to the old mare every night and morning. And one day he heard his father talking to his mother about a cofferdam. Well, he wanted to know of his father whether cofferdam was a swear word. His father said "No," and he went on to explain what it was. Then the boy said, "If cofferdam is not a swear word, I wish the old gray mare would cough her damn head off."

Today, it is different, and we always like to talk about those things in which there is profit, and I believe we can spend a long time this morning in discussing what the draft horse is, and should be, perhaps.

A question would naturally arise in your mind, Is the modern draft horse any different from the ancient draft horse, or the draft horse of a few years ago? To answer this question we have only to inquire what was the draft horse of former years. I am yet young, but old enough to remember the time when the draft horse was not of the same make-up, conformation or type as the draft horse of today. An animal called a draft horse a few years past could not properly be called a draft horse now. A short time ago any horse that would weigh fourteen or fifteen pounds, awkward, big headed, lazy and good for no particular work, was classed as a draft horse by the laymen, and today in many places in Ohio this same notion prevails. Many men say, "I have a good draft horse, but cannot get those good prices I hear of and read about. I do not think raising draft horses pays, hence I will abandon the business and try something else." We have all heard such expressions. If we will become acquainted with the animals such men raise and force upon the market, we will find that they are not draft horses, neither are they road or coach horses, but quite likely a lot of misfits that belong to no particular class, and for which there is no market. Should not the farmer learn to produce that which the people want, what the market demands? What would you think of a merchant stocking up with a lot of inferior low-grade articles for which there was no market? I think you would consider him unwise and would say that he would certainly fail if he continued that practice. It is not difficult for us to recognize the folly of the merchant keeping articles for which there is no demand, but it is almost impossible to get some farmers to admit that it is just as unwise and unprofitable to keep unmarketable horses. There may be some excuse for certain farmers raising what is known as the "general purpose horse," or the horse weighing 1.200 to 1,400 pounds, with no particular characteristics about him, and for which there is no popular demand.

I say there may be need for such a horse on some farms where the owner has the heart to use the same animal to draw the breaking plow, the harrow, the corn planter and the binder and mower six days in the week, and the buggy and carriage at night and on the seventh, where he does not object to working an animal all day at heavy work at which every minute of the time the animal must exert its full strength to accomplish its master's desire, or in case he enjoys taking the dust of every other driver on the road and likes to ride early Sunday morning in order to have plenty of time to get to church, and if he is willing to take a low price for the animal when he places it upon the market. I say under these circumstances, where we breed and raise horses to wear out on the farm, and don't mind wearing ourselves out at the same time, this horse may have a place. If, on the other hand, the owner prefers a horse that can draw the plow ten or twelve hours each day without exerting his full strength each moment of that time, and a kind that takes only four to do the same amount of work that five or six smaller ones would do, and do it easier to the animals and owner as well, the kind that the other fellow always wants and for which he is always willing to pay a very liberal price, the kind that does not take much, if any, more food to produce, he must in this case

abandon the misfit and seek to produce the draft horse of as near the modern type as is possible.

It might be well to describe at this time what should be the conformation of the modern draft horse. I suppose all of you have attended our State Fair and seen these modern draft horses on exhibition. If you have spent some time in the horse ring, you have observed that the up-to-date draft horse is one that stands close to the ground with short legs and broad base. The feet are well apart, with space enough for another foot of the same size to be placed between them. The back of this animal will be somewhat shorter than that of the speed horse. It is with the hind legs that he propels himself, and thus it can be easily seen that since the collar is on the shoulder the whole weight of the load is drawn by the back. Therefore, it must be short, broad and well muscled. The shoulder of this horse is long, well-shaped, so as to give a good base to the collar. It should be more nearly perpendicular than that of the speed horse. However, sloping shoulders are often found in our best draft horses. The hocks of this horse will show rather a narrow angle because it is by this that a greater leverage is given and he is able to move heavy loads.

The body is massive, low set, ample, very muscular and cylindrical. He will have solid, large and broad bones and limbs, and the limbs well-formed and properly placed under his body. He will have large, healthy, well-formed hoofs, heels well separated, frog strong, healthy and quite hard, good physiognomy, plenty of style and action, ardor and endurance. He must have a short, rather straight pastern in order to do the heavy work required of him. His weight should be in the neighborhood of a ton. If he weighs a little more or a little less, but is good otherwise, he will not be long without an owner.

