SOME OF THE EIGHT SORT.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 2015, 9 August 1880, Page 3

SOME OF THE EIGHT SORT.

By Sinead. From time to time the present writer has had occasion to chronicle the advent to Canterbury of high-class stock of various kinds. This has always been, for obvious reasons, a very pleasant task, but never more so than on the present occasion. By the last trip of the To Anau from Melbourne arrived a lot of stud cattle, consigned to Messrs Matson and Co., while the Loch Awe brought a very high class Clydesdale stallion from Scotland to the order of Mr B. Wilkin. in accordance with your instructions I interviewed their respective owners, both of whom most kindly volunteered to drive me out on a visit of inspection, the results of which I now proceed to lay before your readers.

To comenoe with the cattle. In company with Mr J. T. Matson and another gentleman, who is certainly one of tho best judges of stock in Canterbury, we drove out to Mr Matson’s residence on the Papanui road, whore the cattle are now located. Some particulars of these have already appeared in the columns of the daily papers, and from these your readers will have learnt that they are from the celebrated herd of Messrs Robertson Bros , of Oolac, Victoria. These gentlemen are well known as the best breeders of prize cattle in Australia, but as many of our breeders may not be aware of the magnitude of their operations, or the extraordinary purity of their stock, a few particulars in this connection will not perhaps bs considered out of place when writing of the high class shipment under notice, the more so as in some of the particulars I am about to give allusion will be made to relatives of some of those at present running in Mr Matson’s paddocks. The Messrs Robertson hold an annual sale at Oolac, and as the owners of this estate are known far and near to spare no expense in the “ selection of the fittest,” this sale is attended by breeders from all parts of Australia and, I may add, Now Zealand, in quest of blood which is not to be excelled in England, and is certainly not obtainable elsewhere in the colonies. Every year the Messrs Robertson issue a wonderfully well got up priced catalogue at the conclusion of the sale. This little volume is invaluable to breeders, inasmuch as it is not only a sort of

little herd book in itself, but in addition to giving the full particulars of sale, it details the averages of the prices obtained for the progeny of the various stud celebrities of the estate, both male and female. Mr James, who is, I believe, stud master at (Mac, and ucder whose care the cattle came down, has been good enough to lend me the price catalogue for 1878. From this I learn that at that sale the total amount realised was £25,811 2s. The average of the shorthorn bulls was £792 15s, that of the shorthorn heifers £llO2 10s, and that of the Hereford heifers £ll7 9s 4d. The analysis informs us that the stock of Oxford Cherry Duke at the sale under notice topped the market. The prices are so high that they are deserving of quotation—the more so as in the present shipment there are several scions of this bull. The average of this sire’s bulls was £1470, and that of the heifers £I6BO. This bull is the sire of a heap of noted animals, amongst whom is the 24h Duke of Derrimut, an Australian star sire, and who realised at the sale under notice 2450 guineas, which is the highest price ever realised for a shorthorn in the Australian colonies. It will thus be seen that the importation certainly deserves the allusion which appears at the heading of this article, and he would bo a hypercritical judge indeed who could differ from me when 1 say that the six animals I am about to describe are not “somo of the right sort.” The first led out for our inspection was Oxford Duke of Cambridge the 2nd. He is now three yeare old, having been calved in April, 1877. This bull (who is by the 25th Duke of Oxford, bred by hie Grace the Duke of Devonshire) was purchased by the Messrs Robertson for 1000 guineas, and is the sire of 31st Duchess of Derrimut, a first prizstakor in her class at the National Agricultural Society’s Show, 1879. To those who follow breeding in England it will be unnecessary to say that the Oxford blood is most popular there, and it may he added that the average of the Oxford tribe at the Duke of Devonshire’s sale in 1878 was £1787 12s 6.1 for cows and heifers, and £1333 10s for bulls. The dam of the bull under notice, Richmond Rose, was purchased by Messrs Robertson Bros, for 700 guineas in 1878, and comes of the Bates blood, always so popular among English breeders. Oxford Duke of Cambridge himself in a beautiful lengthy bull, standing very close to the ground. His color is a rich roan. Ho handles well, and is evidently of a grand constitution. He is very good behind, much more so than he at first appears, from the fact that his tail is badly set on, almost the only flaw in a grand animal. I may here state that he as well as his shipmates were to have been sold shortly after their arrival, but very wisely, acting under the advice of Mr Matson, the Messrs Robertson have decided to postpone the sale until the Metropolitan Show in November. This will not only give the cattle time to recuperate, but what is more to the purpose the date selected for the sale will afford breeders from all parts of New Zealand an opportunity of inspecting, if not purchasing, animals which may bo pronounced models of shorthorns. And this reminds me that, ■hoold they be shown on November 9th, they will in one respect be at a considerable disadvantage as compared with the majority of their opponents, imsmuch as they will have to compete in their reapeotivo classes with animals of more mature age. The other bull—the 22ud Duke of Derrimut —is a nice robust looking roan,

