ON THE LAND.

Northern Advocate, 21 August 1924, Page 7

ON THE LAND.

J i';:i;11i]:s:<: STOCK ureedsxo. I I ; •! START or THE M()VEIVENT , . — I In < onnection with the attention i that is being bestowed upon the important subject of heredity in cattle and sheep, winch finds expression in i the domain of pedigree building, it I may be noted that the subject is bv i ■.? | no means as new as may be 'thought by many of those interested therein j (says a wiifer in the "Tarannki j News"). It is worthy of note that j the start of this movement dates back to the middle of the eighteenth century, when ihe pioneer of what is known as animal husbandry, a Leicestershire tanner, Mr Robert Bakewell, oi Dish lev, began the momentous work of improving the cattle and sheep of the country, the result of which was to give the Motherland the preeminent position which is occupied to the present day. He established the fundamental truth, thoroughly I confirmed and elaborated by others '

since, that type, symmetry, quality and utility, as well as special characteristics, could be reproduced by ski!- j ful selection and mating of parent stock. Whether or not lie was the : i first to recognise the principle of I heredity in animal breeding, he. was ■' certainly the first to put those priii- | ciples into practice, and laid the j foundation upon which has been raised the world-wide structure of pedigree stock breeding of the present time. What this great revolution in animal culture has meant sis a factor in the prosperity of the dairy and wool industries of the Dominions is fairly well recognised. Although Bakeweil's initial efforts were concentrated ! on long-horn cattle, which have long j since ceased to fill a place of promin- ' ence in the economy of the farms in i the Old Country, that fact does not | detract from the value of his initial j labours, which were necessarily ex- f

tensive by reason of tlie scarcity of choice of foundation material, a handicap that is not suffered by pre sent-day breeders. The main point to be noted is that he started from zero and gradually accomplished his end by perseverance and experience las the work proceeded. It is that I point that may well be impressed 011 the sheep and cattle breeders of Xew Zealand, for they, too, have it in their power to improve their flocks and. herds out of all recognition by following the most approved methods of culling and mating. Bakewell's example was followed a decade or two later by Ellman, of Glynde, wlio evolved t'he modern Southdown. Then came others who specialised in various breeds, so that at the close of the eighteenth century there appears to have been remarkable activity throughout the Homeland in creating order out of chaos in the do- ! main of stock-breeding. It has been J claimed, and with some justice, bv j those who understand and appreciate j the value of this work of pedigree j building, that the pioneers of t'he 1 movement are entitled to rank with

the ventors and commercial ! pioneers in other spheres of activity. | Judging by the increasing interest ' that dairy farmers in the Dominion are evincing in the process of evolving t'lie best paying types of milking herds, it may he claimed that they are ' in 110 way less enterprising or re- ! sourceful than their predecessors of the eighteenth century in the Mother- j land. Having proved beyond all re- ' futation that pedigree stock pay. and ' pay far and away better than non- j descript animals, there is every in- j i ducement to bring- the process to is 1 j near perfection as possible, always ; bearing in mind the necessity for se- ; j curing type, symmetry, constitution, j qualify vt.'d utility. A system that i lias stood the test of two centuries ( and proved financially and ecOnonii- ' callus i-ound, should be good enougii f for every fanner to adopt. While there will always lie some special animals which will stand out as j phenomenally superior to others, y.-c j there is no less the general prin- j eiple that it pays to keep on the process of improvement, and it is the ! practical recognition of that fa''t • uluch a.fi;>n!.s much satisfaction, be- j cause it means a forward move on the road to prosperity. J