Live Stock. 87 



coarser and less valuable parts of the animal. This, by se- 

 lection, may be attained ; and thus the wishes of the con- 

 sumer may be gratified. As to the broad loins, and full 

 hips, which are considered as a point of excellence in parti- 

 cular breeds, it is evident, that the old, narrow, and thin 

 make required improvement; but the alteration is now car- 

 ried to a faulty excess, and often occasions great difficulty 

 and danger in calving ( 84 ). 



The form of animals has fortunately attracted the atten- 

 tion of an eminent surgeon, (Henry Cline, Esq. of London), 

 the substance of whose doctrines is : 1. That the external 

 form is only an indication of the internal structure; 2. That 

 the first object to be attended to is the lungs, for on their 

 size and soundness, the health and strength of an animal 

 principally depend ; 3. That the external indications of 

 the size of the longs, are the form and size of the chest, 

 and its breadth in particular ( 85 ); 4. That the head 

 should be small, as by this the birth is facilitated ; as it 

 affords other advantages in feeding, &c. and as it generally 

 indicates that the animal is of a good breed ; 5. That the 

 length of the neck should be in proportion to the size of the 

 animal, that it may collect its food with ease ; and, 6. That 

 the muscles and tendons should be large, by which an ani- 

 mal is enabled to travel with greater facility. 



It was formerly the practice, to estimate the value of 

 animals by the size of their bones. A large bone was con- 

 sidered to be a great merit ; and a. fine-boned animal, always 

 implied great size. It is now known, that this doctrine was 

 carried too far. The strength of an animal does not depend 

 upon the bones, but on the muscles ; and when the bones 

 are disproportionably large, it indicates, in Mr Cline's opi- 

 nion, an imperfection in the organs of nutrition ( 85 ). Bake- 

 well strongly insisted on the advantage of small bones ; and 

 the celebrated John Hunter declared, that small bones were 

 generally attended with corpulence, in all the various sub- 

 jects he had an opportunity of examining. A small bone, 

 however, being heavier and more substantial, requires as 

 much nourishment as a hollow one, with a larger circum- 

 ference ( 87 ). 



3. A tendency to grow. Among the qualities for which 

 thorough-bred cattle and sheep are distinguished, that of 

 being good growers, is not the least essential. The meaning 

 of which is, that the animal should not only be of a strong 

 and healthy constitution, but should grow speedily to a pro- 

 per size. As specimens of rapid growth, a steer of three 