You ask what breed this animal should be. I say that he can be of any draft breed. Each has special characteristics which commend it to the admirers of different breeds. It is not necessary at this time to favor one and condemn the others, for all breeds sell alike when the animals are of the right kind.

It is quite easy to describe the animal we would like to produce, but to produce him is another thing. The question is, Why are there not more good horses on the market today? Is it because the service fees of good stallions are too high? This may be the reason, and I believe it is in many instances. I think many times the stallion owners are responsible for so many inferior horses. Often the fee asked is more than the average farmer with the average mare feels he can afford to pay. What should the fee be? This I cannot answer. In one locality where good draft mares are found a fee of $20 for the service of a good registered draft stallion to insure a living colt would be considered right and proper, while in another locality, where inferior mares are kept and farming is not so profitable, it would be considered too high. Quite often the service fee is more than $20 and a good colt is not insured. This price very often is the cause of owners of good mares breeding to inferior animals and getting poor colts. I think many times stallion owners are in too big a hurry to get back the high purchase price which they are compelled to pay for the stallion, and they take what is considered a short cut and charge quite a high fee.

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Would it not be more profitable to the owner of the stallion (no doubt it, would be to the owner of the mare and better for the community) if a smaller fee were asked? I am inclined to think the increased patronage would in very many communities pay for the horse sooner. A word more for the stallion. I find that most of our better stallions throughout the state are sold by the importer or breeder to companies organized by an agent of the importer or breeder. This very often is unsatisfactory to all concerned. Each member of that com

pany too often thinks just how the horse should be managed and if it is not handled his way he thinks it wrong, and if the horse does not pay a big dividend the first year, trouble arises that never grows less. Most stallions sold by importers carry a large amount of fat. They are in the very best condition possible to get them to show well. If they have any defects in the conformation of the body, it is usually covered by fat. Fat will cover defects in horses about as well as in cattle. These stallions very often fall into hands that do not understand changing the stallion from a show animal to a breeding animal, and the consequence is he is often worthless the first year and sometimes the second, and occasionally is never of any value. In choosing a sire to produce a modern draft horse, I would much prefer the one that has been in service a few years to the one fresh from the importer. I would prefer the stallion which has had moderate work throughout the year when not on the stand, and is in moderate flesh, to the one that has been housed the whole year and is covered with fat. The colt is larger and stronger from the former than from the latter, and is almost sure to make a better horse. The exact conformation of the stallion I would use to produce the modern draft horse would depend somewhat upon the mare I had to breed. If I had a rather long-limbed, long-coupled dam, I would choose a sire the reverse; that is, one short-limbed and well coupled. We must not forget, as so many are prone to do, that the dam is just as important, if not more important, a factor in producing a good horse as the sire. We can not, as many hope to do, breed any kind of a broken down, crippled and diseased mare of any or no breed to even a grand champion draft stallion and get a horse that will top the market. We must remember that like produces like, and a defect is almost sure to be transmitted to the young. If not noticed in the first cross, it may crop out in some future one.

To get the best, let us select the mare that has size, quality and is sound in every respect.

The high service fee and inferior stallions may be the cause of many worthless horses, but the mares of Ohio are certainly responsible for many, many more. It is a lamentable fact that Ohio has comparatively few good draft mares, mares suitable to produce the modern draft gelding, such as our big packers, brewers, merchants and others are more than willing to buy at long prices. If we can only devise some means to rapidly improve our mares, we would soon have good horses in Ohio, as we have good cattle, sheep and hogs. To be sure, it costs more to produce good horses than it does to produce good cattle, sheep and hogs, but I am sure the profit is greater and we are well repaid for the extra expense and effort.

