THE CATTLE IN SOSHONG. 317 



are obtainable. For draft oxen, when the Great Thirst 

 Land is likely to be traversed, they far excel all other 

 breeds. They principally come from Lake N'gami and 

 the land of the Baeanana. 



Another ox, generally black, large, and massive, in 

 its proportions, will also be observed. It looks much 

 like the hornless cattle of Gralloway, in Scotland, with 

 the exception that it is not without horns, but these 

 appear to hang down, and swing and shake about 

 perfectly loose with every movement of the animal. 



The ordinary Kaffir ox is abundantly represented, 

 and is a type of animal very dissimilar from anything 

 we have at home ; its body is short and compact, while 

 its legs are long, its neck very short, and possesses 

 an embryo hump on its withers. These must not be 

 confused with the Zulus, which are remarkable for their 

 symmetry and well-bred appearance at least, according 

 to our ideas. 



But the most beautiful of all is the Mashoona ox. 

 In formation it is simply perfect ; the body is massive 

 and square, the head and horns symmetry itself, while 

 its feet and limbs are perfection. They are almost 

 invariably black, are excellent workers, with good 

 tempers. That no person has undertaken the task of 

 importing a few specimens of this race for the sake of 

 improving our home-breed surprises me very much. To 

 do so might be tedious, but not necessarily costly. 



But last, though not least among this heterogeneous 

 crowd, comes the Fatherland representative; doubtless 

 in its veins is a large amount of European blood, but it 

 is frequently perverse in its nature, and stands the want 

 of water badly. It resembles an exaggerated Durham, 

 and my Ackerman is not a bad sample of the breed. 



