DUTCH CATTLE. 125 



early a date as three hundrecl years before Christ, peopled the 

 north of the present Netherlands, and wrought those alluvial 

 plains of Scandinavian clay into soil fit for the requirement of 

 their cattle, did, in after-centuries, spread themselves in more 

 northerly and easterly directions as fiir as the Elbe, — as we 

 already know they did, in the fifth century, unite with the 

 Jutes and Anglo-Saxons in emigrating to England ; in addi- 

 tion to which we must observe that these were probably East 

 Friesians and not West Friesians. 



The East Friesians, from Oldenburg and the country near 

 the mouth of the Elbe, both south and north of that river, 

 were compelled, through the inclemency of those regions, — 

 then in their original condition of low alluvial swamps, inun- 

 dated at every tide, — to desert them. It was owing to these 

 local circumstances that the Romans were prevented from 

 endeavoring to land their army. 



It can be shown that the inhabitants of this territory were 

 unable to make sure provision for their own wants, because 

 of the robberies and piracies committed by the Normans, 

 dwellers on the west coast of Denmark, people from Holstein 

 and Sleswyck, Jutes and Angles. These were by no means 

 peaceful breeders of cattle, as were the Friesians and Bata- 

 vians, whose lands they constantly plundered and laid waste, 

 burning and ravaging their possessions, massacring the in- 

 habitants, making them pay tribute, penetrating far inland to 

 the mouths of the Rhine and Yssel, and everywhere giving 

 unbridled vent to their ferocity and love of plunder. This 

 was betAveen the eighth and eleventh centuries. Giving due 

 weisfht to these statements, which, from the nature of the 

 case, must necessarily be brief, it cannot be doubted that the 

 cultivation of cattle in the Netherlands existed a long time 

 before such a thing could ever be thought of in Holstein. It 

 is also quite as certain that the colonists from Frieslancl, 

 Holland and Westphalia carried with them their cattle to 

 Holstein. 



Hence we see that, first, the Dutch race of cattle date from 

 an older descent than those of Holstein ; while, probably, 

 second, the Holstein cattle originated from the Fries ian breed 

 and from that of the Dutch and Westphalian emigrants. 



After this colonization, we have our attention directed to 



