The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 19, July 1915 - April, 1916 Page: 378
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The Southwestern Historical Quarterly
of butter, which sold for seventy-five cents per pouna.15 Others
soon took up this profitable industry. The dairy industry called
for improved herds of cattle, and experiments were made to find
what breed or breeds were most profitable. Opinions varied, but
by 1872 it seemed that Durhams were in the lead. Others cham-
pioned the superiority of the Ayreshire, and still others thought
the Devons best adapted to hilly country.'1 At this date Marin
and Sonoma counties led in the dairy business. They had been
settled mainly by Swiss, who were especially fitted to develop the
industry. Some who had come in 1862 without money became
prosperous very soon, being taxed on $200,000 worth of property
at the end of ten years' residence.17 It is evident that they did
not belong to the class of short-sighted farmers who burned their
straw as soon as it was threshed, and, after having lost a large
number of cattle by starvation during the winter, complained that
the season had been very hard on stock.18
A sudden and serious check came to the cattle industry gen-
erally in the state in the form of two successive years of drought
in 1863 and 1864. Half the cattle starved the first year. Others
were too weak to stand severe weather the next year and many
died of exposure. Cows and calves died first, and it seemed as
if the country would be swept clean of cattle. Again, cattle were
killed for their hides and what tallow they had. About 5000 were
killed at one establishment near Monterey, bringing a return of
from two to four dollars per head.'9
The result of the disaster wrought a revolution in the cattle
industry. The Spanish stock largely disappeared. Proprietors of
the great Mexican grants had tried to put off the survey so that
they could sell more land than they had, or else they had refused
to sell. They had great herds of cattle, but lost heavily during
the long drought, some losing their entire herds. As a result
they were now anxious to sell all or part of their land. Farmers
1"Report of the Visiting Committee," in Transactions of the California
Agricultural Society, 1858, p. 212.
18Hoag, J. N., Report of the Corresponding Secretary, in Transactions
of the California Agricultural Society, 1872, p. 190.
1Tlbid., 185.
"Flint, Wilson, "The Fence Question," in Transactions of the California
Agricultural Society, 1863, p. 148.
"Census Report for 1880, III, 1030.378
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 19, July 1915 - April, 1916, periodical, 1916; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101067/m1/405/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.