THE DAILY LIFE OF OUR FAEM. 57 



racter, even though they may be stated to come of 

 purest Booth or Bates. Whatever you do breed, try to 

 breed them as like in ou?tward fashion as a handful of 

 beans. Uniformity of fashionable style, so engrained by 

 long and careful cultivation that their young can be 

 relied on to appear (with rare "misfits ") of the same 

 character also, is, I consider, the mainspring of a suc- 

 cessful herd, both as regards show prizes and a good 

 auction average. Long pedigrees, of course, you must 

 have to exhibit. But I find I have struck a subject 

 which might fill a volume, and my allotted space is 

 being visibly lessened. I am sorely tempted to be off, 

 too ; for see now the rain is over, and the sun is out 

 again, and the yellow-green arms of the willow glisten 

 as young snakes under its renovating influence. 



The intermission of shows this year will, I trust, do 

 good by obtaining the release from forcing-diet of an 

 extra number of choice animals, which, so far as breeding 

 goes, would otherwise have been sacrificed. It is very 

 sad that the first prize breeder is obliged to spoil the 

 reproductive powers of so many of his herd in order to 

 keep up the prestige of former successes. The fact is, 

 the buyer must see what the raw material will be, 

 polished. I believe the plan of exhibiting in store, or 

 at least in reasonably fat condition, was ouce tried in 

 Suffolk ; but the thing did not do. The pleasure- 

 seekers comprehended not the real merits of the 

 animals : they looked only for the beauty of a plump 

 condition. 



What a battue we had among the black-beetles last 

 night again ! I wish some one would kindly suggest 

 a mode of exterminating the disgusting horde. For 

 months, owing to their non-appearance (do they hyber- 



