198 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



amounted to about £305 for live-stock, and .ill 1 for 

 implements. This year there are X5'-0 for stock, anil 

 XI 30 for implements. The stock entries are the largest 

 the Society has had, comprising 88 shorthorns, 83 sheep, 

 198 horses, 42 pigs, and 95 poultry and pigeons. And, 

 in general, the shorthorns form by far the finest show 

 yet gathered in the county ; the horses better than ever, 

 the sheep and pigs a great improvement upon last year, 

 and the poultry not at all to be despised or passed by. 



The shorthorn bulls were very grand ; Mr. Wetherell 

 coming in this year to bear away the honours from Mr. 

 Dudding. His prize white bull, "Statesman," was 

 highly commended at Chester ; and his second-prize 

 roan bull was commended at the same meeting, an ani- 

 mal of great substance and with a splendid chine. Mr. 

 Bland's prize three-year-old bull was highly commended 

 at Chester, and remarkable for his line forequarters. 

 IVIr. Budding's " Admiral" and Mr. Rollison's roan are 

 both very handsome ; and Mr. Budding's " Lord of the 

 3Ianor" is a remarkably good animal, with especially 

 good back and flank. The two-year-old bulls were a 

 capital class. Among the yearling bulls, Mr. Budding's 

 is beautiful in every respect — back, chine, and rib in 

 just the right form, and quality of flesh splendid ; Mr. 

 Torr's second-prize yearling is a nice thing, but some- 

 what heavy in offal compared with the winner. There 

 was a large show of cows, some very good indeed. 

 Mr. Torr's red cow is extraordinary for her back, 

 hips, and touch. Mr. Wetherell's " Venus" is also 

 meritorious. The three-year-old heifers were gene- 

 rally commended, but though Mr. Heneage's were 

 admired, there was a defective forequarter in one heifer 

 shown that damaged the character of the class. The 

 two-year-old heifers were also generally commended, 

 though there were some poor animals in the class. Mr. 

 Wetherell's prize heifer is a real beauty, very compact, 

 with fine head and bone, and splendid quality. Sir 

 Thomas Whichcote's heifer is also extremely good. The 

 large class of yearling heifers comprised a few very good, 

 and also some very ordinary specimens. The she-calves 

 (generally commended) included Mr. Bland's and Mr. 

 Heneage's prize beauties, Mr. Hutton's level, fine, and 

 forward calf, and Mr. Wetherell's beautifully-developed 

 " Stanley Rose." The cottager's cow class was interest- 

 ing, and certainly there were some capital milkers, and of 

 excellent frame and quality. Among the extra stock Mr. 

 Torr's roan cow and Mr. Wetherell's " Moss Rose'' 

 (no less than 15 years old) are worthy of especial men- 

 tion. 



Mr. Abraham, Mr. Charles Clarke, and Mr. Lynn, 

 are the greatest in the classes for rams ; Mr. Casswell, 

 of Laughton, showing a few specimens of his famous 

 Hock. There were some very poor shearling rams 

 among their better?. Mr. Clarke's first and second 

 prize two-shears were exceedingly good slieep, with 

 good backs, and nice wool. The three-shear rams 

 showed very great size, Mr. Abraham's having particu- 

 larly good looks. Mr. Abraham's and Cyptain 

 Grantham's pens of ewes were very level and good; but 

 we noticed some that were very inferior. Captain 

 CJrRntham's ewes in extra-stock were also much admired. 



The show of pigs was saved from mediocrity by 

 the presence of several first-class animals, as those 

 of Mr. Richardson and Mr. Harrison, of Ilcaton 

 Norris. Mr. Richardson's large-breed boar is of 

 enormous size, very deep, and weighing, it is sup- 

 posed, some 80 stones imperial ; this has taken the 

 first prize against Mr. Harrison's, which was the 

 first prize boar at Chester, a very long, broad, and 

 deeply-formed animal, with beautiful quality of pork. 

 Mr. Ilarri.son's small-breed prize boar is very fine, with 

 capital loin and neck-chine. Mr. Lynn's second- 

 prize boar is exceedingly compact, short, thick, and 

 astonishingly tilled out in every point. Mr. Harrisons' 



large-breed sow is very great and heavy ; Mr. Pindar's 

 of enormous size, and suckling nine fine pigs. The 

 small-breed sows are a good class. 



