ATESHIEES-j 



CATTLE, AND THEIE YAEIETIES. [fbeiich breeds. 



the variety may be perpetuated, till they lose, 

 in the course of ages, many of their original 

 characteristics. It is impossible, for instance, 

 in Essex, to grow the ox to the same size, 

 other things being equal, as in the county of 

 Durham; nor on the Ayrshire hills can he be 

 produced in the same form or stature as in the 

 Devonshire valleys. The Highland Scot is 

 suited to the cold climate of the exposed and 

 stormy nortli, and the short-horn to the sunny 

 lowland pastures ; and who shall say that the 

 God of nature has not impressed on these 

 treated beings the capability of adapting them- 

 selves to his plastic handiwork, of developing 

 their tendency to follow the peculiarities of 

 the situation in which they are placed? 

 An elephant can never degenerate into a 

 mouse — a cat never improve into a tiger — but 

 a wild dun cow of "Warwick may be the pro- 

 genitor alike of the thin, spare, feeble-looking 

 Alderney, and the flesh-mountain ox of 

 Durham." 



On the same subject, Dr. Prichard re- 

 marks: — "In all our stocks of domesticated 

 animals, we see profuse and infinite variety ; 

 and, in the races of wild animals, from which 

 they originally descended, we find a uniform 

 colour and figure, for the most part, to prevail. 

 Domestication is to animals what cultivation 

 is to vegetables ; and the former probably difiers 

 from the natural state of the one class of 

 beings, in the same circumstances which dis- 

 tinguish the latter from the natural condition 

 of the other class. The uTv^t apparent of these 

 is the abundant supply ol the peculiar stimuli 

 of each kind. Animals in a wild state procure 

 a simple and unvaried food in precarious and 

 deficient quantities, and are exposed to the 

 inclemencies of the seasons. Their young are 

 produced in similar circumstances to the state 

 of seedliugg, which spring uncultivated in a 

 poor soil; but, in the improved state, all the 

 stimuli of varied food, of warmth, &c., are 

 aflforded in abundance; and the consequence 

 QoO 



is, a luxuriant growth and evolution of varieties, 

 and the exliibition of all the perfections to 

 which each species is capable of being brought 

 in a domesticated state." 



We will close this chapter with a few brief 

 remarks on some of the original breeds of 

 France. 



FRENCH BREEDS. 



N'ormanclij. — The colour of these animals is 

 various. They are rather coarse in bone, but 

 nevertheless are good-looking beasts, and have 

 the reputation of giving an abundance of milk 

 of excellent quality. They early arrive at 

 maturity, and are, on the whole, the most 

 useful and improvable animal of pure breed 

 which the French possess. They are not unlike 

 our Buckinghamshire breed in appearance, but 

 smaller and finer. The Memish. — In colour a 

 rich brown, mostly with white faces, veiy good 

 and clean-looking; but flat-sided, and stand 

 rather too high on the leg. The Charolaise. — 

 This is one of the breeds most prized in France 

 for meat. They are very neat white beasts, 

 kind and cheerful-looking, and good handlers. 

 They are not unlike the Devons in everything 

 but colour. The Gascony is an animal of good 

 size, but coarse, and of either a black or grey 

 colour. The Garonnaise or Aguenaise. — Good 

 in size, and in excellent condition ; but heavy 

 and coarse about the head, hollow in the back, 

 and wifh very drooping hind quarters. The 

 colour IS a light fawn. The Bazaidaise are 

 very good-looking, but also fail in the hind 

 quarters. Mouse-coloured. The Limoit sine. — 

 Not unlike the Garonnaise breed both in colour 

 and appearance, but smaller. The Salers, 

 d'Aubrac, Ai[»e7'gne, and Jilezenc, are not worth 

 much notice : the Salers are the best. Nor are 

 the Fctrtlieraise, another fawn-coloured beast, 

 much better. The Brittany is small, but very 

 neat, hardy, and useful. The colour is black 

 and white. — Such are considered some of the 

 most prominent of the pure French breeds. 



