SHORTHORN HERDS OF ENGLAND. 321 



reached in a regular downpour, welcomed generally by agriculturists, 

 but not especially by the travellers or ^he town, the latter being quite 

 en fete with its regatta, and later in the evening the first carnival 

 ever held takes place, which if judged by its success, promises 

 well for its repetition. On our arrival at the station, Mr. S. 

 Hosken who has had the management of the herd since its 

 commencement is found to be at Penzance, continuing our journey 

 thither, and finding the genial owner, we are shown the attractions 

 of the pleasant little watering place, where geraniums bloom all the 

 year round, and it is a matter of regret that time cannot well be 

 found to visit Lord St. Levan's beautiful " Island Palace," known as 

 St. Michael's Mount. 



Before referring to the herd, some slight mention of the farm 

 on which the animals, so greatly admired when exhibited, have been 

 bred. Forty years ago, when the farm of two hundred acres was taken 

 by Messrs. Hosken, where the herd is located, the sole live stock 

 consisted of a couple of cows, with the same number of horses and a 

 pig, fences were conspicuous by their absence and the greater part 

 of the land, which was then mere waste, has since been reclaimed and 

 replaced by herbage very creditable to the occupiers, while thoroughly 

 first rate fences, a combination of stone and soil up to a height of 

 four feet and on the top thorns, grow as well as the strong winds 

 will permit, but when it is mentioned that the farm is situate 

 bordering upon the mighty Atlantic, with many of the fields at a height 

 considerably above sea level, it is a close fight even for the hardy 

 thorn to gain a victory, and it is impossible for timber trees to make 

 any progress under such unpropitious circumstances. Here short- 

 horns not only exist, but thrive and multiply exceedingly, buyers 

 from all parts of the world have visited the Messrs. Hosken and 

 their herd, and during the present season, animals have been sent to 

 Buenos Ayres and South Africa, while not the least object of interest 

 is the visitor's book showing that visitors, not only from nearly every 

 part of the United Kingdom, but from the American, Australian, and 

 INew Zealand Colonies, as well as from the European Continent and 



w 



