Evening journal., 1915-04-07
Shortage
Of DRAUCHT Horses
Henry Wallace Says the
European War is Drain
ing America
FRENCH BREEDS
ALSO CHECKED

Now that buyers for the European
armies have all but stopped their
heavy purchases of cavalry mounts
and are shipping away artillery and
wagon horses almost exclusively, il
is the draueht horse breeders turn to
burn red fire and sound The alarm
over a possible future shortage of big
horses in the United States. rhe cav
airy division has heretofore mOnOpo-
lized the headlines and the fireworks.
but with Uncle Sam and several ltu-
ropoan nations getting all the re-
mounts they want at Jbout the cost
of production, the scare is being trans
ierred to thL camp of the percherOn,
Belgian Shire and Clydcadale breed
ers. Wallacc's Farmer, a western
Ofaught horse Gaper. says
America is being drained of horses.
Hundreds and thousands are being
shipped across the water for use in
the war. We shall not get any pure
bred horses from Europe for good
many years 10 come. The Belgian
AANA 80 ANfANN "a UItdAN lN |AAAA-
cron country has not bcIn touched
so far as we know jut the demard for
horses in the French army viii clean
up the supply"
That American breeders will have
to develop the American draught
horses to meet the future demands Of
the market is the opinion OF the eii-
tor, Henry Wallace president Of the
third National Conservation Congress.
1t is a singular fact and a sad COM
mcntary on existing conditions IN the
great draught morse industry of the
United States that at present il would
puzzle the average horseman to name
half dozen cOnspicuously successful
breeders of draUghters in this country
Most of the so-called breeders of
Percherons, Belgians and Shires arc
really only importers and dealers
They have made a business OF going
over to Europe every year and bring
| ing back a lot of stations, with per
haps a few mares. TO fatten up and
sell to farmers. Such American bred
horses as they sell are for the most
part picked up here and there as
yearlings or weanlings and fed foI
/ AAt Eh0N AAhE VI AAN MAJ h'As
] Comparatively little attention is
/ paid to pedigree so long as the ami.
mails can pass muster as being pure
bred" Among runners, trOttors, hack.
neys and most Of the other breeds OF
] lights horses there are celebrated
sires and great producing dams whose
names in pedigree constitute It's
value. but what hOrsemen can name
the great sires and dams of the Perch
eron Belgian and Shire breeds il
! America today or during the last 2
years. There are some highly adver
tised horses to be sure. but what hav
they done as sires to distinguish then
from numerous other stations?
Clydesdale breeders appear to b
about the only ones in the draugh
horse industry who have developed
any really great sires and dams ant
doubled up the blood of these excep
tiOnal animals in way TO fix thei
superior points and establish valua
BILE strains and families within tn,
breed. In Scotland. the home of th'
! Clydesdales. there have been individ
uals so highly priced for their ances
itry and their stock getting qualities
that seemingly fabulous prices wer'
paid for them. one stallion havinl
sold for something like $4,000 undei
the hammer. while another. BarOni
Pride, was so great a sire that a yer.
large percentage of the best Clydes
dales now living can be traced to him
In this country some of the earl.
breeders of Clydesdales producel
horses that were good enough to g
back to Scotland and win there ant
as compared with other breeders q
draught horses. they are still turnin
out more than their share of priz
winners in the open classes at th
leading shows. Several wealthy east
ern amateurs are. indeed. breedin
= Clydesdales on scientific principles
They have imported many noted mare
of prize winning ancestry and on
of them, Robert A. Fairbairn. OF West
field. n. j.. had the satisfaction las
year Of selling a yearling colt of hi
own breeding for $1,000.
Though PercherOns far outnumbe
all other draught horses in Americ
combined, their breeding is on no sue
: basis as that Of the Clydesdales. an
this applies to France as well as th
United States. Experts say that n
b one can take the PercherOn stud boo
! and point out the great sires an
dams through which the breed hs
; been developed to its highest exec
: lence, because there is no Baron
, Pride. no Baron o. Bouchlyvie. n
. Dunure Ideal and no Harvietoun Bai
/ oness among the thousands register
ed The average PercherOn pedigre
is little more than a string of name
American importers and breeders hav
time and again brought over the chan
piOn stations of the great Frenc
, shows. but for some reason none {
them has ever left his mark on th
breed in America.
With further impOrtations cut OF
! probably for years TO come. there
going to be a golden opportunity fo
, American breeders to develop Amer
/ can Percherons and Beleians if the
! Twill take a leaf from the Clydesdal
, rbreeders' notebooks and aim 10 bull
i up some winning strains on the basi
of performance i'm the show ring.
! they fail to improve on their preseI
methods the future may witness th
, decadence of these breeds.