The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1912-05-30
NEW ERA IN HORSE
RAISING
Draft Horses to Have
Big Place in Breeding
"Ploneero Probably only Percheron
Stallion in County and Owned by
G. ). Benson of SkOWhegan Will
Mean Much to Farmers

A new era in horse raising has be-
gun in Somerset County and especially
in Skowhegan. The time for raising
small horses is about over with as
compared with the heavy draft horses.
The western horses will soon be elimi-
mated from this territory and the farm
ers will raise their own horses to work
on their farms getting much better
stock and at a more reasonable price.
/ One of the horses that will mean
much to the people in this vicinity
and will assure the best of stock is
Pioneer" probably the only percheron
stallion in the county. He is beauty
i and has a makeup that wins the pride
of all horsemen. He is owned by G.
S. Benson of North street, Skowhegan.
He was foaled April 30, 1905 and
stands 1913 hands and is coal black
with a star in his forehead. He
weighs 1900 pounds and was bred by
Z. s. Akin of Auburn, n. Y. He was
sired by Perche BOISE, dam Almandine
! 7498. He was formerly owned by the
Good Will Farm Association.
1t is this kind of stock that the
farmers are now going to breed and it
is with pleasure that the horsemen
welcome this stallion into Skowhegan.
It is admitted that it would be better
to have good pure stock for the mother
of colt with the sire of Pioneer but
an ordinary mare that it used on the
farm bred to this stallion will bring
results that will be far above the
western horses that are imported into
Maine The farmers are beginning
to realize it and at present there are
a number of colts being raised in his
vicinity of this heavy breed.
Among other reasons why the heavy
draft horses are being bred at present
is that the lighter horses that have
been principally used for driving pur
poses are being supplanted by auto
mobiles. 1t is estimated that there
are now in this county about 500 au
tomobiles of various kinds. This
means that that number Of horses have
been eliminated on account of this
mode of travelling. The horsemen
have found that light horses do not
have the sale that they once had and
it Is the draft horses that they deal in
for the most part.
Yet there are some of the best trot-
ting horses being bred in the county
and only the best are being raised.
Skowhegan has some that have and
will show speed. 1t will perhaps be
of interest to read of the horses At
DR.. E. H. Stevens summer home on
Bloomfield avenue. Here will be the
center of the finest bred horses in
Somerset county this summer. With
the arrival of some colts that are ex-
pected within a short time he will be
able to match anything in the State.
He now has Is head at the home.
have not yet appeared on the track in
any contest, but the local horsemen in
sist that they will be heard from.
Some of his string are of the Stirling
stock, Simon Kenton, Pilot Nelson,
others of equally good blood appear
in the pedigrees. The Doctor will
have pair of drivers, one six and
the other seven, by Stirling out of a
dam by Fairview, that will be the class
of the town. He has a five year-old
bay horse by Pilot Nelson out of
Prairie Lilly 211 that lends admira-
ton, as also four year-old bay horse
out of Prairie Lilly by Col. Belmont
and to match him another four year
old by Bell Boy. A brown horse by
Erlong, out of dam by Fairyiew, ard
bay filly by Bell Boy make up the
three year-old class. The only two
year-old is a brown horse by David
Harum out of mare by DR.. Myron.
For speed on both sides of the house
bay horse that is only yearling by
Simon Kenton out of Prairie Lilly east
ly stands first, the sire having a rec
ord of 2.10 IA and the dam 2.11. At
the home is a number of draft horses,
including two very promising young
percherons by Pioneer.