CATTLE-BREEDixo.] CATTLE, AND THEIR VARIETIES. [cATTLE-nnEEnixo. 



quantity of land has thus been devoted to tlie 

 production of animal food, it liaa by no means 

 dimiiiislied the supjdy of grain ; but, on the 

 coiitrarv, has increased it by the enlarged 

 quaiititv of manure which, in cojisequenoe, is 

 Bup[)licd to the land — n fact so well established, 

 that it has already become an ndago, " No 

 cattle, no dung; no dung, no corn." The 

 objictions that aro sometimes raised against 

 over-fed cattle, and the attempts made to 

 disparage tho " mountains of fat," as they 

 aro sometimes called, may bo both sound and 

 reasonable : there is no doubt of tho practical 

 fact, that the best butcher cannot sell anything 

 but tho best fatted beef. " Of whatever ag*\ 

 size, or shape a half-fatted ox may be, he is 

 never selected by judges as fit for human food. 

 Hence, a well-fatted animal always commands 

 a better price per pound than one imperfectly 

 fed ; and the parts selected as the primest beef, 

 are precisely those where there is the largest 

 deposits of fat. The rump, the crop, and the 

 sirloin (the very favourite cuts, which always 

 command from twenty to twenty -five per cent. 

 more than any other part of the ox), are pre- 

 cisely those parts on which the largest quan- 

 tities of fat are found. Thus, instead of the 

 taste and fashion of the age being against the 

 excessive fattening of animals, it is, practically, 

 exactly the reverse. Where there is the most 

 fat there is the best lean ; where there is the 

 greatest amount of muscle, without its share 

 of fat, that part is accounted inferior, and used 

 for a difierent purpose. In fact, so far from 

 fat being a disease, it is a condition of muscle 

 necessary to its utility as food — a source of 

 luxury to the rich, and of comfort to the poor." 

 The fattening capabilities possessed by various 

 animals, are the effect of a secretive power, 

 which enables them to reserve a store of their 

 superfluous food for seasons of cold or of 

 scarcity. The fat masses itself round the an- 

 gular bones of the animal, and gives it that com- 

 ibrtable appearance of rotundity upon which 

 the eye feels pleased to rest. Hence the ten- 

 dency to secrete fat is indicated by a roundness 

 of form, as opposed to the Jlaincss characteristic 

 of the milk-yielding animal. The fat lubricates 

 the joints, gives elasticity to the skiu and 

 muscles, and obviates the effects of pressure ; 

 but, above all, it is a store of heat- producing 

 aliment, set aside for seasons of scarcity. 



TIjo larger portion of the diet of aniinuls 

 may be Haid to eoiiwiHt of a saccharine, aa 

 oleaginous, and an alhuininoiiH principle. To 

 the first belong all the pacehariiio, starchy, and 

 gummy parts of the plant.s, which, in tho diges- 

 tive organs, pass tiiroiigh changes similar to 

 fermentation, before they can be assimilated ; 

 throuf»h them, also, is animal heat austainod. 

 In sluggish animals, tho oily portions of plants 

 aro deposited and converted into fat; and, 

 when strength fails, it is taken up to supply 

 the place of tho consumed saccharine matter. 

 Tho albuminous or gelatinous priuciple of 

 plants is chiefly required to force the accumu- 

 lation of muscle ; while the ashes of plants, their 

 unconsumable portions, are designed for the 

 purpose of supplying bone, hair, and born, as 

 well as muscle and blood : they also replace 

 the waste which is continually going on. 

 Such are the several qualities which are essen- 

 tially characteristic of a dispo;?ition to fatten. 

 These marks are so definite and well under- 

 stood, that they are comprehended and acted 

 upon by every grazier. There is some diffi- 

 culty, however, in endeavouring to describe, 

 upon paper, all the indications of barrenness 

 or fertility which a practised eye alone could 

 detect. It is by experience and skill that 

 the grazier acquires his knowledge, and not 

 by theoretical rules. Observation, judgment, 

 powerful perceptive faculties, and minute dis- 

 crimination, are essential to his success. 



One of his great reliances is on the ioiccJt, 

 which may be esteemed the criterion of quality 

 in every vaccine animal, whether to be boiighfc 

 tor milking or grazing. The skin is a great 

 indicator, and should neither be thick nor 

 hard, nor should it adhere firmly to the mus- 

 cles. If it does so, it may be concluded that 

 the beast is a hard grazer, as well as a poor 

 feeder; and as no man skilled in his calling 

 will purchase her, she must be palmed off" upon 

 some novice, and even to him at such a price 

 as can make her a sort of temptation to be got 

 into his possession. On the other hand, the 

 skin must neither bang loosely, nor exhibit 

 that kind of flabbiuess which is frequently seen 

 upon indifferent cattle, and which discloses a 

 delicate temperament, and a nature incapable 

 of the retention of fat. Human physiologists 

 give great attention to the subject of tempera- 

 ment ; and tiiough we do not make similar nice 



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