THE FARMER AT HOME, 75 



there to be absorbed. The first operation is the more effective, but 

 the more hazardous of the two, owing ta the inflammation which suc- 

 ceeds. The second is tedious, and sometimes fails ; but it is free from 

 the risk of inflammation. 



CATTLE. The value of the ox tribe has been in all ages and 

 tribes highly appreciated. The natives of Egypt, India, and of Hin- 

 dostan seem alike to have placed the cow among their deities , and, 

 judging by her usefulness to all classes, no animal could perhaps have 

 been selected whose value to mankind is greater. In nearly all parts 

 of the earth cattle are employed for their labor, for their milk, and for 

 their food. In southern Africa they are as much the associates of the 

 Caffres as the horse is of the Arab. They share his toil, and assist 

 him in tending his herds; they are even trained to battle, in which 

 they become fierce and courageous. In central Africa, the proudest 

 ebony beauties are to be seen on their backs. They have drawn the 

 plough in all ages ; in Spain they still trample out the corn ; in India 

 raise the water from the deepest wells to irrigate the thirsty soils of 

 Bengal. When Caesar invaded England, they constituted the chief 

 riches of that country ; and they now form, in that country, as well 

 as in our own, no small item of the wealth of the inhabitants. 



Within the present century, great improvements have been made 

 in the breeds of domestic cattle, particularly in Great Britain, where 

 Bakewell, and Collings, and Bevey, with other spirited individuals, 

 have rendered the most valuable service in this important enterprise. 

 Within this period, the average weight of English cattle has risen one- 

 third ; and the present appearances do not indicate that this increase 

 has reached its highest point. The great improvements already 

 effected, have been made by judicious crosses, and breeding with 

 reference to certain desirable qualities of form, size, milk, or aptitude 

 to fatten ; and these objects have been attained in some of the best 

 modern breeds of cattle to an extent that would once have been 

 deemed impossible. It is evident that care must be taken, or there 

 will exist a tendency to retrograde to the original standard ; a ten- 

 dency which will become less and less, as the type and constitution of 

 the improved breeds recede farther from the point of their origin, and 

 of course more fixed and stable. 



The breeds of cattle at present in most repute, and beyond all 

 competition in any other varieties, are the Herefords, the Devons, and 

 the Short-Horns, including several distinct crosses. Indeed, it is 

 scarcely possible to conceive of more perfect models of form and beauty 

 among animals, than are to be found among those named, particularly 

 the high-bred varieties in the latter classification. Great pains have 

 latterly been taken to introduce into the United States the very best 

 breeds of Europe, and finer herds of cattle are nowhere to be found 

 than now exist in Kentucky and Ohio, which States have taken the 

 lead in this laudable business. As to the general treatment of cattle, 



