8 WILD WHITE CATTLE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 



Might not even the Southdown sheep have owed its 

 introduction to this invasion ? 



Here leaving for a time the small Celtic dark- 

 coloured ox (Bos longifrons), domesticated in Britain in 

 Eoman and pre-Eoman times, we proceed to consder 

 the history and the range of the much larger species, the 

 Bos urus or primigenius. And this is the more impe- 

 rative because it is quite certain that from this animal 

 most at least of the ancient British herds of white 

 cattle, whether wild or domesticated, derive their origin. 

 For the Chillingham herd is undoubtedly one of the 

 oldest and the finest of our ancient white wild herds, 

 yet only slightly varying from others ; and Professor 

 Eiitimeyer, to whom Lord Tankerville sent a skull and 

 various other parts of the skeleton, and who examined 

 most carefully these remains, not only informed Mr. 

 Darwin " that the Chillingham cattle are less altered 

 from the true Primigenius type than any other known 

 breed," * but has published the same opinion in even yet 

 stronger terms. Mr. Boyd Dawkins, too, who considers 

 that cattle of the TJrus type were re-introduced into 

 Britain by the English subsequently to their first inva- 

 sion in a.d. 449 (which is certainly true of their 

 domesticated breeds), also believes that the Chillingham 

 cattle are of this type, though doubting whether they 

 have not since become feral, f 



A succinct account of the word Urus, by which this 

 large species of Bos was known to ancient writers, is 

 given by Professor Low in his " Domesticated Animals." 

 He says: " This animal was termed Urochs by the older 

 Germans, a word which is derived from Ur, a root 



* " Animals and Plants," vol. i., chap, iii., p. 81. 

 t " Cave Hunting," chap, iii., pp. 77, 79, 90. 



