CATTLE. 63 
excellences would be derived from a very limited view, and 
consequently from only a few of its qualities. He could not 
possibly discover, without tuition, those properties which had 
chiefly conduced to produce the high condition in which he 
saw the ox. He would hardly believe that a judge can ascer- 
tain merely by the eye, from its general aspect, whether the ox 
were in good or bad health; from the color of its skin whether 
it were of a pure or a cross breed; from the expression of its 
countenance whether it were a quiet feeder; and from the na- 
ture of its flesh whether it had arrived at maturity. The 
disceveries made by the hand of the judge might even stagger 
belief. He understands the “points” of cattle, and experience 
enables him to appreciate their individual and aggregate value. 
The “points” by which cattle are characterized may profit- 
ably be described in detail : 
1. The nose or muzzle in the Durhams or Short Horns should 
be ofa rich cream color. Inthe Devon, Hereford, and Sussex it 
is preferred when a clear golden color. A brown or dark color 
indicates a cross. 
2. The forehead should be neither narrow nor very broad. 
The eye should be prominent, and the nostril between the eye 
and the muzzle thin, particularly in the Devons, 
8. The horns should be small, smooth, tapering, and sharp 
pointed, long or short, according to the breed, and of a white 
color throughout in some breeds, and tipped with black in 
others, The shape is less essential than the color. 
4, The neck should be of medium length, full at the sides, not 
too deep in the throat, and should come out from the shoulders 
nearly on a level with the chine. 
5. The top of the plate bones should not be too wide, but, 
rising on a level with the chine, should be well thrown back, 
so that there may be no hollowness behind. 
6. The shoulder point should lay flat with the ribs, without 
any projection. 
7. The breast should be wide and open, projecting forward. 
8. The chine should lay straight and be well covered with flesh, 
