BAKEWELL AND THE GRAZIER'S ART 53 



■cattle, jumped into the foremost place. Charles Colling's 

 Ketton herd was to cattle-breeders what Bakewell's new 

 Leicesters were to sheep-farmers. In 1810 his stock was 

 sold at an average price of 175 guineas. Similarly 

 Tomkins, in 1769, took up and improved the Hereford 

 cattle, from his two famous cows ' Pigeon ' and ' Mottle.' 

 By a pardonable anachronism Scott has assigned to the 

 Laird of Killancureit ' a bull of matchless merit brought 

 from the county of Devon (the Damnonia of the Romans, if 

 we may trust Robert of Gloucester).' But the Devon 

 cattle were only known as draught oxen for the plough in 

 the days of Waverley. Mr. Coke of Holkham brought 

 them into fashion early in this century, and their great 

 breeder was Mr. Quartley. 



Bakewell's success and the increasing demand for 

 butchers' meat raised up a host of imitators. Breeders 

 everywhere followed his example : his standard of excellence 

 was gradually recognised. The foundation of the Smith- 

 field Club in 1793 did much to promote the improvement 

 of live stock. In 1710 the average size of the cattle 

 and sheep sold in Smithfield Market was — beeves 370 lbs., 

 calves 50 lbs., sheep 28 lbs., lambs 18 lbs.; in 1795 they 

 weighed respectively 800 lbs., 148 lbs., 80 lbs., and 50 lbs. 

 Part of this improvement must be attributed to Bake well 

 and his successors, part to the enclosure of the commons. 

 So long as these existed the cattle were stunted, if not 

 starved; and the stint, even if any limit was imposed, 

 was disproportionately large. But local prejudices were 

 hard to overcome ; it was years before farmers ceased to 

 value the shape and proportions which gratified the taste 

 of their ancestors. It requires many blows to drive a nail 

 through hearts of oak ; or, as others might put it, the 

 ' John Trot geniuses ' of farming were hardly convinced 



