158 ox THE AGHIGULTURE OF 



the Aboyne sale last year (1879), j\Ir Murray purchased, also at 

 a small price, the bull calf " Diamond," by *' Waterside King" 

 (870), and out of " Daylight" (1478), by " Clansman" (398). This 

 bull has also done remarkably well, being a large, handsome, 

 stylish bull. He won the cup for the best pure bred animal in 

 the Kincardineshire Show last summer, and will in all probability 

 gain still higher honours. 



By far the largest polled herd that exists now, or has ever 

 existed, is that owned by Mr James Scott, of Easter Tulloch. 

 For a long time Mr Scott has been breeding black cattle, and 

 partly through the prolific character of his stock, and through 

 purchases, his herd had a few years ago assumed great dimen- 

 sions. It numbered at one time not far short of 200 head. 

 Within the last two years over fifty head have been sold, chiefly 

 at Aberdeen, but still the herd is by far the largest of its kind 

 existing. And not only is it large, but it also contains many 

 animals of more than average individual merit, and of really 

 good breeding. His herd is invariably kept in lean condition, 

 and it is seldom that he feeds for the showyard. His stock 

 has, however, carried off many prizes, w^hile in the possession of 

 others. The highly satisfactory manner in which Easter 

 Tulloch stock thrive and breed with those that purchase them is 

 quite proverbial, and this is no doubt mainly due to the 

 moderate, indeed almost spare, system of feeding pursued by Mr 

 Scott, and also to the fact that his cattle spend much of their 

 time in the open fields. There is a good deal of variety in the 

 herd, containing as it does representatives of the Kinnochtry, 

 Southesk, Balwyllo, Keillor, Ballindalloch, Tillyfour, Portlethen, 

 Eernyflat, and several other herds. One of his own oldest tribes 

 is the Blue Bells, descended on the female side from " Bess," a 

 cow bred by Mr Ptobert Scott, Upper Tulloch, and on the male 

 side from " King Henry" (390), bred by Lord Southesk, out of 

 " Kathleen of Kinnaird " (339), a w^ell-known prize winner and 

 got by " Windsor " (221), the famous •'' Tillyfour," son of 

 " Hanton," for which Lord Southesk paid £180 in 1858 to the 

 late Mr George Brown, Westerton. Some very fine bulls were 

 bred from the Blue Bells, notably " Bluebeard " (648), the 

 winner of the first prize in the two-year-old class at the Aber- 

 deen Show, and also at the Highland Show at Inverness in 

 1874. He was one of the best two-year-olds ever seen in the 

 Aberdeen Show, and it is to be regretted that his career was 

 curtailed by foot and mouth disease, to which he fell a victim 

 in his third year. But of all the really good animals bred by 

 Mr Scott, and descended from his stock, perhaps the most 

 celebrated is the beautiful three-year-old cow " Witch of Endor" 

 (3528), already referred to. She was one of the fine group with 



