The Waikato Times. SATURDAY, APRIL 12,' 1879.

Waikato Times, Volume XIII, Issue 1061, 12 April 1879, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

SATURDAY, APRIL 12,' 1879.

Equal and exact justice to all men, Of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political. Here shall the Press the People's right maintaiu, Unawod by influence and tmbribed by gain.

Waikato bred cattle are, we see, making for themselvee a name at the local shows down South. At the Temuka Agricultural and Pastoral Association's Show, beid on tbe 27th ult. Mr A. Cox took several prizes with Hereford cattle, stock bred from the Hereford berd ot the Messrs Maclean. These Herefords appear to hold their own against all comers, for m the cattle exhibits Herefords and shorthorns appear to have competed together m one class, irrespective of breed, every animal standing on its individual merit. And these Herefords of Mr A. Cox appear to have excelled all others, being the best fat beasts m the yard, the one a fat ox, is specially alluded to as " being specially admired for his excellent quality, being m grand condition and handling like velvet." It is satisfactory to find our Waikato herds furnishing the best prizetaking stock at Southern shows, but what is more significant is to find other than shorthorns taking first place, and proving themselves to be the best beef-produoiog stock upon the ground. It has been the opinion of many that a far too exclusive attention has been devoted by our stockowners to the improvement and propagation of this one breed at tbe expense of the rest, and the excuse has been that, inferior as the shorthorns may be to other breeds for the dairy, they excel all others for the butcher. This does not appear necessarily to be the case — nor indeed do we see why the production of beef should m any case be considered the all-in-all m cattlebreeding, except on such farms as the feeding of cattle for the batcher is made a specialty. A fine breed of Devons has been lately introduced by the Messrs Maclean, and we should be glad to learn that the Surreys and Jerseys, and Aldermey, and other breeds, noted for milk and butter producing qualities had claimed a fair share of attention from the stock-owners. The improvement and development of beef - producing shorthorns may naturally assist the large grazing farmer and owners of cattle runs m their business ; but there is a vdvy namerous class of farmers whose cattle are chosen for dairying quite as much, if not more, than for fattening purposes. These would be better served by encouraging those breeds of cattle more suitable for dairy purpose, and whose demand for such stock would render, the byeediug of that class of animals quite as profitable a speculation to the pedigree - cattle importing capitalist and breeder, as the rearing of shorthorns. The much lower prices, indeed, for shorthorns, which have ruled at late important sales m Viotoria and New South Wales point to this fact m terms which cannot* be mistaKerir The shorthorn, we believe, has had his dqy m these colonies, and public attention, as elsewhere, is being turned to other breeds. In the United States this has been some time the case, and the consequence is that we read of the dairy production of certain herds and of individual cattle as being so great as almost to challenge credibility.