1S38] 



FAR JM K II S • R J: G I S T E R 



255 



advantawps, to a certain extent, in the hands of 

 most skillul and judicious breeders; though it 

 may he pursued until ihe excellent t'orni and qua- 

 lily ot' a breed is developed and established, and 

 was the source whence spruui; the superior catile 

 an. I sheep of JJakewell, and to some extent of the 

 superior short horns of Mr. Collinij;; yet, to it also 

 must be traced the speedy de<rcneracy — the abso- 

 lute disappearance of the New Leicester cattle, 

 and, in the hands of many an airriculturist, the 

 impairment ol' the constitution of the New Lei- 

 cester sheep. 



Bakewell was a master spirit in breedinnr, 

 and it cannot be denied, produced a breed of cat- 

 tle worthy the efforts of such a skilful ag^ricullu- 

 rist. The principle on which he seemed to act 

 was novel, bold, and for a time a successful one. 

 Some of his cattle were extraordinary illustrations 

 of the harmlessness of such a system, but he had 

 a larije stock on which to work, a veil of mystery 

 was thrown over the most of his proceedings, 

 and no one knew his occasional deviations from 

 this rule, nor his skilful interposition of remoter 

 affinities, when he saw, or apprehended danger. 



But what has now become of the New Leices- 

 ter or Bakewell cattle? where are they to be 

 found ? It was a bold and successful experiment, 

 and seemed for a while to answer the most san- 

 guine expectations of that skilful and spirited 

 breeder. 



In districts, in which experiments were carried 

 on, it established a breed of cattle equalled by 

 few; and it enabled .he long horns to contend, 

 and often successfully, with the heaviest and best 

 of the middle horns. But no sooner had the mas- 

 ter spirits of the day disappeared, than the cha- 

 racferof the breed began imperceptibly to change. 

 It had acquired a delicacy of constitution incon- 

 sistent with common management and keep; and 

 it began slowly but undeniably to deteriorate. 

 Many of them had been bred to a degree of re- 

 finement, that the propagation of the species was 

 not always certain. The breed itself gradually 

 diminished, in some places it almost disappeared. 

 The reader may scarcely give credit to the asser- 

 tion, but it is strictly true, that in 1833 there was 

 not a single improved Leicester on the Dishley 

 farm; nor a dozen within the circuit of as many 

 miles. It would seem as if" some strange convul- 

 sion of nature, or some murderous pestilence, had 

 suddenly swept away the whole of this valuable 

 breed. 



The above remarks are in substance taken from 

 that valuable treatise on British cattle, before al- 

 luded to. In Kentucky, though the principle of 

 breeding in and in has met with general disappro- 

 bation, yet, it has been more or less practised by 

 many breeders. To one of whom allusion will be 

 made, not from unkindness, but merely for exam- 

 ple, for lie, like Mr. Bakewell of England, is a 

 monument to illustrate the propriety of the prac- 

 tice. This breeder, (now less notorious) had, 

 several years since, one of the finest herds of 

 milking and breeding blooded cattle in Kentucky, 

 and deservedly had high reputation as a breeder. 

 But vainly imagining that they were far superior 

 to all others, proper crossing was neglected, the 

 stock began to diminish in size; many of them 

 became hornless; and their constitutions were im- 

 paired, in consequence of which they suffered 

 more from cold, in winter, and were more liable to 



disease, in summer; the murrain soon got amonj[j 

 theni, and played such sad havoc in one short 

 season, that at present, only a few venerable ani- 

 mals remain of tliat once superior but iU-lated 

 herd. 



With this short digression we will again quote 

 our valuable author. "It has tlierelore become a 

 kind of principle with the agriculturist to effect u 

 change in his stock every second or thinl year; 

 and that change is most conveniently effected by 

 introducing a new bull. This bull should be as 

 nearly as possible of the same" sort; coming from 

 a similar pasturage and climate; but possessing 

 no relationship — or at most a very distant one — not 

 related to the stock to which he is introduced. He 

 should bring with him every good point which the 

 breeder has labored hard to produce in his stock; 

 and if possible some improvement; and especially 

 where the old stock may have been somewhat de- 

 ficient ; and most certainly he should have no 

 manifest defect of form, and that most essential of 

 all qualifications, a hardy constitution, should not 

 be wanting." R. W. S. 



STATE OF THE WHEAT-CROP. 



The present wheat-crop throughout Virginia, and 

 other adjacent states so far as we have heard, is the 

 best, in quantity and quality combined, that has grown 

 for many years — if not the best that has ever been 

 made. Some partial disasters, on particular farms, 

 have been suffered, from chinch-bug, hessian fly, 

 or rust ; but nothing worth naming as affecting the 

 general crop of Virginia. A more considerable cause 

 of diminution will be found in the circumstance that 

 there is less surface now under wheat than a few years 

 ago; as the repeated losses and failures of wheat have 

 caused almost every farmer to withdraw some portion 

 of his field (the part promising the least product,) 

 from wheat-culture, and substituting oats or rye. The 

 crop is now so far advanced in lower Virginia, that it 

 may be considered out of danger, except from conti- 

 nued wet weather during the time for harvest; by 

 which cause we have known one crop (in 1S21) near- 

 ly lost, after it was lipe enough to be reaped. The 

 weather now (June 25th) is very favorable. 



Harvest was begun on some of the most highly im- 

 proved marled land on James river on the 18th inst., 

 with purple-straw wheat— which was as early as 

 (what is called) May wheat, elsewhere, was ready for 

 the scythe. There has been a predominance of cold 

 weather for the time of year, through the last 60 days, 

 or more, and the growth and ripening of wheat were 

 every where more backward than usual. If the crop 

 should prove as abundant as we now expect, it will be 

 a most important means of restoring the commercial 

 prosperity of the United States, and especially of Vir- 

 ginia, which has latterly been so wofully eclipsed. 



There is also a prospect of good prices for, as well 

 as good products of wheat. For crops to be delivered 

 before August, at landings on James river (tide water,) 

 $1.50 per bushel is offered; and sales have been made 

 on these terms, by most of those who expect to be able 

 to effect so early a delivery. Afterwards, prices must 

 be considerably lower, unless there should be a failure 



