THE BO VINES 363 



are not so long. In fact, the English wild cattle of to-day bear 

 much the same relation to the urus as the pariah dog of (say) 

 the west of Ireland bears to the wolf. It is derived direct from 

 the wolf with scarcely any intermixture of other blood, and yet 

 is degenerate, differing from it only in smaller size, in bigger 

 brain capacity, and in the lesser bushiness of the tail. 



The habits of these white cattle are those of wild animals. 

 The bulls are even dangerous sometimes to passers-by. As a 

 rule, however, they run away at the sight of man, and it is almost 

 as difficult to approach them as if they were African antelopes. 

 In the summer they generally feed at night-time, basking in the 

 day in the long fern or grass. They also sleep a good deal 

 during the daytime. The cows hide their young in thickets, 

 or brushwood, until they are old- enough to feed with the rest of 

 the herd. The whole herd is ready to make common cause in 

 defence of a single calf. When they move about from pasture 

 to pasture, and the calves are old enough to travel, they generally 

 move inside the herd, with their mothers on the outside of the 

 troop and the bull patriarch leading. In the winter-time bulls, 

 cows, and calves mix indiscriminately in the herd. When the 

 breeding season (the spring) draws near, there are fierce battles 

 amongst the bulls for the possession of the cows, battles which 

 often cost the life of the vanquished, which, if only wounded, is 

 said to be done to death by the others. In the natural life of 

 these cattle, where polygamy is the rule and castration does not 

 solve the difficulty of the unsuccessful males, it is obvious that it 

 is for the benefit of the herd that these unnecessary drones should 

 be killed. They are often, no doubt, driven to lead solitary lives 

 where they may easily fall a prey to the attacks of carnivorous 

 beasts. In fact, it is mainly on these solitary males, in countries 

 where big Carnivores still exist, that lions, tigers, leopards, lynxes, 

 wolves, and bears subsist. If the whole herd is in harmony, 

 or if a female or calf is attacked, success on the part of the 

 Carnivores is very doubtful. 



Except in coloration, and perhaps in increased shagginess, 

 there is little difference between the English park cattle and the 



