EXTRACTS FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC. 153 



farmer of the Border purchases from some breeder of established 

 reputation a good yearling bull, which he uses for two or three 

 seasons, and then replaces by another in like manner. This bull 

 serves his own cows and those of his hinds, and some of the neigh- 

 boring villagers ; and thus, though his own stud be limited to six 

 or eight cows, he can select from the progeny of his own bull as 

 many calves as he requires to make up his lot, and has them more 

 uniform in color and quality than could otherwise be the case. As 

 the male parent among sheep and cattle is known to exert by far 

 the greater influence in giving character to the progeny, and in- 

 creasingly so in proportion to the purity of his breeding, it is evi- 

 dently much to the advantage of the beef grower to spare no rea- 

 sonable trouble and expense in obtaining a bull of thorough purity, 

 and then to select his calves with the most scrupulous attention. 

 From overlooking all this, how often may lots of cattle be seen, 

 on the best of land too, which can only be fattened at an enormous 

 expense of food and time, and, after all, are so coarse in quality 

 as to realize an inferior price per stone ! Occasionally a few beasts 

 of the right sort will be seen in such lots, which, by going ahead of 

 their fellows to the extent of £4 or £o a piece of actual market 

 value, shew what might have been done by greater skill or attention 

 on the part of the owner. It is very desirable to have all the cows 

 to calve betwixt the 1st of February and the 1st of April. If 

 earlier, they will get almost dry ere the grass comes, and calves 

 later than this will scarcely be fit for sale with the rest of the lot. 

 When a calf is dropped, it is immediately removed from its dam, 

 rubbed dry, with a coarse cloth or whisp of straw (this being what 

 the cow would do for it with her tongue, if allowed), and then 

 placed in a crib in the calf-house among dry straw, when it receives 

 a portion of its own mother's first milk, which, being of a purga- 

 tive quality, is just what is needed by the young animal. For a 

 fortnight, new milk is the only food suitable for it, and of this it 

 should receive a liberal allowance thrice a day ; but means should 

 now be used to train it to eat linseed cake and sliced Swedish tur- 

 nip ; and the readiest way of doing so is to put a bit of cake into 

 its mouth immediately after getting its milk, as it will then suck 

 ; greedily at anything it can get hold of. By repeating this a few 

 tliaes, and placing a few pieces in its trough, it will usually take 

 t'l this food freely ; and whenever this is the case, it should have 

 i- much as it can eat, that its allowance of milk. may be diminish- 

 < il, to meet the necessities of the younger calves which are coming 

 in siucession. This is of the greater importance that it is always 

 most desirable to avoid mixing anything with their milk by way 

 of helping the quantity. When a substitute must be resorted to, 

 oatmeal porridge mixed with the new milk is perhaps the best. 



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