190 



ON THE AGKICULTUEE OF THE 



At the home farm of Ardross a number of very fine cattle, 

 chiefly crosses from Highland cows and Shorthorn bulls, are both 

 bred and fed, and in fat stock shows they have become quite 

 famous. A very fine red and white bullock, bred and fed at 

 Ardross, won the L.lOO prize at Birmingham in 1875 as the best 

 Scot in the hall, and of all the grand animals that left Scotland 

 for the English fat shows last year he was undoubtedly the most 

 meritorious. When at Ardross this fine animal was fed on 

 the mixture used at Dalmore. At Ballintraid Mr Munro feeds 

 close on 100 very fine cattle, mostly crosses picked up in Caith- 

 ness or elsewhere in the north. He uses a very large quantity 

 of cake and other feeding stuffs. At harness, Davidston, and 

 Kosefarm, in the Black Isle, occupied by three brothers, — Messrs 

 Thomas, Jonathan, and A. A. Middleton, — a large number of ex- 

 cellent crosses are bought in and fed. At Farness and Davidston, 

 together, upwards of 100 cattle are fed in the house in summer 

 upon hay, cake, and grain. 



At the fine farm of Calrossie, in the parish of Nigg, and 

 occupied by Mr John Douglas, feeding is also carried on 

 extensively. In the spring and summer months ^Mr Douglas 

 generally buys in from 90 to 100 two-year-old cross 

 stots, mostly Caithness cattle, and nearly one-half of these he 

 feeds on cut grass, hay, and cake in covered courts, while the 

 remainder are grazed on the fields till about the end of September, 

 when they are housed for the winter, and fed on turnips, straw 

 and hay, linseed cake, and grain. At first only 2 lbs. of cake are 

 given per day to each animal, but as the market approaches it is 

 gradually increased to 5 lbs., while in addition about the 

 same weight of a mixture of rye, barley, and wheat is allowed 

 during the last six weeks. From thirty to forty are usually in 



