ORIGIN OF THE EILMORY HERD. 349 



ing in Scotland. With it I propose to close the account 

 of the Scottish herds ; for it seems to me that, taken in 

 conjunction with the narrative just given of what the 

 Athole cattle were when at Dalkeith, it is a most appo- 

 site illustration of how, in former days — in many a 

 lordly abbey, in many an ancient grange — the appa- 

 rently indomitable Urus was gradually subjected by 

 man, and made the means of improving and renewing 

 our race of domestic cattle. 



Sir John Orde is a man of very great experience and 

 skill in breeding. He has bred for years, besides this 

 herd, Alderney, Indian, and other cattle, as well as horses 

 and other animals ; and his acute and scientific experi- 

 ments in breeding have been carried on both at home 

 and abroad. James Aitchison — who had, as we have 

 seen, already managed one herd of -wild cattle — was his 

 coadjutor in building up, from the relics of that one, 

 another. The sheet-anchor, to begin with, was the 

 Duke of Buccleuch's Athole bull. There was the wild 

 sort, of pure blood, and the true type which it was so 

 desirable to continue. The difficulty was to procure 

 proper females. Cows of the same strain as the bull 

 could not be had — perhaps it was very well they could 

 not ; but cows as nearly as possible similar in colour, 

 character, and blood were obtained. Sir John went to 

 the Kyloe, or West Highlander — a breed which pro- 

 bably, in general character, in hair, and in horn, though 

 perhaps not in colour, retains as much likeness to the 

 Urus, as described by ancient Scottish writers, as any 

 variety of British cattle ; some great authorities con- 

 sidering it to be at least partially his descendant. The 

 Highlander differs much indeed from the Urus in size ; 

 but this is sufficiently accounted for by his inhabiting 



