OXEN. 237 



Britain, we proceed to mention that from time immemorial 

 there have existed in certain British parks pecuHar races of 

 half-wild cattle, which were long regarded as being directly 

 descended from the original pre-historic Aurochs, without ever 

 having undergone domestication. Although certain of these 

 Park-Cattle (as they may be called), and more especially those of 

 Chillingham Park, in Northumberland, are, in spite of their 

 small size, evidently very nearly related to the gigantic wild 

 Aurochs, there is now good reason for beheving that they 

 cannot trace back their ancestry directly to the latter without 

 the intervention of a period of domestication. Hence they 

 may probably be regarded as derived from a very ancient race 

 nearly related to the wild Aurochs, which had undergone some 

 degree of domestication. 



Chillingham Cattle. — Although half-wild cattle were formerly 

 kept in a considerable number of British parks, they remain 

 now only in Cadzow Park, Lanarkshire, Chartley Park, Staf- 

 fordshire, Chillingham Park, Northumberland, and Lyme 

 Park, Cheshire. Since the wildest of these, and at the same 

 time those which approach nearest to the wild Aurochs, are the 

 Chillingham herd, our few remarks will be confined to these. 

 These handsome animals have brown muzzles, and the insides 

 and tips of the ears red, but are elsewhere milk-white ; there 

 is, however, evidence that originally the ears were, in most 

 cases, black. Many of the cows are hornless. Writing many 

 years ago, Mr. J. Hindmarsh observed that the Chillingham 

 cattle "have pre-eminently all the characters of wild animals, 

 with some peculiarities which are sometimes very curious and 

 amusing. They hide their young, feed in the night, basking 

 or sleeping during the day ; they are fierce when pressed, but 

 generally speaking very timorous, moving off on the appear- 

 ance of anyone, even at a great distance." During the breed- 

 ing season, the bulls are, however, very pugnacious, and it is 



