132 PRINCIPLES OF BREEDING. 



period beyond which the memory and knowledge of 

 man does not reach. Such are the North Devon cattle, 

 and it is fortunate that attention was drawn to the 

 merits of this variety before facilities for inter-communi- 

 cation had so greatly increased as of late, and while 

 yet the race in some districts remained pure. All that 

 breeders have done to better it, is by selections and 

 rejections from within itself; and so, much improve- 

 ment has been effected without any adulteration. Con- 

 sequently we may anticipate that so long as no cross- 

 ing takes place, there will be little variation. 



Among the established breeds of cattle the Improved 

 Short-horns are the most fashionable, and the most 

 widely diffused ; and where the fertility of the soil, and 

 the climate, are such as to allow the development of 

 their peculiar excellencies, they occupy the highest 

 rank as a meat-producing breed. Their beef is hardly 

 equal in quality to that of the Devons, Herefords or 

 Scots, the fat and lean being not so well mixed together 

 and the flesh of coarser grain. But they possess a re- 

 markable tendency to lay on fat and flesh, attaining 

 greater size and weight, and coming earlier to maturity 

 than any other breed. These properties, together with 

 their symmetry and stately beauty, make them very 

 popular in those counties of England, where they orig- 



