THE GENESEE FARMER. 



365 



up to farnisli the rounds fully, but freely, ior pach- 

 ed rounds prevent eat>y motion of the hind legs. 

 Sonietiiues the tail is hid in a channel left by the 

 muscles between e andy, but this is not usually 

 the case. On going to the front view, fig. 3, the 

 shoulder-top, between a and Z>, should be filled out 

 with a natural r<nnid, and the muscles below it 

 upon the shoulder-blades should always project 

 fjxrther than the breadth of the shoulder-top, and 

 in this respect the fore-quarter differs from the 

 hind, where the muscles below the hooks seldom 

 project beyond them. The shoulder-points e and/ 

 should not be prominent, but round otf with the 

 muscles of the neck toward g, where the round of 

 the front of the neck falls from the head to the 

 breast, where the upper part of the brisket/ meets 

 it, and projecting a little in front, is rounded below 

 and forms the lowest part of the body of a fat ox, 

 and should be well filled out in breadth to spread 

 the fore-legs asunder. The fore-legs are usually 

 farther apart than the hind, but the hind at times, 

 when the shaw or cod is large and fat, is as much 

 or even more apart. 



The objectionable deviations from these points 

 are as follows : In fig. 1, a hollow back at g is bad, 

 showing weakness of the back-bone, A high shoul- 

 der-crest at h is always attended with a sharp thin 

 shoulder, and has the efi:ect of bringing the 

 shoulder-tops, a and 5, fig. 3, too close together. 

 A long distance between g and k makes the loins 

 hollow, and gives to a beast what is called a washy 

 appearance, and is always attended with a liability 

 to looseness in the bowels. This washiness is gen- 

 erally attended with an inordinate breadth of hooks, 

 from a to J, fig. 2, and causes them to project much 

 beyond the muscles below. A sharp projecting 

 hook is always accompanied with flat ribs at g, fig. 

 1, and ribs when flat give the animal a hollow side, 

 which bears little flesh, the viscera being thrown 

 down into the cavity of the belly, which droops 

 considerably below the line; but in the event of 

 the muscles of the abdomen having a greater weight 

 to bear, they become thicker and stronger, and, ac- 

 cordingly, the flesh there becomes less valuable, 

 and it has also the effect of thinning away the thick 

 flank e. Flatness of rib is also indicative of hol- 

 lowness of the space behind the shoulder, so much 

 so, indeed, that the animal seems as if it had been 

 gripped in too firmly there. As the flesh is taken 

 away from the shoulder-blade by a sharp shoulder 

 and hollow ribs, so the shoulder-joint I projects the 

 more, and causes a thinness of the neck between 

 a and I. The rump- bone, at c, frequently rises up- 

 ward, thereby spoiling the fine straight line of the 

 back; and whenever this happens, the rump be- 

 tween Jc and c wants flesh and even becomes hol- 

 low, thereby much deteriorating the value of the 

 hind-quarter. A projecting hook k also thins away 

 the muscles about m^ and behind it to the rounds ; 

 and this again is followed by an enlargement of the 

 openings at the closing e, fig. 2. Whenever the 

 shoulder becomes thin and narrow, when viewed 

 in front, as in fig. 3, the shoulder-points e and / 

 are wider than from a to J, and while this efltect is 

 produced above, the brisket h below becomes less 

 tat, and permits the fore-legs to stand nearer each 

 other. A greatly commendatory point of a fat ox 

 is a level broad back from rump to shoulder, be- 

 cause all the flesh seen from this position, as is 



endeavored to be represented by fig. 4, is of the most 

 valuable description; where the triangidar space 

 included between a, &, c, is the rump; the triangu- 

 lar space between a, i. d, the loin ; and the space 

 between d and e, deflecting on both sides toward 

 /and g, the ribs, the value of all which parts arc 

 enlianeed the more nearly they are all on a level 

 with each other. 



All that I have endeavored to describe, in these 

 paragraphs, of the points of a fat ox, can be judged ot 

 alone by the eye, and most judges never think of 

 employing any other means; but the assistance de- 

 rived from the hand is important, and in a begintuT 

 can not be dispensed with. The first point usually 

 handled is the end of tiif 

 rump at the tail-head, at c, 

 fig. 1, although any fat her<' 

 is very obvious, and souic-- 

 times attains to an enor- 

 mous size, amounting even 

 to deformity. The hook- 

 bone k gets a touch, and 

 when well covered, is right; 

 but should the bone be ea,— 

 ily distinguished, the rum!' 

 between k and c, and the 

 loin from k to g, may be 

 sus})ected, and, on handling 

 these places, the probaltil- 

 itj.' is that they will both be 

 hard, and deficient of flesh. 

 To the hand, or rather to 

 the points ot the fingers of 

 the right hand, wlien laid 

 upon the ribs g, the fle.^li 

 should feel soft and thick 

 BACK VIEW OF A WELL FILL- aud the form be round 



ED F.A.T ox. (FIG. 4.) ^^^^^^ j^JJ j^ j.jg],^^ Jj^j^ J^- ^^jjo 



ribs are flat the flesh will feel hard and thin, trom 

 want of fat. The skin, too, on a rounded rib, will 

 feel soft and mobile, the hair deep and mos,sy, both 

 indicative of a kindly disposition to lay on flesh. 

 The hand then grasps the flank e, and finds it thick, 

 when the existence of internal tallow is indicatei'' 

 The cod is also fat and large, and on looking at a 

 from behind seems to force the hind legs more 

 asunder than they would naturally be. The palm 

 of the hand laid along the line of the back from c 

 to h will point out any objectionable hard piece on 

 it, but if all is soft and i)leasant, then the shoulder- 

 top is good. A hollowness behind the shoulder at 

 i is a very common occurrence ; but when it :s 

 filled up with a layer of fat, the flesh of all the 

 fore-quarter is thereby rendered very much more 

 valuable. You would fccarcely believe that such a 

 difference could exist in the flesh between a lean 

 and a fat shoulder. A high narrow shoulder is fre- 

 quently attended with a ridged back-bone, and 

 low-set narrow hooks, a form which gets the ap- 

 propriate name of razor-hack^ with which will al- 

 ways be found a deficiency of flesh in all the upper 

 part of the animal, where the l)est flesh always is. 

 If the shoulder-point I is covered, and feels soft 

 like the point of the hook-bone, it is good, and in- 

 dicates a well-filled neck-vein, which runs from 

 that point to the side of the head. The shoidder- 

 point, however, is often bare and prominent. When 

 the neck-vein is so firmly filled up as not to permit 

 i the points of the fingers into the inside of the 



