544 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



principle of breeding equally to them both. In 

 the present system ol breedinjj, most importance, 

 (and that very justly,) is attributed to the male. 

 He is the more important animal on account of 

 the more numerous progeny that is to eprincf from 

 him, and thus his greater general influence ; and 

 therelbre superior care should be bestowed on the 

 first selection of him for rearing. He should, if 

 possible, always be, in point of blood, ofa superior 

 degree to the stock (o which he is to be bred ; 

 and besides, the farmer should study him closely, 

 and be assured that he possesses, in more than 

 a usual degree, the characteristic excellencies of 

 the breed which it is wished to imparl (o his slock. 

 When this case, as to the possession of such 

 combination of good points, has e.xiended from 

 sire to son through several successive generations, 

 it may readily be supposed that he will possess 

 them in a higher degree than the female can. 

 They will be made, as it were, a part and portion 

 of his constitution, and he will acquire the power, 

 of more certainly, and to a greater extent, com- 

 municating them to his offspring. 



In this way the influence of the sire may, in 

 well bred animals, be considered as superior to 

 that of the lemale ; but her's is always great, and 

 must not be Ibrgotten. In Arabia where the mare 

 is the object of chief attention, and her good 

 qualities are carefully studied and systematicallj' 

 bred in her, the influence of the female decidedly 

 preponderates ; and on the same principle, that 

 of the highly bred cow will preponderate over 

 that of the half bred bull. Her excellencies are 

 an hereditary and essential part of her, and more 

 likely to be communicated to her offspring, than 

 those which have been only lately and acciden- 

 tally acquired by the bull with no pedigree, or 

 with many a blot in it. Custom and convenience 

 however induce the generality of breeders to look 

 most to the male. 



The question whether the sire or dam has the 

 more influence in controlling the sex of the off- 

 spring, is perhaps not less difficult of decision. 

 Cows generally breed males and females alter- 

 nately; but their habit in this particular is not so 

 uniform as to contravene a principle which has 

 lately been promulgated chiefly by French writers 

 on breeding. One of them mentions a great 

 number of cases which establish satisfactorily the 

 principle, that the animal which is in the greatest 

 vigor, (health, age, constitution and flesh being 

 considered,) at the time of commerce will generally 

 fashion the sex. For example, an old and declin- 

 ing cow is bred to a young and vigorous bull, 

 other things being equal, the produce will be male, 

 because the bull was in the greatest visor. 



These principles lead to the statement of ano- 

 ther, which is equally as important, and if possible 

 better established, and perhaps less understood. 

 If a man has a superior milch cow and wishes 

 to raise milking stock from her, the common plan 

 is to save her heifer calves. But according to a 

 principle ot breeding, sustained by liicts as well as 

 theory, by far the better plan would be, to save a 

 bull calf from this cow, and his slock when he is 

 put to breeding will have the excellent quality of 

 his dam, and be, like her, superior milkers. For 

 example, Cleopatra was an extraordinary milker, 

 according to this principle her heiler calves may, 

 or may not, make good milkers ; but her bull calf 

 Frederick, having her character and qualities bred 



in him, will communicate them to his stock ; and 

 his heiler calves will be, like his dam, superior 

 milkers. 



This last principle suggests an important con- 

 sideration in selecting a breeding bull, viz: that 

 he be descended from a superior milch cow. 



3. — Breeding in and in. 



The judicious breeder will not too long confine 

 himself to his own stock, unless it be very large. 

 The breeding Irom too close affinities, — the breed- 

 ing in and in as it is called, though it has many 

 advantages to a certain extent, in the hands of 

 most skilful and judicious breeders; though it may 

 be pursued until the excellent lorm and quality ofa 

 breed is developed and established, and was the 

 source whence sprung the superior cattle and sheep 

 of Bakewell, and to some extent of the superior 

 short horns of Mr. Colling ; yet to it also must 

 be traced the speeily degeneracy — the absolute 

 disappearance ol the new Leicester cattle, and, 

 in the hands of many an agriculturist, the impair- 

 ment of the constitution of the new Leicester 

 sheep. 



Bakewell was a master spirit in breeding, and 

 it cannot be denied produced a breed ol cattle 

 worth the efforts of such a skilful agriculturist. 

 The principle on which he seemed to act was 

 novel, bold, and for a time a successtiil one. 

 Some of his caiile were extraordinary illustrations 

 ol the harmlessness of such a system ; but he 

 had a large stock on which to work : a veil of 

 mystery was thrown over the most of his proceed- 

 ings and no one knew his occasional deviations 

 fi-om this rule, nor his skilful interposition of re- 

 moter affinities when he saw, or apprehended 

 danger. 



But what has now become of the new Leices- 

 ter or Bakewell cattle 7 where are they to be 

 found '? It was a bold and successful experiment, 

 and seemed lor a while to answer the most san- 

 guine expectations of that skilful and spirited 

 breeder. 



In districts, in which experiments were carried 

 on, it established a breed of cattle equalled by 

 few ; and it enabled the long horns to contend, 

 and often successfully, with the heaviest and best 

 of the middle horns. But no sooner had the 

 master spirits of the day disappeared, than the 

 character of the breed began imperceptibly to 

 change. It had acquired a delicacy of constitu- 

 tion inconsistent with common management and 

 keep ; and it began slowly but undeniably to 

 deteriorate.' Many of them had been bred to a 

 degree of refinement, that the propagation of the 

 species was not always certain. The breed itself 

 gradually diminished; in some places it almost 

 disappeared. The reader may scarcely give 

 credit to the assertion, but it is strictly true, that 

 in 1833 there was not a single improved Leicester 

 on the Dishleylarm; nor a dozen within the 

 circuit of as many miles. It would seem as if 

 some strange convulsion of nature, or some 

 murderous pestilence, had suddenly swept away 

 the whole of this valuable breed. 



The above remarks are in substance taken from 

 that valuable treatise on British cattle, before 

 alluded to. In Kentucky, though the principle 

 of breeding mi and in has met with general dis- 

 approbation, yet it has been more or less prac- 

 tised by many breeders. To one of whom allu- 



