576 UNGULATA. 



THE WILD CATTLE. 



The Wild Cattle, as they are called, are of moderate size, strongly 

 but not clumsily built ; their hair is short and thick, becoming longer 

 and curly on the head and neck, and with a slight indication of a mane 

 as far as the withers. The color is milk-white, with the exception of the 

 muzzle, the ears, the horns, and hoofs. The color of the ears varies 

 according to the breed. The cattle of Chillingham have the interior of 

 the ear red ; those of Hamilton have it coal black ; the former have 

 brown muzzles, the latter black. Both have black hoofs, and black tips 

 to their horns. These distinctions of color in the two breeds are kept up 

 by a strict process of weeding out all calves that do not conform to the 

 standard. In Hamilton, all calves with brown marks are put to death ; 

 in Chillingham, a black muzzle and ear is the creature's death-warrant. 

 The herds at Gisburne in Yorkshire, and Chartly in Staffordshire, resem- 

 ble the oxen of Chillingham ; those that used to be at Drumlanrig and 

 Cumbernauld were of the Hamilton variety. In all cases a superstition 

 prevails that danger threatens the owner's house and family if a black 

 calf is born in the herd. 



According to Lord Tankerville, the cattle of Chillingham have all the 

 peculiarities of wild animals. They hide their young, feed by night, and 

 sleep by day. In summer they are seldom seen, preferring at that season 

 the shade of the wood ; in winter they come to the places where they 

 are accustomed to be fed, and then a man on horseback can ride almost 

 into the middle of the herd. When they are alarmed or provoked at the 

 intrusion of a strange human being within the limit of their territories, 

 they toss their heads wildly in the air, paw the ground, and steadfastly 

 regard the object of their dislike. If he should make a sudden move- 

 ment, they scamper away precipitately, gallop round him in a circle, and 

 come to another halt at a shorter distance. This process is continually 

 repeated, the diameter of the circle is shortened at every fresh alarm, till 

 the angry animals come so near the spectator that he is glad to escape as 

 best he can. They are usually shot when they are six years old. The 

 flesh is not different from that of the common ox. The herds are main- 

 tained out of family pride, and the annual expense is heavy. They pre- 

 sent a majestic sight as they gallop between the gray, gnarled trunks of 

 the primeval oaks of the old Caledonian forest. 



