ANIMAL INDUSTRY 425 



farm similar to that at Shika, but for work on shorthorn humpless 

 cattle, chiefly to provide plough oxen (Nigeria, Agriculture, 1934 

 and 1936 D.R., p. 20, and Anderson 1933). 



Work on similar lines has been carried out in the Gold Coast at 

 the Government livestock farm, opened at Pong-Tamale in 1 93 1 -2, 

 under Mr. J. L, Stewart, the Principal Veterinary Officer, who 

 has given a most interesting account of it (1938) . Now that rinder- 

 pest has been practically eliminated, and contagious bovine 

 pleuro-pneumonia is under control, trypanosomiasis is the greatest 

 obstacle to stock improvement. Experiments with the West African 

 Shorthorn have confirmed those from Nigeria, and show that these 

 cattle possess resistance to local strains of trypanosomiasis, whilst 

 the failure of attempts to grade up native cows with bulls of British 

 breeds, has shown that imported cattle are not successful and that 

 improvement must be confined to West African Shorthorn cattle, 

 or to types of West African Zebu whose progeny can thrive under 

 Gold Coast conditions. Work with the N'Dama has proved most 

 successful; crossing with N'Dama has been found both to improve 

 the inferior breed and also to increase its resistance to the ordinary 

 bovine diseases of West Africa. The present grading policy is, 

 therefore, to restore a high proportion of the old Hamitic Long- 

 horn breed to Gold Coast cattle, by means of the N'Dama. The 

 improved bulls produced at Pong-Tamale are issued to the native 

 administration farms in the Northern Territories, from which 

 bulls are distributed to small farms and village herds, the aim being 

 to improve the native stock by selection within the breed, and by 

 some crossing with graded sires of related African breeds. The 

 main Government farm also crosses bulls direct (Gold Coast, 

 Veterinary, 193 1-2, D.R.). In the coastal area the organiza- 

 tion is somewhat different; a Government farm is under construc- 

 tion and the farmers' associations will take the place of the native 

 administrations in the Northern Provinces (Stewart 1938). 

 Stockdale (1936, p. 77) questions the improvement which is likely 

 to be effected by introductions from French Guinea, and con- 

 cludes that the introduction of strains from outside will only add 

 to the complications which already exist, and will produce an 

 even more heterogeneous collection of animals in the Northern 

 Territories of the Gold Coast. He recommends the selection of 