with a good masculine head, and though even now in low condition, has much improved , since his arrival. He is a very short legged , lengthy bull, with a rare back and loins, and , a skin like silk. He is not quite so good ! behind the shoulder as Oxford Duke of Cambridge, and has the same defect in the sotting on of the tail, but I think an improvement in condition will work wonders in his appearance, and when ho makes his entry into the ring he will find almost as many admirers as his neighbour above described, to whom by the way he is related, his sire being a halfbrother of Oxford Duke of Cambridge. Both those bulls are sires of prize takers in Victoria and tho Duke of Derrimut is a son of the Oxford Cherry Duke alluded to above, and who was purchased by the Messrs Robertson for 2500 guineas. Another descendant of Oxford Cherry Duke, on the dam’s side, was next led out for our inspection. This was the 28th Duchess of Derrimut, calved June, 1878, and who will, of course, be in the three-year-old class at the coming show. Apart from her breeding she is a very symmetrical heifer, and shows a lot of quality and a grand constitution, she was served shortly before coming away by Woatherby Winsome the 2nd. This heifer is by that noted sire, Geneva’s Karl, whose dam Matilda tho Seventh, is full sister to Matilda the Ninth, for whom Mr S. Gardiner gave 1250 guineas at tho Oolac sale of 1876. A red heifer, the 31st Duchess of Derrimut, came next under inspection. She too is a descendant of Oxford Cherry Duke, and is got by Oxford Duke of Cambridge the 2nd, tho bull first interviewed. If this be a sample of his stock, all I can say is that there will be a considerable difference in his price if this certificate of his abilities should be passed first into the ring. .All our best judges’, I am given to understand, pronounce her to be the pick of the basket, and «s she took first prize at the last Victorian Show in what is called tho “ baby class,” it is to be presumed that she possesses no ordinary amount of

quality. She has a coat like silk, and is, perhaps, in the best condition of any of the shipment. A judge of cattle seeing this heifer anywhere could make no mistake as to her being of patrician lineage, but in many respects I like her neighbor, the Flower of Derrimut tho 2nd, a roan heifer of about the same age, by Oxford Cherry Duke, dam Genova’s Flower, nearly as well. The two, to anticipate the language I have no doubt Mr Matson will use when they come under the hammer, are "a pair of plums,” and point for point there can be little question that the red heifer would have the advantage of the roan. The judge who accompanied us fell quite in love with the latter, who, he thinks, would make a more constant breeder than the general favorite, and whose appearance and constitution he vai equally charmed with. The Countess of Alvie, tbo last on tho list, was not so thriving looking as the others, and was probably ailing from the effects of her voyage. She rather suffered by comparison with those that had gone before, and without disparagement to this highly-bred lady (who is by Oxford Cherry Duke), I think she has equals, in appearance at any rate, in this country. She is, however, a nice useful-looking heifer, and the fact of her having been served by Oxford, Duke of Cambridge the Second, in addition to his high-class lineage, will no doubt add materially to hor value. Mr James, to whom I am indebted for a good deal of the information given above, informs me that none of the shipment have been what he calls ■* coddled,” the heifers having been, until their arrival here, running out. He also tolls me a fact I have no doubt Mr Matson will call to tho notice of his auditory when these animals come under the hammer in November—namely, that the Messrs Robertson, at their annual sales, always guarantee the breeding qualities of their heifers. In only one case has there been one returned, which, breeding afterwards, greatly disappointed the first buyer. Apart from the handicapping before alluded to, I understand that the most formidable opponents the lot under notice are likely to meet with at the forthcoming show are those of Mr J. F. Hitching. The majority of these, however, come from the same herd, and should, as I anticipate it will, the final issue lie between them, it will be interesting to the Oolac proprietors to learn the views taken by Now Zealand judges of tho progeny of their respective stock. At any rate should Mr Matson decide to exhibit these animals in November, an unusual amount of interest will bo attached to the cattle pens, and assuming, which I for one beg to doubt, that wo-have as good cattle in this part of the world, L offer with some diffidence the following suggestions from one of the best judges in England, to intending purchasers in November :

“ The use of hired bulls from the headquarters of any one of the distinct groups or ‘ bouses ’ of shorthorns, in herds related by consanguinity or typo to the group or ‘house’ from which selection is made, is often excellent policy. It tends to raise sale averages by the impression it produces upon the minds of partisans of the‘house;’ but wa don’t mean that; wo mean that it is good policy as regards breeding for good animals, without referonca to pecuniary results, inasmuch as you may generally get from headquarters, say Warlaby for example, the concentrated essence of what you want, and although a Warlaby bull may not be, as an animal, better than a bull of less distinct breeding, the chances are that having been bred through many generations from animals of one type and one kindred, as a sire he has a more powerful influence than a bull of more diversified ancestry. The great mistake commonly made is that when a costly bull is hired, the hirer thinks ho must put him indiscriminately to every cow about the place. There is scarcely a herd in which all the cows would breed the most satisfactory offspring to one bull; so it it.is also good policy when a breeder has first* rate material in his own herd, to use some of the bast of the home-bred bulls for special cases.”

