HISTORICAL TESTIMONY. 169 



which is less probable, declares Mr. Booth's 

 theory and practice to have been opposed. He 

 says that Mr. Booth sought to perpetuate the 

 excellence of his cattle "by breeding from 

 rather close affinities" and then in the next 

 sentence says that the Colling system of breed- 

 ing from "close relations" was followed by the 

 Booths. Doubtless he intended to say "rela- 

 tions" in both places. If this is so it may rep- 

 resent what the Booth theory was; certainly 

 it represents what Mr. Carr believed to be the 

 Booth theory. That the Booth practice varied 

 far, even very far, from it, it will be easy to 

 show. 



In the first place new blood was constantly 

 introduced into the Booth herds from many 

 sources, chiefly market cows of the sturdiest 

 type. In the second place constant and fre- 

 quent resort was had to outcrosses, especially 

 in that earlier time when the father and sons, 

 Richard arid John Booth, represented the fam- 

 ily. In more recent times, which are too re- 

 cent for our purpose at present, it is well 

 known that disease has terribly injured these 

 historic herds ; that some of the more serious 

 effects of in-and-in breeding have been felt in 

 them, and that wholesale drafts from outside 

 herds have been resorted to in order to main- 

 tain the actual and historic excellence of their 

 grand families of cattle. We shall only dwell 



