On the Exhihition of Live Stock at Chester. 359 



Mr. R. Collings' sale followed, 29th September, 1818. At 

 this remarkable sale 



34 Cows sold for £4348 1 



IJJ^ife^'s ■'■ '.'. '.'. 1351 7 



5^" s 1410 3 



4 bull calves 743 13 q 



*51 sold for £7858 4~S 



Averaging 1287. 16s. s^d. each. 



After the decease of Mr. Christopher Mason the then cele- 

 brated " Chilton herd" was sold on 1st September, 1829, when 



64 Cows and heifers realized £3320 2 



38 Bulls of all ages 2218 13 



^02 sold for £5538 15 



Average, 54/, 6s. each. 



These were the three leadino^ sales that preceded the formation 

 ot the Koyal Agricultural Society, and it is to these and subse- 

 quent sales that the country is indebted for the distribution of 

 so many first-class animals, the foundation of our present "esta- 

 blished breed," 



The formation of the Royal Agricultural Society and its 

 annual meetings for the display of these animals, have done 

 much to bring them under public notice. If an illustration of 

 this be wanting, we can point to the Society's first meeting at 

 Oxford, when the late Mr. Bates so successfully carried off all 

 the short-horn prizes, except the bull-calf (for which he did 

 not exhibit), with his descendants from " Youno- Duchess"— 

 a heifer purchased at Mr. Collings' sale. This was indeed an 

 important starting point in the annals of our meetings. This 

 Duchess family of short-horns— till then comparatively un-- 

 known— then showed to the general jmhUc a class of animals of 

 unequalled excellence of form and quality of flesh In subse- 

 quent years we had other equally distinguished animals exhibited 

 to our notice, whose descent from the earliest blood of Messrs. 

 Pollings, Mason, &c,, was equally well established. 



Ihe cattle bought at the sales just enumerated were evidently 

 the foundation of the three noted tribes of short-horns, known 

 as the Mason of Chilton), the Bates, and the Booth blood. 

 Colone Cradock had also some cattle from them, from which 

 descended what is known as the " old Cherry " tribe. Lord 

 Spencer bought largely at the Chilton sale, and many of the best 

 animals were removed to Wiseton, and were afterwards known 

 as the " VV iseton " herd. There are indeed so many descendants 

 trom the " old stocks," that it would be quite invidious to dis- 



