Camas Prairie chronicle. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1901-1917, 1907-03-22

rails tract. / take it there is not enough
argument in favor of the trotter, tn,
thoroughbred or the saddle horse I,
justify spending any time on them
This leaves our field open to the coaches
and the draft breeds.
1t has been said that next to hand
some woman comes fine horse, and ]
have known some men SO extremely
'horsey" that they reversed this order
But it is fact that breedy, nervy
glossy coated, high stepping coach horse
is indeed thing of beauty and possibly
a joy forever.
CoAcHERs ARE UNPRoFITABLE
While the coacher is a tempting horse
to breed to, yet it is now conceded back
in the breeding states, even where thew
have well fenced blue grass pastures,
that not one farmer in so is adapted to
successfully raise coachers. The diff
culties, in the main, are:
>First.-In not having the proper
mares to breed to.
Second.-If you succeed in getting a
good individual colt there is difficulty
in maturing him free from blemishes.
Being high spirited and rather light in
the bone, they are liable to contract
curbs, spavins and splints while run
ming in the pasture and a blemished
coacher will only sell for plug horse
price. Then if the farmer succeeds in
escaping all these evils and really lands
fine coacher at four years old, the
question is, how is he to get the long
price such animals often sell for in the
eastern markets? The coach horse
must be properly broken and few
know how to break coacher. 1t takes
time and the busy farmer has no time
to spare, and few farmers would use the
time if they had it. Then to bring the
best price they must be well mated -.
Size, style, action and temper must be
taken into consideration and the aver
age farmer cannot do this. In addition
the coacher must be city broke. Only
the professional horsemen can do these
things and the usual result is that the
farmer must sell his coacher for a slight
advance over the price of an ordinary
road horse and the professional horse
man, who fits the animal for the buyer,
gets the cream of the transaction.
The importers furnish the most con-
elusive evidence of what the breeders
are doing. They import the horses for
which there is the greatest demand.
Twenty years ago probably so per cent
Of the imported horses were coachers.
Today not to exceed five per cent be-
longing to this breed.
DRAFT HORSES THE BEST
In my opinion draft horses are by all
odds the best for us to raise. We
should breed the kind of horses that
will answer two purposes-to sell and to
work. "A great many farmers make a
mistake right here, in my estimation,
and reverse this order, raising their
horses first to work and then to sell.
They want to work the animals for
about ten years and then they think
it strange that they cannot dispose of
the animals.
The great majority of farmers, who
have had no experience in raising and
selling the heavy draft horses, will tell
you that the general purpose horse of
about 400 pounds is the best horse to
breed, but they only consider him as a
work horse. 1t is true that these horses
are handy, quick and perhaps better for
all purposes. The heavy horse, how
ever, is Ii he the sheep that is good for
both mutton and wool. This horse
gives you two strings to your bow, for
ne will both sell and work. To own
heavy horse is equivalent to having
money in the bank.
PURE BREEDS THE BEST
When we come to consider size the
question is raised Does it pay to
breed pure bred horses? think it
does, but instead of giving you my
which might not be very con-
vincing, l wish to read a few lines on
this subject which were delivered by a
man who ought to know-Professor w.
]. Kennedy, dean of the animal husband
ry department of the Iowa State Farm
ers' institute Mr.. Kennedy said in
part:
SIN breeding draft horses too much
cannot be given to the ques-
ton of weight. At all of the leading
draft horse markets horse flesh sells
at the rate of % cents per pound for
each additional pound from 1900 to 1900
pounds; for 30 cents per pound from
1900 to 20OO pounds; for $l.OO a pound
from 1000 to 22OO pounds, and from 50. 90
to $3.50 per pound from 22OO pounds up-
wards, providing of course, that the
horse is sound, well made and desirable
in every other respect. Thus the heavy
oaes are the kind we should all aim to
produce, because at best we will get
plenty of the lighter ones to meet the
demands for the same.
''While a good horse can never be Of a
bad color, still some colors, such as the