OHAPTEE X. 



THE SUSSEX BREED OF CATTLE. 



By a. HEASMAN, Angmering, Arundel, Sussex. 



HE origin and date of the Sussex cattle may be a 

 matter of uncertainty. Was William of Normandy 

 attracted by the fine oxen grazing in the rich 

 marshes of Pevensey, or did he import them ? It 

 is generally understood they date back to the time of the 

 Conquest, and it is well known that Pevensey and the surround- 

 ing district has always been their principal home. There is no 

 direct evidence as to whether the Sussex cattle were an original 

 breed, or are descended from the Devons, which are supposed to 

 represent the oldest breeds in England. The matter is not of much 

 importance, but it is easy to believe that the heavy draught 

 purposes to which they were subjected might cause alteration 

 of type and appearance even greater than the originals of these 

 breeds presented. 



This useful class of stock were formerly bred principally for 

 draught purposes, being converted into food for the public after 

 they had cultivated the soil of the Weald of Sussex and Kent^ 

 some of the heaviest tilled land in the kingdom — and at times 

 been required to start the heavy carriage of the county member 

 from the same muddy district, when it was necessary for him to 

 attend to his parliamentary duties, before the locomotive came 

 into operation, or the Highway Act had been amended. Even 

 in those early days the Sussex cattle were fully appreciated, and, 

 always possessing the finest quality of flesh, were never neglected 

 by the grazier. 



When they had been worked for several years, and age at 



