CATTLE. 



the hooks. A long hollow from the hooks to 

 the short ribs indicates a weak constitution and 

 an indifferent thriven From the loin to the 

 shoulder-blade should be nearly of one breadth, 

 and from thence it should taper a little to the 

 front of the shoulder. The neck-vein should 

 be well filled forward to complete the line from 

 the neck to the brisket. The covering on the 

 shoulder-blade should be as full out as the but- 

 The middle ribs should be well filled, 

 i>lete the line from the shoulders to the 

 buttocks along the projection of the outside of 

 Jie ribs ; these constitute all the points which 

 are e>s.-nti;il to a fat ox. 



* The first of the points in judging of a lean 

 ox, is the nature of the bone. A round thick 

 bone indicates both a slow feeder and an in- 

 ferior description of flesh. A flat bone, when 

 a side view, and narrow when viewed 

 eitlu>r from behind or before the animal, indi- 

 cates the opposite properties of a round bone. 

 The whole bones in the carcass should bear a 

 small proportion in bulk and weight to the 

 flesh, the bones being only required as a sup- 

 port to the flesh. The texture of the bone 

 should be small-grained and hard. The bones 

 of the head should be fine and clean, and only 

 covered with skin and muscle, and not with 

 lumps of fat and flesh, which always give a 

 heavy-headed, dull appearance to an ox. The 

 fore-arm and hock should also be clean and 

 full of muscle, to endure travelling. Large 

 joints indicate bad feeders. The neck of an 

 ox should be, contrary to that of the sheep, 

 small from the back of the head to the middle 

 of the neck. A full, clear, and prominent eye 

 is another point to be considered, because it is 

 a nice indication of good breeding. It is al- 

 ways attendant on fine bone : the expression 

 of the eye is an excellent index of many pro- 

 perties in the ox. A dull, heavy eye clearly 

 indicates a slow feeder. A rolling eye, show- 

 ing much white, is expressive of a restless 

 capricious disposition, which is incompatible 

 with quiet feeding. A calm, complacent ex- 

 pression of eye and face is strongly indicative 

 of a sweet and patient disposition, and of 

 course kindly feeling. The eye is frequently 

 a faithful index of the state of health. A cheer- 

 ful clear eye accompanies good health : a con- 

 stantly dull one proves the probable existence 

 of some internal lingering disease; the dull- 

 ness of eye, however, arising from internal 

 disease is quite different in character from a 

 natural or constitutional phlegmatic dullness. 



"The state of the skin is the next point to be 

 ascertained ; the skin affords what is techni- 

 cally and emphatically called the touch a cri- 

 '.erion second to none in judging of the feeding 

 properties of an ox. The touch may be good 

 or bad, fine or harsh, or, as it is often termed, 

 hard or mellow. A thick, firm skin, which is 

 generally covered with a thick-set, hard, short 

 hair, always touches hard, and indicates a bad 

 feeder. A thin, meager, papery skin, covered 

 with thin, silky hair, being the opposite of the 

 one just described, does not, however, afford a 

 good touch. Such skin is indicative of weak- 

 ness of constitution, though of good feeding 

 properties. A perfect touch will be found with 

 9 Jiick, loose skin, floating, as it were, on 

 284 



CATTLE. 



a layer of soft fat, yielding to the least press- 

 ure, and springing back to the finger lik-j a 

 piece of soft, thick, chamois leather, and cover- 

 ed with thick, glossy, soft hair. It is not un- 

 like a bed of fine soft moss, and hence such a 

 skin is not unfrequently styled 'mossy.' A 

 knowledge of touch can only be acquired by 

 long practice ; but after having acquired it, it 

 is of itself a sufficient means of judging of the 

 feeding quality of an ox, because, when present, 

 the properties of symmetrical form, fine bone, 

 sweet disposition, and purity of blood are the 

 general accompaniments. These are the es- 

 sential points in judging lean cattle, but there 

 are other and important considerations in form- 

 ing a thorough judgment of the ox. The head 

 should be small, and set on the neck as if easi- 

 ly carried by the animal ; this shows the ani- 

 mal to advantage in the market. The face long 

 from the eyes to the point of the nose. The 

 skull broad across the eyes, contracted a little 

 above them, but tapering considerably below 

 them to the nose. The muzzle fine and small; 

 the nostrils capacious ; the ears large, a little 

 erect, and transparent; the neck short and light. 

 A droop of trie neck from the top of the shoul- 

 der to the head indicates a weakness of consti- 

 tution, arising frequently from breeding too 

 near akin. The legs below the knees should 

 be rather short than long, and clean made; 

 stand where they apparently bear the weight 

 of the body most easily, and wide asunder. 

 The tail rather thick than otherwise, as that 

 indicates a strong spine, and a good weigher. 

 It should be provided with a large tuft of long 

 hair. The position of \heflesh is important : that 

 part called the spare rib in Edinburgh, and the 

 fore and middle ribs in London, the loins and 

 the rump, or hook-bone, are of the finest qua- 

 lity, and are generally used for roasts and 

 steaks ; consequently the ox which carries the 

 largest quantity of beef on these points is the 

 most valuable. Flesh of fine quality is actu- 

 ally of a finer texture than coarse flesh. The 

 other desirable objects in a fat ox are a full 

 twist, lining the division between the hams 

 called ' the closing' with a thick layer of fat, 

 a thick flank, and a full neck bend; these 

 generally indicate internal tallow. The last 

 points generally covered with fat are the 

 point of the shoulder-joint and the top of the 

 shoulder : if these parts are, therefore, felt to 

 be well covered, the other and better parts of 

 the animal may be considered ripe. It is pro- 

 per, in judging of the weight of a fat ox, to 

 view his gait while walking towards you, 

 which will, if the ox has been well fed, be ac- 

 companied with a heavy rolling tread on the 

 ground. In this way a. judge can at once come 

 very near to its weight." (Quart. Journ. of jlgr. 

 vol. v. p. 167.) At the end of this paper will 

 be found an account of the mode of ascertain- 

 ing the weight of stock by admeasurement. 



When we survey the frame of a short horn 

 ox, adds Mr. Dickson (Ibid. vol. vi. p. 267), we 

 have a straight, level back from behind the 

 horns to the top of the tail, full buttocks, and 

 a projecting brisket; we have, in short, the 

 rectangular figure, as represented in a side 

 view by fig. 1. We have also the level loin 

 across the hook bones, and the level top of the 



