THE UNITED KINGDOM. 181 



HEREFORDSHIRE AND HEREFORD CATTLE. 



REPORT PREPARED FOR COXKVL DOCKERY, OF LEEDS, 7?F MR. JOHN KERSLEY 

 FOWLER,* PREBEND AL FARM, AYLESBURY. 



DESCRIPTION OF HEREFORDSHIRE. 



Ill writing an account of this very valuable and beautiful tribe of 

 cattle, it is necessary to give a description of tlie county which gives 

 its name to the breed, and also of the soil and climate, as well as the 

 general characteristics of the district, as this particular breed of cattle 

 is specially adapted to certain localities in England, and, although I 

 will not venture to affirm that they will not thrive under other climatic 

 and geological circumstances than their own county, from my own per- 

 sonal experience I find that they are more adapted for those districts 

 which partake more or less of the character of Herefordshire. 



This county is situated in the west midland district of England, ad- 

 joining the Welsh counties, and is bounded on the north by Shropshire, 

 on the east by Worcestershire and Gloucestershire, on the south by 

 Monmouthshire, and on the west by Kadnorshire and Breconshire. It 

 will, therefore, be seen that it has no sea coast, but the river Wye run- 

 ning through the county gives it communication with the sea, through 

 the Bristol Channel. It is well supplied with railway communication, 

 the Midland giving it a direct route to the north, and the Great West- 

 ern to the south and west, and also to the metropolis. The city of 

 Hereford itself is, also, connected with the Northwestern line, via Mal- 

 vern and Worcester, thus giving the county every means of supplying 

 the various grazing districts of England with numbers of excellent store 

 cattle, as also for the dispatch of fat animals to the markets of the great 

 metropolis and the teeming populations of the many thriving towns in 

 the north. 



The soil of the county is varied, the larger portion is a red clay, as 

 also strong loam. Around the town of Boss, where some of the choicest 

 specimens of the breed are found, the soil is a loamy gravel or light 

 loam. The old red sandstone forms also a considerable portion of the 

 county, and some of the hills axe limestone. The valleys are particu- 

 larly adapted for the feeding of cattle, as they are moist and rich, and 

 the soil is of a mixed character, from the continuous washing away of 

 the hills, and the debris finding its way to the lower grounds, and form- 

 ing a rich alluvial deposit well suited for the production of the finest 

 grasses. The hill-sides and higher portions of the county are eminently 

 suited for the breeding and rearing of cattle, and the comparative mild- 

 ness of the climate is favorable for the health and early development 

 of the calves. 



The acreage of the county is 532,890 acres, divided into or about the 

 following proportions: 



Orchards, 27,000 ; woodlands, 37,000; and the remainder for agricult- 

 ural operations. According to the last Government returns there were 

 under 



Acres. 



Corn crops 95,299 



Green crops 32,813 



CMover and rotation grasses 34,108 



IVnnnnmt pasture 265,061 



Bare fallow 11,247 



Hops 6,416 



* Juror at the Paris Exposition of 1878. 



