136 HISTORY OF THE SHORT-HORNS. 



were a hundred men fit for a Prime Minister where there was one 

 competent to act as a proper judge of Short-horns." He did occa- 

 sionally exhibit, however, and won more or less first prizes ; but in 

 some cases afterwards, insisted that his inferior beasts did the win- 

 ning, while his best ones were overlooked one of his crotchets, 

 possibly. He only exhibited his stock on a few occasions, and those, 

 in time, a good way apart, except in the years of " The Royal " in 

 1839, '40 and '41, when he was highly successful, mainly in his 

 Duchess and Oxford animals. 



During his whole cattle breeding career Mr. Bates bought, bred 

 and sold, many other good Short-horns, with an eye no doubt to 

 profit, for we cannot well conceive his philanthropy, except in his 

 Duchess tribe, to extend so far as not to turn his labors to the best 

 advantage, while it is quite certain that in the long-continued breed- 

 ing of his Duchess tribe, other than in the bulls he sold, he played a 

 losing game in a financial way, and won only on the posthumous 

 fame with which his name will long be remembered. 



One important item connected with Mr. Bates' success as a breeder 

 should not be omitted. Instead of turning his stock over to the 

 exclusive care of herdsmen, as is the practice of many Short-horn 

 breeders, he looked carefully over them himself although he always 

 had one or more herdsmen to do his bidding -personally saw to all 

 their wants, and knew every small particular relating to them. He 

 loved his cattle, and almost made companions of them. They would 

 follow him all around the fields and yards when he went in to look at 

 them. He would fondle them lovingly, talk to and familiarly pat 

 and caress them, while they in return would rub their heads along 

 his body, legs, and arms, lick his hands, and playfully chew the 

 skirts of his coat. So affectionately would they hang about him 

 while he was among them that his herdsmen could not drive them. 

 On one such occasion his cowman not being able to get the cattle 

 away from Mr. Bates, and getting quite irritated, exclaimed: "I 

 wish you'd keep out aft' way. You do fa' mair ill than good, for 

 they won't leave you, and there's no driving them."* 



Mr. Bates had another peculiarity which accounted for his usually 

 having a superfluous number of bulls on hand which he did not use, 

 or but seldom. He would neither sell, nor let bulls, except to parties 

 who had first class cows to put to them, remarking that the bulls 

 would do him no justice when bred to inferior cows. " One day Mr. 



* Bell's History. 