After a turn round Mr Matson’s menagerie, which consists of an emeu, some wallabi, high class Berkshire pigs, and canaries, wo adjourned, as “ the brethren” would say, “ from Übor to refreshment,” and returned to town after a very pleasant afternoon. On the following afternoon Mr James Wilkin drove me out to Homewood to have a look at the Clydesdale horse who recently arrived by the Loch Awe. Ho was landed from the ship on Thursday afternoon, and was immediately taken to Mr Wilkin’s residence, where he will remain for the present. On arrival at Homewood, Mr Cormack, who brought him out, stripped him and led him round. His condition did the utmost ci'edit to the caretaker, and I have seldom seen a horse landing from an English voyage looking more healthy or in nicer condition. True it is that he has rubbed the hair off his legs and tail, but the few hairs he has left on his legs show a promise that when they grow again judges will have nothing to complain of in a lack of that feather which is supposed to be a sine qua non in a real Clydesdale. Chancellor, who is a five-year-old, has a very intelligent head, and is a dappled bay with one white stocking. He is one of the short-legged sort, with plenty of bone, good feet, and is very nicely coupled. He has rare arms, and a short powerful back, and bis action is very good. Mr Cormack tells me that his sea journey has lost him a good deal of his girth, but when he gets to be himself there will be nothing to complain of in this respect, and to those that like a big horse they will have one in Chancellor, who stands now nearly 17 hands. He is very active, and moves in very telling style, not to say that his constitution is evidently of the first-class and his temper excellent. Chancellor has proved himself already a sure foal getter, and his foals, though not up to the present old enough for the show yards, have earned golden opinions from some of the best judges in Scotland. I append his breeding, which, to students of the “ Clydesdale Stud Boob,” may be interesting, but the horse must be seen to be appreciated, and I have no doubt that when he makes his appearance at the annual parade he will bo able to hold his own with all comers. It is a matter of great regret that his shipmate, Luck’s All, was lost. He died, Mr Cormack informs me, when eight weeks out from England. Ha was a dark brown, with white hind legs and a while face. He was what Mr Cormack describes as a “ big little horse.” He stood about 16.3, with rare back and legs, and was bad to beat when the measure was pullvd out. From bis pedigree and show records he was probably, I should say, about the best horse that ever loft Scotland for the colonies, and breeders, one and all, will sympathize with Mr Wilkin in his loss, which passengers by the Loch Awe toll me was felt very keenly by Mr Cormack. Luck’s All was by (Drew’s) Prince of Wales, the most noted Clydesdale stallion ever bred in Scotland, and was virtually the champion horse of that country, having been chosen by the Highland Society to stand at Perth in 1879, receiving a premium of £l5O for the guaranteed season of eighty mares at £5 each. At the

Highland Society’s show at Perth the same year he took the first and champion prize, beating the prize taker at the big Kilbura ■how. His loss is much to be regretted, and Mr Wilkin is the more to be sympathised with as it is not by any means the first or second time he Las been similarly foiled in his endeavors to introduce high class stock. Chancellor of Black Hall is by Time of Day a very popular sire in Scotland. At the Glasgow stallion show in 1879 he was in the show list of five out of upwards of a hundred shown, but the Glasgow Society selected for their use his brother, Bonnie Breastknot. He was, however, selected by the Dumfries Society, receiving a premium of £lO3, with a good season guaranteed, and his progeny for that season amounted to over sixty foals. Having interviewed the horse Mr Wilkin took me round the paddocks to have a look at the handsome little herd of Brittany cattle. These consist of St. Malo, a very handsome little bull out of Lady. Lady was imported from Melbourne in 1878, and is by imported parent stock on both sides. St. Malo, who was born in Canterbury, is by a pure bred bull of the same brood. Lady herself is a perfect picture, and has now a bull calf running with her. There are two other Brittany heifers, one of whom will calve shortly. Both these heifers, as well as L idy, are Melbourne importations and very perfect specimens of their kind. In addition to these Mr Wilkin has a Jersey cow and several youngsters which may bo called seveneighth bred Jerseys. Of the milking qualities of the Breton Cattle he speaks in very high terras, and I think before long dairymen here will follow the example of our American cousins, and recognise the merit of a breed of cattle whose milking capabilities are not to bo surpassed. A pleasant stroll round the grounds brought, as some of my confreres would say, “ the proceedings to a conclusion.”