SUPPLEMENT. 725 



The Charolaise is recognized by its white coat of fine silky hair, its regular cylindrical 

 body, short broad head, famished with line mid il<; -si.-v.d white horns curled up toward 

 the points, its rose-colored muzzle, large eye, and gentle physiognomy. It is short in 

 the leg, and exhibits a well-hung tail, a very prominent and deep rump, a broad straight 

 back, well rounded sides, a full deep chest, and a neck and shoulders carrying little 

 dewlap. 



The cow is by no means a good milker. 



The sub-breed, "Charolaise-Nivernaise," the bast types of which come from Nievre 

 and Allier, is particularly worthy of notice, and superior to other French breeds from 

 the butchers' p jint of view, having indeed sometimes carried off the prize in open com- 

 petition with Durhams and Durham crosses. 



Animals of the Charolaise breed are bought at very high prices by the farmers of the 

 north and of the suburbs of Paris, who use them first for field labor and then fatten 

 them for the butcher. 



THE GASCONNE AND CHAROLAISE BREEDS. 



The Charolaise has its center of production in the district of Carolle (Ariege), the sec- 

 ond in the department of Gers, more especially in the arrondissement of Lombez. Both 

 are descended from the Schwitz breed; they are essentially working oxen, and are often 

 kept as such till fifteen years old or more. 



The conformation of animals of these breeds is tolerably regular, the body cylindrical, 

 the chest well developed, the limbs strong, the bony framework a little course, and the 

 tail attached a trifle high. The coat is badger-gray of more or less pronounced shades, 

 the extremities and the natural outlets generally black. 



The cows are tolerable milkers. 



These two breeds give rise to a brisk trade between the districts where they are reared 

 and the departments of Haute-Garonne, Tarn-et-Garonne, Lot-et-Garonne, Aude, Hautes- 

 Pyrenees, and Tarn, where they are much sought after for draught purposes. 



THE QAEOXXAISE BREED. 



This breed, the bulkiest of those found in the sub-Pyrenean basin, belongs to the great 

 Gallic bovine family, and is divided into two groups that of the valley, which furnishes 

 the better developed animals, and that of the hills, whose members are smaller and less 

 heavy, but more capable of work. 



Garonnaise oxen are very long in the body, and often betray a faulty conformation; 

 the sides are flat, the chest confined, the buttock short, the tail badly set on, and the 

 osseous frame mean. Its long, heavy, busked head gives the animal a melancholy ap- 

 pearance. The coat is of a uniform wheaten color, the muzzle and the border of the 

 eyelids pale red, and the horns white. 



The cows are better shaped than the males, but are poor milkers. The Garonnaise 

 breed is much esteemed for laboring purposes, on account of its colossal strength and its 

 patience; it also fattens pretty easily. 



The best centers of production are the valley of the Garonne as far as Agen, and the 

 Dordogne valley, 



THE BAZADAISE BREED. 



The arrondissement of Bazas is the chief rearing ground of animals of this breed, 

 which is nevertheless found in the departments of Laudes and Gere, and in certain parts 

 of Lot-et-Garonne and of Tarn-et-Garonne. 



The shape of these animals is perfect. The chest, well let down, is broad and deep; 

 the flank rounded, and the body generally almost cylindrical; the line of the back 

 straight; the haunch broad, square, and well placed; the rump often very good, occa- 

 sionally leaves something to desire in a good many specimens. The head is short, the 

 forehead broad and open; the horns are often faulty. 



The females may be said to be irreproachable as to shape, but they are poor milkers. 



The bull is a wild, almost ferocious, animal, and extremely dangerous. From a very 

 early age it is hardly safe to go near him, and even in the stall he has to be tied up with 

 strong ropes. The oxen are capital workers, but always preserve their character for 

 violence and spirit; they are extremely irritable, and much management and all sorts of 

 precautions arc necessary in leading them. 



THE FEMININE BREED. 



This breed, which belongs to the Comtois type, 13 Chiefly raised on the borders of 

 Doubs and Saoue, and is met with as far as Bresse. 



