JUDGING. 187 



that rare animal — an efficient judge of stock. That 

 there are heaps who pretend to the title I need 

 scarcely remark ; and that, with the best intentions, 

 signal mistakes occur continually at the various 

 exhibitions, local and national, is simply a matter of 

 notoriety. Let the farmers of each district through- 

 out the United Kingdom, in council met, say at their 

 market dinner, or elsewhere, as may best suit, name 

 in a certain fixed proportion those whom they con- 

 sider in their neighbourhood the best "judges" of 

 the various kinds of stock, the best authority on a 

 question of shorthorns, Herefords, long-woolled 

 sheep, small breed of pigs, the hunter, hack, dray- 

 horse, &c. ; the names so accumulated to be further 

 sorted, and the final selection enrolled in a volume, 

 annually issued; some symbolic letter — e.g. (S.) for 

 shorthorns, (C. H.) cart-horses — being attached to 

 each name : thus John Bacon (S.), Phelim M'Gregor 

 (C. H.), &c. ; due credit being given to each district 

 for superior acquaintance with the breeds which are 

 affected there : as, for instance, Yorkshire for hunters ; 

 Suffolk for cart-horses, &c. ; there being, beyond a 

 doubt, certain esoteric characteristics of each breed 

 which it is not for every one passing by to interpret. 

 The result of such a census, could it be attained, 

 would be most satisfactory ; while it could not but 

 be regarded as an honour to be recorded in the list. 



There should be, moreover, for each breed a code 

 of points drawn out, such as Colonel le Couteur 

 procured for Jersey cattle, and the Arab has for his 

 mare. 