The poultry did not form any special attraction in 

 the show ; but the Spanish fowls were good, the Cochins 

 very fine, the game classes uncommonly well supported, 

 Hamburghs meritorious ; the ducks of nice character, 

 the black East Indians of Sir John Thorold drawing 

 some attention ; turkeys, geese, and guinea-fowls very 

 good ; and the Borking cocks, in the additional class, 

 were some of them remarkably fine birds. 



The stirring interest of the day (Thursday) was of 

 course the wonderful show of horses ; and both in the 

 pastures where the stallions displayed themselves, 

 throughout the stands where hunters, young horses, and 

 mares and foals were placed, and around the hurdled 

 ring in which the Judges inspected one class at a time, 

 and awarded the while and green ribbons, a throng of 

 spectators was congregated during the whole time of the 

 exhibition. 



Of ihorotigh-bred »/aWio«« for getting hunters — sic — 

 only two were entered, and the Judges gave the prize to 

 a half-bred horse ! Surely this is a mistake, as no man 

 can expect to breed hunters from a cocktail stallion. If 

 the thorough-bred horse " The Banube" wasnot worthy 

 of a prize it should have been withheld. The draught- 

 horse stallions were an uncommonly fine show. Mr. 

 Hemmaut's prize twelve-year-old bay, with black 

 legs, "Thumper," is amazingly powerful, with great 

 symmetry and constitution, but a trifle too plain, and 

 not imjiroved in appearance by a swelled knee. Mr. 

 Barnes's " Blaze" has a fine top, but very heavy about 

 the feet. Mr. Bellair's " Young Britain" is a clever 

 horse, with capital clean legs. Mr. Hill's " Champion" 

 is compact, powerful, with a rare top, shoulders, and 

 loin ; but might be better about the legs. We missed 

 Mr. Taylor's Chester second-prize horse from this class, 

 but he was entered. Mr. Andrews's strong trotting- 

 horse, " Fire-away," was by far the best roadster stal- 

 lion. Mares for breeding hunters were an especially fine 

 class ; Mr. J. W. Richardson's, Mr. J. R. Fletcher's, 

 Mr. H. G. Skipworth's, and some others, being of the 

 risht sort, and not much behind (he famous prize mares 

 of His Grace the Buke of Rutland and Mr. Floyer. 

 There were some extraordinarily fine mares for breeding 

 draught horses ; also several good brood mares for road- 

 sters. Among the hunting fillies we did not see anything 

 of very marked merit. The cart fillies showed tolerably 

 well, and there were many uncommonly good foals. In 

 extra stock, Mr. J. H, Fisher's entire cart colt was an 

 exceedingly good one ; and Mr. S. H. Harrison's brown 

 mare i)ony well deserved the distinction of the prize it 

 received. Some famous hunting geldings and fillies were 

 shown in competition for the whips and other prizes 

 offered by Lord Yarborough, Sir John Thorold, and 

 Sir M. J. Cholmondeley — Mr. Abraham's splendid 

 bay gelding by "Sir Peter" beating Mr. Burrows' 

 black by " Ambrose," which won the Farmers' Plate at 

 Croxton. We liked the style and action of Mr. Booth's 

 brown gelding by "Voltigeur;" and Mr. Walker's, 

 Mr. Shipman's, Mr. Tlios. Vincent's and others were 

 generally admired. The hunlint? foals bid fair to come 

 up well, so that we shall have plenty of good stock to 

 show when the old favourites no longer appear. 



It is rather bewildering to find animals described more 

 than once in the pages of the catalogue, as in competition 

 for two or three ditfercntly-off'ered prizes — open to the 

 same beast or sheep. Would it not be more convenient, 

 and answer the purpose of the offer, to have prizes for 

 the best aniaials in any of the classes, instead of a 

 separate class assigned to those competing for the gene- 

 ral prizes, after the manner of Birmingham and Baker- 

 street shows .' 



The dinner was well attended ; and, being presided 



