66 THE DOMESTICATION OF ANIMALS 



Lochquhabir as Ptoleme writtis in his first table. In this wod wes sum time 

 quhit bullis, with crisp and curland mane, like fiers lionis; and thoucht 

 thay semit meik and tame in the remanent figure of thair bodyis, thay wer 

 mair wild than ony uthir beistis, and had sic hatrent aganis the societi and 

 cumpany of men, that thay come nevir in the woddis na lesuris.quhair thay 

 fand ony-feit or haund thairof: and, mony dayis efter, they eit nocht of the 

 herbis that wer.twichit or handillitt be men. Thir bullis wer sa wild, that 

 thay wer nevir tane but slicht and crafty laubaur: and sa impacient, that, 

 <iftir thair takingf thay deit for importable doloure. Als sone as ony man 

 invadit thir bullis, thay ruschit with so terrible preis on him, that thay dang 

 him to the eird, takand na feir of houndis, scharp lands, nor uthir maist 

 penetrive wappinis. ' 



King Robert the Bruce is said to have endangered his life 

 in hunting the white bulls of Torwood, for one being " sair 

 wundit be the hunteris, it ruschit feircelie on the king, how- 

 beit he had na wappinis in his hand to debait himself fra the 

 dint theirof." Yet by the service of a retainer he escaped. 



Even in the sixteenth century, however, the White 

 Cattle were exceedingly few in number, for Lindsay of 

 Pitscottie concludes his account written in years preceding 

 1565, by stating that "because the flesch was pleasant and 

 daintie to the mouth, the haill race of them almost is ex- 

 tinguished," and Bishop Leslie, writing only a few years 

 later (1578) is still more doubtful of their survival, which 

 was vouched for only by hearsay: "In quhilke ["Tor 

 Wod," the Caledonian forest], onlie, eftir the commoune 

 speiking, war the quhyte kye fund, of quhilkes now restes 

 verie few or nane." (Dalrymple's Translation.) Leslie's 

 account of the "kye, oussin [oxen] and wilde bullis" is 

 worth quoting from the same translation, on account of the 

 description and quaint Scots expressions: 



In this Wod war nocht onlie kye bot oxne and Bules snawquhyte with 

 a mane thick and syde, quhilke thay beir lyke the mane of a lyone. Thay 

 mairouer war sa cruel and wylde that frome mankynde thay abhored in sik 

 a sorte that quhateuir thing the handis of men had twechet, or the air of 

 thair mouthis had blawne vpon or endet as we speik, frome al sik thay 

 absteined mony dayes thaireftir. Farther, this oxx or Bull was sa baulde, 

 that nocht only in his yre or quhen he was prouoked walde he ouircum 

 horsmen, bot euin feiret he nathing nathir tyred he, commonlie al men to 

 invade baith with homes and feit ye the dogis, quhilkes with vs ar maist 

 violent, he regardet nocht bot walde elate him with his cluifes or kaithe 

 him on his homes. His flesche was all girsslie bot of a trim taist. He was 

 afortymes a frequent beist in this Torr Wod, but now consumed throuch 

 the gluttonie of men only in thrie places is left, in the Park of Striuiling, 

 the Wod of Cummirnalde and of Kinkairne. 



