m 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



[No. 6 



nnd some of the besl of the Teeswaler cattle, to 

 which he was desirous to jfo back, on account of 

 the extent to whicli hveeiWng in-and-in has been 

 carried. When slaujfhlered, their proof was ex- 

 traordinary, and many instances are recorded of 

 the wonderful \vei<rht of their inside fat. 



The remarkable difterence which existed be- 

 tween the Teeswater and the old unimproved 

 short-horns may, willi propriety, be ascribed to a 

 spirit of improvement which had some time mani- 

 fested itself amonu the breeders on the banks of 

 the Tees, whose laudable efforts were well second- 

 ed by tiie very superior land in the vicinity of that 

 river. • No reasonable doubts can be entertained 

 that they proceeded on a iu(hciou3 system of cross- 

 ino; with other breeds, because it was utterly 

 impossible to raise sucii a stock as the Teeswaicr 

 from pure short-horn blood. One cross to which 

 they referred was in all probability, the white wild 

 breed ; and if this conjecture be well-lbuhded, it 

 will he apparent whence the short-horns derived 

 a color so prevalent amon<r them. 



It is also asserted that, about the period in ques- 

 tion. Sir William St. Quintin, of Scampston, im- 

 ported bulls and cows from Holland, which were 

 crossed with the stock of the coimtry. It would 

 tend to little advantage to proceed with conjec- 

 tures, as to what other breeds were resorted to, if 

 any ; this much is certain, that great improvement 

 was soon manifested, and a valuable variety es- 

 tablished, as the two following instances will prove. 



JV'Ir. Milbank, of Birminirham,one ofthe leading 

 improvers, bred and slauixhtered an ox, which, at 

 five years old, weiiihed, the four quarters, one hun- 

 dred and fifty stones, of fourteen pounds to the stone, 

 producing sixteen stones of tallow ; and a cow 

 bred from his slock, slaughtered by Mr. Sharter, 

 of Chilton, at twelve years old, weighed upwards 

 of one hundred and ten stones. 



From Mr. Miibank's time, the Tecswater cattle 

 continued to sustain their excellence and celebrity 

 in various haiiils, until xMr. Charles Colling adopt- 

 ed them, when he manifested a superiority of skill 

 as a breeder, which, in a very brief period, secured 

 him an ample fortune. 



Whatever had been the merits of the Tees- 

 waler cattle, it is certain Mr. Colling greatly im- 

 proved them ; and though it has been asserted 

 that his success was the result of chance,'' arising 

 from the possession of an animal, with the merits 

 of which, it is supposed, he was at one period un- 

 acquainted, the writer of this article is of opinion 

 (bat Mr. Colling's success resulted from a delibe- 

 rate and well-considered plan. He found the Tees- 

 water, like all otiier extravagantly large cattle, 

 frequently of loose make and disproporiion. He 

 was sensible, also, of the difficuhy of breeding, 

 with anything like certainty, large good animals; 

 and though he has declined on all occasions to 

 throw any light on Iiis views and proceedings, the 

 writer thinks he can detect, in the very outset, and 

 (hrouijh the progress of his practice, a resolution 

 to reduce the size of this breed, and at the same 

 time, and by that means, to improve il.T form. 

 This he is supposed to liave effected, in the first 

 instance, through the medium of a bull, called 

 " ffubback,^'' an animal respect ins which there h.as 

 been much controversy, principally touchinix llie 

 purity of his blood, a question now of little im- 

 portance, because it is admitted on all hands that 

 Mr. Colling adopted another cross, which prevails 



in a majority of superior short-horns of the pre- 

 sent day. It may, notwithstanding, be nuitter of 

 interest to state a lew particulars res|)ecting this 

 bull. 



Without entering on an inquiry by what cir- 

 cumstances Hubback's title to be considered of 

 pure blood is su[)ported or weakened, it may suf- 

 fice to observe, (hat it appears probable he pos- 

 sesseil on one side the imfjorieil blood. The j)os- 

 sessor of his dam was a person in indigent cir- 

 cumstances, and grazed his cow in the higliways. 

 When al'terwards she was removed to good land, 

 near Darlington, she became so fiil that she did not 

 again breed; and her son, having the same liied- 

 uig propensity in a hiijh deL'ree, was useful as a 

 bull during a very short period. The quality of 

 the flesh, hide and hair, are supposed to have been 

 soldom equalled ; and as he was smaller than the 

 Teeswaler cattle, he was eminently calculated to 

 forward Mr. Colling's views. 



It has been remarked that we have at present 

 no superior horse on the furf, which does not boast 

 the blood of the Godolphin Arabian; so it may be 

 asserted that we iiave no superior short-horns 

 which do not claim descent nearly, or remotely, 

 fi-om Hubback ; because Hubback was the sire of 

 the dam of Mr. Charles Colling's bull, Foljambe, 

 who was the grandsire of Favorite^.; anil there 

 can be no doubt that there has not been lor many 

 years any superior short-horu who was not de- 

 scended from Favorite. Mr. Cluirles Colling is 

 said to have considered that the bull Foljarrdie 

 was the one who did his slock the greatest good; 

 and this is not improbable, as Foljambe was the 

 sire both of the sire and dam of Favorite. Hub- 

 back, however, must have been a remarkably 

 good animal, and consiilering the short time during 

 which he was used as a bull, proved himself a (ir.sl- 

 rate stock-getter. 



The following account of Hubback we had fl-oni 

 Mr. Waistell, or Alinill, who, alihouoh his name 

 does not appear conspicuously in the 'Sliort- Horned 

 Herd Book,' deserves much credit li/r his discrimi- 

 nation here. He used to admire this calf, as he 

 rode almost daily by the meadow in which it 

 srrazed ; and at lennr'h lie attempted to purchase it 

 from the Oivner. The price asked, £8, seemed 

 much lor a calf not a year old ; and the reputation 

 ofthe short-horns not being yet established, the 

 bargain was not struck. Still he longed fiir the 

 young beast ; and happening to meet Mr. Robert 

 Colling near the place, he asked his opinion of The 

 animal. JNIr. Colling acknowledtred that there 

 were some good points about him ; but there was 

 something in his manner of acknowledging this, 

 which induced Mr. Waistell to suspect that Mr. 

 Collinix thouglit somewhat more highly of the 

 calf than his language expressed, and, therefore, 

 he hastened the next morninir, concluded the bar- 

 gain, and paid the money. He had scarcely done 

 so before Mr. R. Colling arrived for the same pur- 

 pose, and as the two farmers rode home together, 

 tUev agreed that it should be a joint speculation. 



Some months passed by, and either Mr. Wais- 

 tell's admiration of the calf a little cooled, or 

 his partner did not express himself very warmly 

 about tlic excellencies of the animal, and Messrs. 

 Waistell and R. Colling translJjrred young Hub- 

 back to JMr. C. Colling; who, with the quick eye 

 of an experienced breeder, saw the value of the 

 little beast. Mr. Waistell expressed to us (Octo- 



