeneration through inbrceding. The
common cows obtained at a compara-
lively nominal cost will produce prog
enly that will partake of the character
istics of the sire sufficiently to make
them first class beef cattle.
Take even common scrub cows, with
absolutely nothing except hardness Of
constitution TO recommend them, and
breed them continuously to full blooded
bulls, and in the course of q few gcner-
ations how few of the scrub character
istics will there be left? They will be
bred out of them just as surely as the
good characteristics of full blOOded
stock will disappear under careless
methods of breeding within short
time. We need to breed for purer and
better stock, and if this is kept in view
we are pretty sure to raise the standard
Of the herd. Farmers are not required
to follow all the fine points which the
professional breeder observes, but it is
necessary that they should realize the
advantages Of full blOoded males at the
head of every herd. Money spent in
this way will be amply returned. A lit
tie additional wedding out of the poor
est COWS of the herd and the selection
of the best for further breeding will be
sufficient TO accomplish the desired end.
Wallace Simmons in American Guilt
vator.
The Blue Gray Steer.
One of ScOtland's famous products,
the blue gray steer, is to be "eXDeri-
mented on in this country, says The
Breeders Gazette. This characteristic
type Of beefmaker in the country
which produces the prime Scots" re-
suits from the cross of ShorthOrn and
Galloway blood, and as feeding and
killing proposition to convert neeps and
straw into beef and to dress out fine
carcass Of that beef which has made
Britain famous it knows no superior,
according to the great burden of disin-
terested evidence. This class of cross,
bred, sometimes the product also OF
the Angus-ShOrthOrn cross, has been
long known of on this side, but very
little bred or fed. 1t Is produced in its
best estate by using practically pure
bred animals on both sides, and there
has been small inducement to devote
pure breds to this purpose. No system
attic attempt has been made to provide
a demonstration Of the value OF the
union of the blood of these breeds in
this country until the present time,
when the Iowa experiment station
aided by the Union Stockyards com,
pany, Chicago, has taken the matter VI
in earnest and on so large a scale that
definite conclusions may be deduced
from the results.
OF Course, They're Wild.
The Maine Farmer says: "TwO three
year-old steers which were pastureG
last summer on Lees island by vii
liam Bowker of Pittsburg have become
completely wild and are ranging the
woods on the mainland in company
with a deer, having swum the channel
Gunners are out in search of them, as
1t is impossible to catch them"
We do not blame the cattle at all
What treatment they must have hat
that they would run wild at three
years old! We have raised many O
steer and heifer to that age and never
| had one that would not let us walk VI
to it in the pasture, and most of them
even threeyear-Old bulls, would come
| to us when we called them. But We
| always treated them gently unless
guilty of some misbehayiOr, handled
| them almost every day during the win
| ter, and even when we had been away
| from home for weeks or months they
knew us and seemed almost as pleased
| to see US as the ever faithful dog
When three-yearold cattle run wild il
| that way, they must have learned tC
| be afraid of men IN some way. Per
haps the fault was not with the own
err but with gunners and dogs that
| chased them earlier in the season.
American Cultivator.
Lucky Feeders.
When Texas meal fed cattle bring
| from SO to $G.25 per hundredweight, as
| they have been doing recently, it shows
that there is nothing the matter witt
| the demand. Texas feeders are highly
| satisfied with the results, and the only
regret Is that they did not have more
nerve and buy more feed last fall and
feed more cattle. A good many were
scared out of the notion of feeding be
cause meal and hulls were held at such
high figures Results, however, arc
showing that the men who fed are
making good profits, and the fellow
who didn't feed now wishes he had.
Smashing Records.
Some Galloway records have beer
smashed this season already. Secreta
ry Park states that on one day last
month he registered a total of eighty
seven pedigrees of calves for one breed
or which iS tba l1rrpSt rpgiStrat tiOT