"Volunteer" breeding became very popular in the East, as a result not only of Welcome Volunteer's use at High Lawn (after his purchase from Victory), but also due to Brigham's use of June Volunteer Confident (from Volunteer Confident Buddy) and Ogston's use of Brigham Volunteer Hallam  (from Volunteer Dipsy Standard). They were recognized as a premier "milk" line with somewhat variable type characteristics but good stamina.  This blood is a major part of the pedigree behind "SSO".   Next largest influence is Afterglow's Observer (note both his grandsires, Welcome Volunteer and Observer Blonde Signal, are from his daughters).  Today, we would give him a fairly high inbreeding coefficient but in his era, linebreeding was the norm.   His pedigree would look mild compared to many "Sybil" bloodline animals (descendents of Sybils Gamboge) whose followers were avid linebreeders.  

Secret Signal Observer got his chance at High Lawn due to their admiration for his then-outcross dam, Observer Signal Lady Jean, who came to them in dam in 1948 as a result of their purchase of Welcome Lady Jean along with her sire, Welcome Volunteer.     She scored Very Good and produced a creditable lifetime of 76974m 5.5% 4258bf in seven calvings, most of which were heifers (as of December 2000 an estimated 173 lineal descendants of "Lady Jean" have been registered).   Her dam was the yearling national class leader for milk in 1946, producing 13047m 4.8% 631f in 305 days at 1-11 for Victory Farm, adding measurably to the outstanding tested sire rating for her sire (that contributed to the reasons he came to High Lawn Farm).     

"SSO" had steady service at High Lawn as one of several herd sires retained to represent individual cow families Mrs Wilde admired and wished to maintain as "cow lines" to produce bulls.   He was eventually leased to ABS and sent to their western AI center, but the bull actually got homesick, quit producing semen until he was sent back to High Lawn.   As a result he shows 114 daughters in 62 herds on his last USDA summary.   It is reasonable to say that his entire AI influence today comes from two sons, working into the Jersey heartland from each coast until they had covered every cow worth mentioning.   These two sons are: Observer Chocolate Soldier and SS Quicksilver of Fallneva.

Observer Chocolate Soldier was bred at High Lawn, sold into the Maine Breeding Cooperative (Henry Black from Briarcliff was on their sire committee and championed this bull, using him in his  herd) and ended his AI career with the Eastern AI Cooperative (now part of Genex/CRI).   He was from the ubiquitous "May" family at High Lawn that has produced the majority of High Lawn herdsires in AI, all the way back to Welcome High Lawn Torono, the sire of "SSO".  "Chocolate Soldier" has an additional cross to Welcome Volunteer from his maternal grandsire.     "Chocolate Soldier" was somewhat compact in length but had great power in the front end, and proved to be a great mating when used against Milestones Generator.

SS Quicksilver of Fallneva was bred in Nevada as a result of AI service from "SSO"s brief career in ABS.   His dam was linebred to Sybil's Gamboge whose descendents had dominated Jersey breeding in many areas, but also had three of four great-grandsires from Volunteer sires, other than Signal Estella Volunteer.  So in some broad sense "Quicksilver" was more linebred than "Chocolate Soldier".      "Quicksilver" sired unusually high butterfat% for a milk bull, an open frame, somewhat sloppy udders, and was a great cross against "Sleeper" breeding and the less angular "Milestone" blood.