OF NATURAL HISTORY. 243 



perfedt hermaphrodite, as far as obfervation has hitherto extended, 

 is confined to black- cattle. The free martin has all the external 

 charaderlftics of a female calf. When animals of this defcription 

 are preferved by farmers, it is not for the purpofe of propagation, 

 but for yoking with the oxen, or fattening for the table. They 

 neither breed, nor, what is curious, do they difcover the fmallefl: 

 inclination for the male, nor does the bull pay the lead attention to 

 them. 



The free martin, in figure, refembles the ox, or fpayed heifer. It 

 is confiderably larger than the bull or cow, and its horns are fimilar 

 to thofe of the ox. * The belly of the free martin,' fays Mr Hun- 

 ter, ' is fimilar to that of an ox, having more refemblance to that of 

 ' the cow than of the bull. Free martins are very fufceptible of 

 ' growing fat with food. The flefh, like that of the ox, or fpayed 



* heifer, is in common much finer in the fibre than either the bull 

 ' or cow, and is fuppofed to exceed that of the ox or heifer in de- 



* licacy of flavour, and bears a higher price at market *.' The Ro- 

 mans feem to have had fome knowledge of free martins, though 

 they have not tranfmitted to us any peculiarities in the ftrudure of 

 thefe animals. With them, taurus was the generic name of the ox 

 kind. They likewife mention taurae, by which, it is thought, they 

 meant barren cows. Columella, when talking of cattle, fays, ' and, 

 ' like the taurae, which occupy the place oi fertile cows, ftiould be 

 ' rejeded t-' Varro likewife informs us, that * the cow which is 



* barren is called taura' 



Mr Hunter gives an anatomical defcription of three free martins, 

 the moft perfect of which we fhall tranfcribe. 



H h 2 'Mr 



* Hunter's Obfervatlons on the Animal Oeconomy, p. 50. f Columella, 



lib. 6. cap. 22 



