208 



FARMERS' REGISTER— OBSERVATIONS ON STOCKING A FARiM. 



good flesh is that of being marbled, or having the 

 Fat and leanfinely veined, or intermixed, when the 

 animals are killed; and, while alive, by a firm and 

 mellow feci. 



IV. In rearing live stock of any description, it 

 should be an invariable rule to breed from small- 

 boned, straiglit-backed, healthy, clean, kindly- 

 skinned, round-bodied, and barrel-shaped animals, 

 with clean necks and throats, and little or no dew- 

 lap; carefully rejecting all those which may have 

 heavy legs and roach backs, together with much 

 appearance of ofl'al. And, as some breeds have a 

 tendency to generate great quantities of fat on 

 certain parts of the body, while in others it is more 

 mixed with the flesh of every part of the animal, 

 this circumstance will claim the attention of the 

 breeder as he advances in business. 



V. In the purchasing of cattle, whether in a lean 

 or fat state, the farmer should on no account buy 

 beasts out of richer or better grounds than those 

 into which he intends to turn them; for, in this 

 case, he must inevitably sustain a very material 

 loss, by the catUe not thriving, particularly il' they 

 be old. It will, therefore, be advisable to select 

 them, either from stock feeding in the neighbor- 

 hood, or from such breeds as are best adapted to 

 the nature and situation of the soil. 



VI. Dociliiy of disposition, without being defi- 

 cient in spirit, is of equal moment; for, indepen- 

 dently of the da.-naffe committed by cattle of wild 

 tempers on fences, fields, &c., which inconvenience 

 will thus be obviated, it is an indisputable fact, that 

 tame beasts require less food to rear, sxipport, and 



fatten them; consequently every attention ought to 

 be paid, early to accustom them to be docile and 

 familiar. 



VII. Hardiness of constUvtion, particularly in 

 bleak and exposed districis, is indeed a most im- 

 portant requisite; and in every case it is highly es- 

 sential to a farmer's interest to have a breed that is 

 liable neither to disease nor to any hereditarj^ dis- 

 temper. A dark color, and in cattle which are 

 kei)t out all the winter a rough and curled pile, or 

 coat of hair, are, in the popular estimation, certain 

 indications of hardiness: but it must be obvious to 

 every thinking person, that this quality, though in 

 Bome respects inherent in particular breeds, de- 

 pends, in a great measure, upon the method in 

 which cattle are treated. 



There is, indeed, a rather prevalent opinion, that 

 white is a mark of degeneracy, and that, animals 

 of the most vivid hues possess the greatest portion 

 of health and strength; in proof of which it has 

 been instanced that among mankind, a healthy 

 habit is visible in the floridness of the complexion, 

 as sickness is perceptible in the ])a]eness of the 

 looks, and the decrepitude of age in the vv-hiteness 

 of the hair. It has also been remarked that gray 

 horses are commonly of a tender constitution, until 

 crossed with darker breeds, and that among the 

 feathered tribe, the common poultry, with hio:h 

 colored plumaaje, are in all respects superior to the 

 white. But it has been justly observed in reply, 

 that the powerful Polar "bears, and many of the 

 strono;est birds, as the goose and swan, are white; 

 nor will it escape observation, as more immediately 

 touching the present subject, that the wild cattle 

 are invariably of that color, and that the highest 

 bred Herefords are distinguished by white faces.* 



* It is stated in the Agricultural Survey of Leices- 

 tershire as the remark of a scientific observer of the 



VIII. Connected with hardiness of constitution 

 is early matariiy, which, however, can only be at- 

 tained by feeding cattle in sach a manner as to 

 keep them constantly in a growing state. By an 

 observance of this principle, it has been found that 

 beasts and sheep, thus managed, thrive more in 

 three years, than they usually do in five when 

 they have not sufficient food during the winter, by 

 which, in the common mode of rearing, their 

 growth is checked. 



IX. A kindly disposition to take fat on the most 

 valuable parts of the carcass, at an early age, and 

 with lilt'e food, when compared with the quantity 

 and quality consumed by similar animals. On 

 this account, smaller cattle have been recommend- 

 ed as generally having a more natural disposition 

 to iiittcn, and as requiring, proportionably to the 

 larger animal, less food to make them fat; conse- 

 quently, the greater quantity of meat for consump- 

 tion can be made per acre. "In stall-feeding," — 

 the nature, method, and advantages of which will 

 be statfed in a subsequent chapter, — it has been re- 

 marked, that, "whatever may be the food, the 

 smaller animal pays most for that food; in dry 

 lands, the smaller animal is always sufficiently 

 heavy for treading; in wetlands less injurious.""* 

 But this opinion is combated by many able judges, 

 Avho still contend that the largest animals are the 

 most profitable. They doubtless are so on good 

 keep; but the smaller animals will thrive on soils 

 where heavy beasts will decline. 



X. JVorking, or an aptitude for labor: a point of 

 infinite importance in a country whose population 

 is so extensive as that of Britain, and where the 

 consumption of grain by horses has so material an 

 influence on the comforts and existence of the in- 

 habitants. As, however, there is a difference of 

 opinion on this subject, the reader is referred to the 

 chapter where the question is fully discussed. But, 

 whether kine be purchased for the plough, or for 

 the purpose of fattening, it Avill be necessary to 

 see, in addition to the essentials already stated, 

 that they are young, in perfect health, fiiU-mouth- 

 ed, and not broken either in tail, hair, or in any 

 respect; that the hair stare not, and that they are 

 not hide-bound, otherwise they will not feed kindly. 

 The same remark is applicable to cows intended 

 for the pail, the horns of which should be fair and 

 smooth, the forehead broad and smooth, udders 

 white, yet not fleshy, but thin and loose when 

 empty, to hold the greater quantity of milk, but 

 large when full; ])rovided with large dug-veins to 

 fill it, and with lour elastic teats, in order that the 

 milk may be more easily drav.'n ofl. 



XI. Beside the rules above stated, there are 

 some particulars with regard to the age of neat or 

 black cattle and sheep, which merit the farmer's 

 consideration. 



cattle usually bred in that county, "that those of adeep 

 red, dark liver color, or black, with tanned sides, are 

 the hardiest, and have the best constitutions; will 

 endure the severest weather, perform the most work, 

 live to the greatest age, and fatten on such food as 

 would starve those of "weaker colors." But in opposi- 

 tion to this we have, in the Annals of Agriculture, the 

 assurance of Mr. Campbell, a practical and extensive 

 breeder, that, upon repeated comparative trials, "he has 

 had bulls, oxen, and cows, of a white breed, as healthy 

 and hardy as any others." 



* Papers of the Bath and West of England Societ)-, 

 Vol. X, p. 262. 



