Show chort norm or of the at the february meeting of tie the shorthorn short horn breeders bleeders bre eders held in kansas kansa 3 city lion hon S F lockridge of 0 green eastle indiana contributed a paper in n which he said in part now it Is admitted I 1 bellevo believe that in n and in iii breeding has a tendency to reduce the size to refine the form generally and to increase the disposition toward early maturity how long this practice can call be followed without impairing the tha useful qualities in tho the anlin animal in al Is a question not easily answered the ceilings callings and other early breeders bleeders bre eders df at short horns bred from very ca close ose connections without apparent injury to their cattle and bakewell with the longhorns long l horns lorns probably to a greater ox ex tent than any other breeder a ot f his day or since As intimated above however the character of 0 the cattle of 0 that early period justified his practice to an extent that would not be ibe ebe at this late day anen short horns have reached the highest degree of le it seems compatible with I 1 good constitution and general usefulness in tact fact I 1 think most of you will agree with the opinion that in 1 n some eoina cases the limit has been exceeded elcee ded and alli that there are short horns today to day that thai show the effects of too close breeding in an excessive fineness of at bone lack or of scale and indication of at delicacy throughout tho the whole animal it la 13 evident that animals ot of this character can not be depended upon to produce a healthy and robust progeny it this Is true Is it not time to call a halt and as practical common sense men having the best interests ot of the breed at heart advise a return to safer methods and a more intelligent and liberal selection of material for or use usa in the herd the most successful breeders bleeders bre eders of if the past did not hesitate when the occasion demanded to introduce new blood into their herds now the question we should ask ash ourselves to today day Is are we exercising a degree of independence in our or are we allowing the preference tor for this or that line or family to influence us against our better judgment and common sense in selecting a sire should we not choose him because he possesses in a superior degree the qualities that we desire to secure in the progeny rather than ha be influenced altogether by the tact fact that he Is ot of a particular strain of blood that happens at the time to be ot of the th prevailing fashion although tough alf he may bo be deficient in individual qualities in other words shall we select a sire for no other reason than that his alcea ancestors were famous in the hands of 0 a nan man who had the genius to make and keep them so BO while he lived when possibly their descendants la in other hands have not maintained the family reputation for that Is the sum and substance of the whole matter it 1 Is unfortunate I think that too many breeders bleeders bre eders continue to worship at the tha shrine at 0 their early love so long after the source of inspiration has lost its power the successful breeder of the future W will in my humble judgment be a farni 11 rm believer la in the value ol of pedigree but bul he will insist that it be accompanied by unquestionable proof that the characteristics acte of the ancestors were such as to insure the perpetuation of the tha good qualities in the offspring ile ha will not at refuse to introduce into the herd sires bred from close affinities provided they possess in art an unqualified degree the qualities already referred to but he will resolutely reject oil all that do not measure up to that standard on the other hand I 1 believe that the tha breeder of the future will not be ba hampered by the tact fact that the material he selects is not in line bred but that he ha will unhesitatingly make use of miscellaneously bred animals always conditioned upon the tact fact however that the converging strains are from the herds of men known and acknowledged to have been distinguished and reputable as breeders bleeders bre eders in their several ways and in so BO doing he will but follow the tha precedents left him by the tha greatest breeders bleeders bre eders of the past |