THE PRIZE SYSTEM OF JUDGING BY POINTS.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 878, 7 February 1879, Page 3 (Supplement)

THE PRIZE SYSTEM OF JUDGING BY POINTS.

(From (he Australasian.) To Sydney belongs whatever honor or credit is due for the initiation in these colonies of the system of judging by points. The old plan of placing first, second, and third so many animals out of, say a dozen, and leaving all the rest unno'ticcd. was a manifest injustice to any that wore but little below the prize winners in point of quality, indeed it was grossly unjust to all, because it left good and biul alike on one level, excepting only the fortunate three. Let us see how the new system would work in a dairy cow class of a dozen ; the above is sufficiently explicit with regard to the old plan. Assuming that 100 points represent perfection, we will also assume that one cow obtains 90, a second 85, a third 80, a fourth 79, and so on ; the worst, however, bein" a scrubber, has only 20. On the old system, the cow that under the new one is so nearly equal to the third prize animal would have been left upon the snme level as the scrubber, unless distiii"iiished by a commendation, an honor of which colonial judges are inclined to be sparing The sting of defeat is partly neutralised under the system of judging by points, by the publication of the reports of the judges assigning a position to every animal. These reports also s.-rve as a guide to intending purchasers of other animals besides those that are distinguished by a prize ; in fact, assuming that the judges arc qualified tor thentask the benefit conferred upon the exhibitors is of a solid description, and ci'culated to heal differences of opinion ntiier than (as under the old system) to cause tlicm. The prize system that has so long been in vogue carried with it the ".■mis of decay of every society. This defect has been repeatedly indicated, and yet the system of judging by points, the theoretical value of which was well known, made no headway against the prejudices of the practitioners of the old plan. In some instances enlightened objections were raised, and there are two or three that are worth consideration. The system of judging by points demands superior natural abilities, together with educational attainments, that are often wanting in judges of the old school. It is obvious, however, that many excellent iud-'es would be unable to assign the correct number to each point of excellence, and there is danger of a wrong conclusion being sometimes arrived at on this very ground. In regarding an animal, the absolute size of any one part is not the point for consideration, but the proportion which that part bears to others. Good as the point system appears to be in. the abstract, there are grounds for fearing that to insure its successful application to live stock, the number of judges will have to be limited to a few who evince special aotitude for the task. It will be said, perhaps, that tho point system is nothing more tKan an explanation of the reasoning by which judges on the old plan arrived at their decisions. biich unquestionably should be the case, but though the judgment may have been rieht when tested by the pQint system the public knew nothing of the grounds upon which the awards were based, nor were they, as already observed, informed of the merits of tho losers. A study of the award papers of the Sydney judges will prove exceedingly interesting, and it would bo well if copies of the society s journal for September and October could be circulated freely amongst tho managers of our country societies, and specially perused by thoso who ave in tho habiti of officiating as judges. The prizes m the blood horse claas fell to Tarragon, Yattendon, and Stafford, in tho order in which they are named. The first award was made on tho following grounds : Head, including expression, two points; neck, three ; withers, four ; back, seven ; loins, seven ; hips, two; shoulders six ; breast, three ; chest, six ; flank, including sheath, three; quarters, five; gaskins, three; forearms, four; knees, three; hocks, five ; legs, four ; pasterns, one ; feet, four; general symmetry, ten ; suitability for the purpose for which shown,

ten ; total, ninety-two. This will give a fair idea of the method of judging, which promised "to" supersede the old plan.- In the case of cereals the points of excellence we re—purity, size, plumpness, evenness, weight, color, flour-making and feeding qualities. In adjudicating on butter, the points noted were—color, smell, taste, firmness, curing, and general condition ; in cheese —color, flavor, richness, firmness, keeping properties, and general condition. We now come to Agricultural implements and machinery. The points to wluo'i the judges directed their attention were—efficiency, durability, economy of motivrt power or lightness" of draft, workmanship, and portability. Upon the whole, \s e consider the system, of which the above is an outline, better calculated to minister towards the objects of exhibitions—that of instructing the public—than any other plan that has been supposed. The information given in the reports must he specially useful to those unsuccessful competitors who have been nursing the erroneous idea that their exhibits were perfect. By referring to the number of points awarded for each indication of excellence, they will learn where their favorites are deficient. A year hence let us hope that the Victorian farmers will be practically acquainted with the system.