BRITISH AND FRENCH AGRICULTURE. 171 



either white or black, but grey is, I believe, the prevailing 

 colour. It is said that bay was the original colour of 

 the breed, but that it was supplanted by grey in conse- 

 quence of the drivers of night diligences always asking for 

 grey horses for their relays, as being more visible by night. 

 We are accustomed to think that we possess in this 

 country a goodly number of different breeds of cattle, 

 and no doubt it would puzzle many people to give a 

 complete list of them. If we may take the possession 

 of a Herd Book as evidence of sufficient claims to recog- 

 nition as an established breed, there are in the British 

 Isles seventeen distinct breeds. There are, no doubt, 

 some other local varieties which might claim to be 

 regarded as distinctive breeds, but their numbers are 

 few. Although it will be generally admitted that the 

 Shorthorns are the most numerous and the most widely 

 distributed throughout the country, we have no accurate 

 knowledge of the number of pure-bred animals of the 

 different breeds or the number which, although not 

 pure -bred, possess the essential characteristics of a par- 

 ticular breed, and for practical purposes may be described 

 by its name. In Ireland, where the collection of detailed 

 information from farmers does not perhaps present quite 

 the same difficulty as in Great Britain, statistics are 

 available showing the number of bulls of each breed. 

 From the figures for 1903 it appears that the numbers in 

 that year were as follows : — 



