Milch Cows and Dairy Farming / Comprising the Breeds, Breeding, and Management, in Health and Disease, of Dairy and Other Stock, the Selection of Milch Cows, with a Full Explanation of Guenon's Method; The Culture of Forage Plants, and the Production of Milk, Butter, and Cheese: Embodying the Most Recent Improvements, and Adapted to Farming in the United States and British Provinces. With a Treatise upon the Dairy Husbandry of Holland; To Which Is Added Horsfall's System of Dairy Management

by Charles Louis Flint

Fig. 9. Hereford Cow.

Herefords.

—The Hereford cattle derive their name from a county in the western part of England. Their general characteristics are a white face, sometimes mottled; white throat, the white generally extending back on the neck, and sometimes, though rarely, still further along on the back. The color of the rest of the body is red, generally dark, but sometimes light. Eighty years ago the best Hereford cattle were mottled or roan all over; and some of the best herds, down to a comparatively recent period, were either all mottled, or had the mottled or speckled face. The expression of the face is mild and lively; the forehead open, broad, and large; the eyes bright and full of vivacity; the horns glossy, slender, and spreading; the head small, though larger and not quite so clean as that of the Devons; the lower jaw fine; neck long and slender; chest deep; breast-bone large, prominent, and very muscular; the shoulder-blade light; shoulder full and soft; brisket and loins large; hips well developed, and on a level with the chine; hind quarters long and well filled in; buttocks on a level with the back, neither falling off nor raised above the hind quarters; tail slender, well set on; hair fine and soft; body round and full; carcass deep and well formed, or cylindrical; bone small; thigh short and well made; legs short and straight, and slender below the knee; as handlers very excellent, especially mellow to the touch on the back, the shoulder, and along the sides, the skin being soft, flexible, of medium thickness, rolling on the neck and the hips; hair bright; face almost bare, which is characteristic of pure-bred Herefords. They belong to the middle-horned division of the cattle of Great Britain, to which they are indigenous. They have been improved within the last century by careful selections, the first step to this end having been taken by Benjamin Tomkins, of Herefordshire, who began about 1766, with two cows possessing a remarkable tendency to take on fat. One of these was gray, and the other dark red, with a mottled or spotted face.

Taking these as a foundation, Mr. Tomkins went on to build up a large herd, from which he sold to other breeders, from time to time, till at his decease, in 1819, the whole herd was disposed of at auction—fifty-two animals, including twenty-two steers and two heifers, varying in age from calves to two-year-olds, bringing an aggregate of four thousand six hundred and seventy-three pounds, fourteen shillings, or four hundred and forty-five dollars, thirty-seven and a half cents, a head. A bull was sold to Lord Talbot for five hundred and eighty-eight pounds, while several cows brought from a thousand to twelve hundred dollars a head.

Hereford oxen are excellent animals, less active but stronger than the Devons, and very free and docile. The demand for Herefords for beef prevents their being much used for work in their native county, and the farmers there generally use horses instead of oxen. A recent writer in the Farmer’s Magazine makes the following remarks on this head: “It is allowed on all hands, I believe, that the properties in which Herefords stand preëminent among the middle-sized breeds are in the production of oxen and their superiority of flesh. On these points there is little chance of their being excelled. It should, however, be borne in mind that the best oxen are not produced from the largest cows; nor is a superior quality of flesh, such as is considered very soft to the touch, with thin skin. It is the union of these two qualities which often characterizes the short-horns; but the Hereford breeders should endeavor to maintain a higher standard of excellence,—that for which the best of the breed have always been esteemed,—a moderately thick, mellow hide, with a well-apportioned combination of softness with elasticity. A sufficiency of hair is also desirable, and if accompanied with a disposition to curl moderately it is more in esteem: but that which has a harsh and wiry feel is objectionable.”

Fig. 10. Hereford Bull.

In point of symmetry and beauty of form, the well-bred Herefords may be classed with the improved short-horns, though they arrive somewhat slower at maturity, and never attain such weight. Like the improved short-horns, they are chiefly bred for beef, and their beef is of the best quality in the English markets, commanding the highest price of any, except, perhaps, the West Highlanders.

In an experiment carefully tried in 1828, for the purpose of arriving at the comparative economy of the short-horns and Herefords, the latter gained less by nearly one fourth than the former, which had consumed more food. The six animals, three of each breed, were sold after being fed, in Smithfield market, the Herefords bringing less by only about five dollars than the short-horns, while the cost of food consumed by the latter was greater, and the original purchase greater than that of the former.

The short-horn produces more beef at the same age than the Hereford, but consumes more food in proportion. “In all the fairs of England,” says Hillyard, “except those of Herefordshire and the adjoining counties, short-horn heifers are more sought after and sell at higher prices than the Hereford; but it is not so with fat cattle, for, with the exception of Lincolnshire and some of the northern counties, they much prefer the Herefords. Then at Smithfield, where the quality of the beef passes its final judgment, the pound of Hereford beef pays better than the pound of short-horn beef. Short-horn beeves produce at the same age a greater weight, it is true, but they also consume more food. I can easily conceive why, in the magnificent pastures of Lincolnshire, and some of the northern counties of England, they may prefer the short-horns; and that is, that they may keep a less number on a given quantity of land, and only the short-horn could, under these conditions, produce a greater weight of beef per acre. It is very difficult to decide which of the two races in England (the two best in the world) is the most profitable for stock-raisers and for the community.” There are, even in Lincolnshire, many good feeders who prefer the Herefords to the short-horns. One of these, when visited the past season, had thirty head of cattle feeding for the butcher, and only one short-horn. When asked the reason of this, he replied, “I am a farmer myself, and have to pay high rent, and I must feed the cattle that pay me best. Perhaps you think it would be more in fashion to cover my fields with short-horns; but I must look to the net profit, and I get much better with the Herefords. The short-horns are too full of fat and make too little tallow, and they consequently sell too low in the Smithfield market. Our Herefords are better, and they sell better.”