JUDGING LIVE STOCK.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1307, 9 December 1911, Page 6

JUDGING LIVE STOCK.

OLD AND NEW METHODS. A good deal has been hoard from tim*. to timo of the necessity for a 6el stand-, ard from which to judge stook, and tha following from an Australian paper is interesting as bearing on the subject:— "lias it not struck the constant attendant at pastoral or agricultural shows | how tho difference of opinion between tha judgo and tho onlookers has gradually, widened? Very few people do, as a rule, think over this matter, but it is a very important ono'for all tlfSt, and certainly, from an instructive point of view. Tho judgo is like tho headmaster of a school, ho is trying to lead his pupils to acquiro the same knowledge on a subject that ho possesses, and to educato tho youthful mind to observe and form opinions on matters that will bo of valuable assistance in any profession or pursuit ho may undertake after leaving school. The curriculum of a show ring is practically th« same as that of a school. For every experienced breeder that exhibits, there ar« a ecoro or.moro whoso knowledge of th* science of breeding is only perfunctory. or theoretical. Like many a conceited school boy he likes to parade his opinions before his fellows, until he is snarply pulled up by tho schoolmaster. It is exactly tho same on a show ground: a man brings along his exhibits, whether horses, cattle, or 6hccp, with the' preconceived opinion that they are invincible, but finds his notions shattered by tha i'udge's opinion, which is quite opposed to tis. If. he is a sensible man no accepts his defeat, and will interview the judgo . to find but whero his exhibits fail.

"There is, however, something to bs said for the. exhibitor who sees the. necessity, for breeding on "different • lines to what he formerly pursued, because tho demand for tho new order of things.had supplanted tho old order, yet ho knows that from a scientific point of view tho. old is the best, and if is this that influences the judgo. . . Tho hrocding cattle do not, as a rule, rive much trou-' ble to judges, Tho Shorthorn, Hereford, Devon, and Polled Angus have not altered much during tho past 50 years, except in tho thickness of tho coat, and tho only difference in the latter lies in the increase of value of the hide, Tho improvements have been mainly in conformation' of tho carcass, colour, and milking quality, and the Shorthorn has lent itself most readily to these threo factors. , Neither of th« other three have approached the Shorthorn in the milking quality. Dairy cattle have undergone such great changes during 'the. past half-century that one judge for all is 'only resorted to when no others are obtainable. In Australia the judges .have to deal with, the h-pea known, as dual;pprpose, such as the milk-' mg Shorthorn, red-polled, and Ayrshire, although the Holstein and Dutch belted also belong to tho class, but tho last two and red-polled are the eiception and not. tho rule of the dual-purpose breeds. Of tho other milking breeds tho Jersey is easily first. Of late years there has como into vogue such a thing as 'fashionable colours' in both Jerseys and Ayrshire*, and it is this that has given 'the old stylo of judge 9omo trouble. Thev rightly hold that given every other quality to be as desired, the colour is a minor quantit)-, unless it is out of the ordinary, such, as a brindle or black. Thus where a difference of opinion exists between ju<jgo and the on-lookcr, ho is not to be condemned for a question of 'fashion' oniy. "With tho judging of sheep crops* up such a variety of questions that au allround judge that will give all-round satisfaction is not oven a rara avis; he is an impossibility. Every decade sees a new brood or a new variety, and to give tho number of broods, typos, and sub-typea wonld only bo guesswork. "As things- stand all points to the need of schools for judges, such as wo so© in connection with the Sheep-breeders' As. sanation show, at which the pupils from [lie -technical College not only attend to hold the sheep for the judges and receive instruction, but also have a judging competition in which to prove their proficiency. At some country shows wo spa classes for youths in judging stock, and this sort of thing should bo made a greater feature at all shows, seeing that Hie avowed object of agricultural societies is educational, thongh in reality the result ms not as much bo as if should la by any means."