CHAPTEE XIII. 



Origin of Character in Old Breeds of Cattle. 

 Natural Conditions Giving Rise to Their Peculiarities. 



All cattle that continue long in distinct locations having 

 peculiar features of climate, topography, soil, etc., acquire 

 peculiar character from the influence of the local condi- 

 tions they grow in. This could not be otherwise, as the 

 forces affecting growth and character, such as cold and 

 damp, and abundance and quality of feed, vary more or 

 less in every locality. What appears highly probable is, 

 that nearly or quite all the best breeds of cattle and horses 

 are chiefly formed and originate under local influences, 

 combined with unconscious selection, previous to their 

 becoming generally known, specially selected, or much 

 disseminated. Accordingly, we shall try to point out 

 certain prominent and, in some cases, peculiar traits in a 

 number of long-known British breeds of cattle, and others ; 

 and to give such explanations as seem applicable of the 

 conditions or influences that gave origin to their leading 

 or most obvious characteristics. A few underlying facts 

 and principles may be noted. Parts of the system, /. e., 

 kinds of growth, are vital or necessary to life in proportion 

 to their vascularity, to the quantity of blood and blood- 

 vessels they contain, as well as to their contractility and 

 active use. Thus, while fat is inelastic, containing little 

 blood, all animal motions result from active muscular 

 elasticity, while half the circulation of the body is con- 

 tained in the muscular tissues, and nearly all of it in or- 

 gans that arc muscular in their structure, thus making cir- 