Before bringing this paper to a close, and perhaps it might be of interest and benefit as well, I will call your attention in as short a time as possible, to a few measurements that are usually uniform in most all the well-conformed draft horses. I am well aware that a person can not become an expert judge by the facts I am going to present, or by any amount of study or book knowledge he may acquire; nothing will take the place of artistic instinct and actual practice in judging animal conformation. However, I do believe that there are some elementary principles which can be readily learned that will greatly aid the artistic instinct, and greatly help in obtaining practical experience in judging. To show the possibilities of good results in this study, I wish to call your attention to some measurements made by Mr. J. B. Crabb, of our Ohio State University, in the measurements of forty-six horses, mostly three-year-old stallions. He compared the head to other parts of the body, and found results as follows:

We must remember that like produces like, and any defect is almost sure to be transmitted, and if not noticed in the first generation it will crop out in some future generation, and it is no uncommon thing for certain characteristics to be carried along in the blood for ten generations or more and finally develop. We should not follow fads too far. In other words, we should not sacrifice quality for something of much less importance in order to produce an animal that might, in a few cases, command a higher price. I believe sometimes we sacrifice quality for quantity; that is, we will do everything to get size and neglect other things of greater importance. It is also a fact that some breeders have preferred to breed to a horse of a certain color, of less quality, than to a horse of another color of the same breed. To be sure, I always like a horse of a good solid color, but I do not think it proper to sacrifice quality to produce an animal of no better color, but perhaps for the time being, a little more stylish. We should in the draft horse business profit from the breeder of the road or race horse and the cattle breeder, for we can always see the other fellow's faults sooner than our own..

To succeed in the draft horse business, as in any other, it is necessary to devote some time and study to it. Think how many farmers of today are raising horses that, if sold, would hardly pay for a year's keep. Those farmers, I venture to say, do not lose much sleep in studying the market, do not spend much time in attending farmers' institutes, and pay no attention whatever to the conformation of horses for different purposes.

The man in the draft horse business who studies the market as well as the horse and seeks to produce that which the market demands, has succeeded in the past, is succeeding at present and I believe will succeed in the future.

Mr. Frank Blackford, of Preble county: It is very much like a bachelor discussing children for me to discuss this question this morning, and yet it comes to me: Is the two thousand-pound horse the horse we want on our farms? Now, I question that. I question whether the

proposition, as given by the Senator, is the one which will meet the approbation, and meet the needs of the requirements of the ordinary farmer. I know we have horses in our territory that are just horses, and yet they accomplish more work, they stand up to the work better, and they are easier kept to do the work. In other words, they move easily, and don't consume a great deal of the energy in moving themselves as the two thousand-pound horse does. I question whether the two thousand-pound horse is the horse for the country. I question whether he is the horse for the farm, and the one that would be of the most use to us.

Senator Dunlap: Now, we always expect such talk. And we like to be prepared for it. I have been thinking about this for a whole weekhow to answer that question. I think I said in my paper that we should not sacrifice quality for quantity, but if a man gets just as good quality in a two thousand-pound horse as he gets in a fourteen-hundred pound horse, we are way ahead, because if we put the horse on the market we can get twice as much for it. There is a great difference in horses, in all animals, not excepting man. And one horse of a certain weight may do a great deal of work, or a certain amount of work, while another horse of a certain weight may do a great deal more work. I remember having on my farm a draft horse that weighed something like seventeen hundred pounds. I know that mare could do more work than any of the others on my farm. She had the vim and vigor. She was the kind that when she would move away from you, you could see the frogs of her four feet. Of course, if we have the big ones that drag around, they will break down more corn than they are worth. We want the kind that have the vim and vigor to them.

A member: I am no horse breeder, and do not know anything about it in a systematic way, but since the question has been spoken of by the member, I wish to say that on my farm I have one team of large mares. In ordinary work flesh they will weigh seventeen hundred pounds. Then I have another team that in ordinary work flesh will weigh about thirteen hundred pounds. They all have a bit of draft blood in them, especially the large mares. And we found this, that while we think the large animals are well built for strength and, in following the description of the gentleman, they fit pretty well the description that he makes. In a general way, we find this in the use of those two teams on the farm: In extremely warm weather the lighter horses are much more able to stand the heat, and when we put those teams on the plowed ground it seems as though the heavy horses wear so much more than the lighter horses. Of course, we believe when we have anything heavy to pull on solid ground, we find the heavy team is better than the lighter team for that work.

Mr. Worthy, of Licking county: I happento have a team something similar to the team this gentleman describes. I want to say that