THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



you selected them, planted them, nursed them in 

 their feebleness, defended them from their enemies, 

 rejoiced in their, prosperous growth, and now you 

 gaze upon their spreading boughs and thickening 

 shade with a sort of paternal pride and affection 

 which you feel towards no other trees. Indeed, 



for our own part, we should shed few tears on 

 being obliged to take a site without a tree upon it, 

 — so far superior do we consider the pleasure of 

 creating an attractive place of residence, to that of 

 buying one already made. But tastes differ. 

 — Country GentijEMan. A. D. G. 



ON UNIFORMITY IN NAME OF THE DIFFERENT ANIMALS OF THE FARM. 



A considerable discussion is now going on through- 

 out the country, relative to uniformity of weights and 

 measures, Tlie time, therefore, may not be inappro- 

 priate to introduce the subject as named above, embrac- 

 ing the multifarious and incongriious names as applied 

 to the different farm animals, of the same age, kind, 

 and character, in various parts of the country ; a 

 synopsis of which I give below. It is true that no great 

 benefit is to be derived from adopting a uniform series 

 of names to designate the same animals in different 

 districts ; but it seems to be very desirable for general 

 information, and to give more simplicity to our farm 

 designations. To foreigners, reading our works on 

 agriculture, it must be very perplexing ; and in our own 

 country, our agricultural readers are often at a loss to 

 understand the common and varied terms applied to the 

 same animal in various localities, these terms by no 

 means being descriptive of the animal, often the very 

 contrary. Who would suppose the term " Hog" meant 

 a shiep of one year old ? Then, the terms " Chilver" 

 and " Tidillin," as applied to lambs ; or Dinmont, 

 Twinler, Gimmer, Theave, Hoggerill, Teg, Wether, as 

 applied to older sheep ; or again, the terms Kebbet, 

 Guill, Ei!d, Guest, Shots, Crones, Crocks, as applied 

 to the female sheep. What an inconsistent medley ! 

 many of these terms being unknown elsewhere than the 

 locality where they are in common use. I might also 

 instance many absurd names as applied to other animals, 

 i. e., Qiiey or Whye-calf, Wennel, Weanling, Stirk, 

 Stot, Bad, Burling, Steer, Cuddock, &c., as applied to 

 young cattle ; or again, Drape, Dry, Gast, Gelt, 

 Forra, Eild, Lease, Veer, Yule, as applied to cows; 

 the meaning of which is almost unknown out of the re- 

 spective districts where they are in use. Of horses and pigs 

 I might give equally absurd names, but refer to my 

 synopsis below. I have also thought it not inappro- 

 priate to couple with this subject the terms used in the 

 driving and directing horses when in work. These are, 

 if possible, still more unintelligible, not to say bar- 

 barous. The only remark I would make upon this point 

 is, that it is highly important that one set of terms only 

 should be in use upon the same farm, otherwise the 

 horses are confused by a medley of sounds, and the won- 

 dering clodpole is astonished to find the horses do not 

 comprehend him, and therefore frequently lashes them 

 severely for his own fault. I am not about to suggest 

 an alteration of this order of things by Act of Parlia- 

 ment, as in the agitation of the subject relating to 

 weights and measures ; but I would suggest a more 

 uniform adoption of the best and most suitable terms 

 by every intelligent agriculturist, by every agricultural 

 writer, and by every agricultural journal or report. In 

 this way, by continued perseverance, much may ulti- 

 mately be done, and, as the intelligence of farmers is 

 promoted, such relics of the olden time will fall into 

 disuse. If I am asked who is to decide the precise 

 terms to be adopted, I would reply that our great agri- 

 cultural societies have mainly settled that question in 

 their programmes and prize sheets. These terms I 

 would adhere to with great pertinacity, so far as they 

 are applicable: the many minor ones will, I think, 

 eventually follow, 



The following imperfect synopsis is taken from various 

 sources :— 



1st.— Names and designations relating to sheep, as 

 used in different districts. 



The male sheep is called a ram and a tup, almost 

 universally. 

 • The female aheep — a ewe (often pronounced yoe), almost 

 universally. 



The male lamb — a ram-lamb, a tup-lamb, weder-lamb, 

 generally ; and a pur-lamb, in the VVe^t of England. 



The female lamb — a ewe-lamb, a aheder-lamb, very gene- 

 rally ; a gimmer-lamb, in Scotland and the North of 

 England ; and a chilver, in the West of England.* 



The male at one year — a lamb-hog, hog, a tup-hog, hogget, 

 hoggerill, wether-hog, teg. 



The female at oue year— a ewe-hog, a gimmer-hog, a ewe- 

 teg, a sheder-hog. 



Lambs brought up by hand— a cade-lamb, in Lincoln, &c. ; 

 and a tiddlin, in Wilts, Gloucester, &e. 



The male at oue and two years— a shearling, a shearing, a 

 shear-hog, a shearling-wether, shearliug-tup ; a dinmont, 

 in Scotland ; and a twinter, in Stafford and North of 

 England. 



The female sheep at one and two years — a shearUng-ewe, a 

 two-toothed-ewe, a theave, a gimmer, a gimber. 



Older sheep — a two-shear, a four-toothed, or a three-shear, 

 a six-toothe l-Sfte or wether. 



The female missing lambing — a barren-ewe, gaile-ewe, eild- 

 ewe, gueat-ewe, tnp-yeld-ewe. 



The female having slipped her lamb — a kehbit ewe, cast-ewe. 



Aged and rejected females — a cull-ewe, cast-ewe, shots, 

 crones, crocks. 



2nd. — Names and designations relating to cattle as 

 used in different districts : 



The male ia called a bull, quite universally, i.e., short-horned 



bull, Devon bull, Hereford bull, &c., &c. 

 The female— a caw, quite universally, short-horned cow, 



Devon cow, HereforJ cow, &c,,&c. 

 The male calf — a bull calf. 



The female calf— a heifer calf, a quey calf, a whye calf. 

 The male castrated calf 1| years — a yearliug, a stirk, a 



weaned calf, a weanling, a burling, a bud, a stot. 

 The female calf 1^ years — a yearling heifer, weaned heifer, 



wennel heifer. 

 The male above 1| to 3 years — a steer, aha a hi (Scotland), 



two-year-old3, three-year-old steers, cuddocks. 

 The female above 1| to 3 years — a heifer, a two-year, or a 



three-year-old heifer. 

 The barren female— a dry cow, eild cow, forra cow, drape 



cow, gast cow, gelt cow ; or having missed calf, lease cow, 



veer cow, yule cow. 

 Cattle not having horns — a cooat ox, dodded ox, hammelled 



coiv or OS, moiled cow or ox, muil cow, mullock cow, not 



cow, powley cow or ox. 

 3rd. — Names and designations relating to horses as 

 used in different districts : 



The male ia called a horse, a stallion, a coosar, a stoned 



horse, an entire horse. 

 The female — a mare, a nag mare, a cart mare, &c. 

 The young male— a colt foal, a yearling colt, a hog colt, a 



stag colt, a two-year-old colt, a three-year-old colt, a four- 

 year-old horae, a gelding. 



* I have not named a tithe of the districts where many of 

 the same terms are in common use, nor have I enumerated all 

 the names so used. 



