SECRETARY'S REPORT. Ill 



milking qualities are said to be less remarkable than those of 

 the genuine Dutch, They are, no doubt, capital working oxen. 

 The number of animals entered and shown in the class of these 

 marsh races, in addition to the Dutch already mentioned, was 

 312. But many of these came from Holstein, others still from 

 Schleswig. 



Along the Holstein and Schleswig marshes, a continuation of 

 the great coast chain already mentioned, the native breeds are 

 closely allied, in their chief characteristics, with the Dutch. 

 But there are more or less breeds distinguished by local pecu- 

 liarities. 



Among the local breeds are the Wilster marsh cattle, many 

 of which were exhibited at Hamburg. They are for the most 

 part red brown, sometimes red and black variegated. They 

 are especially prized for their beef qualities. Another promi- 

 nent local breed is the Ditlimarsh, in the nortliwestern part of 

 Holstein. Many fine specimens of this breed were on the 

 ground. This is also of variegated colors. Holstein lies 

 directly north and east of Hamburg. Altona, the capital, is 

 less than a mile from the Exhibition grounds. Schleswig 

 again is just north of Holstein, and forms the connecting 

 link between Germany and Denmark. It is a narrow country 

 separating the Baltic from the German ocean. Now between 

 Holstein and. Schleswig there is a little river called the Eyder 

 or Eider, and along this there is a breed, also well represented 

 in the exhibition, called the Eidermarsh cattle, still red varie- 

 gated, or red and black variegated. 



In the higher, or inland parts of Schleswig, there is a more 

 uniform red class of cattle, which shows a relationship with the 

 breeds in Northern Germany, but the variegated colors predom- 

 inate, especially the red and white spotted, in the cattle of both 

 Schleswig and Holstein, while the form is generally more 

 rounded and the rvimp less sloping than in the Dutch. They 

 are prized not only for their good milking qualities, but also for 

 easy fattening. 



On the easterly border of Schleswig there is a department 

 called Angeler. It possesses a light built race of cows, scarcely 

 of the medium size, for the most part red, sometimes a little 

 variegated. These little Angeler cows are bred in immense 

 numbers by the peasants who there own most of the land them- 



