356 



Agriculture in Hungary. 



■exhibits in the stock classes were sent by peasant farmers, 

 though the larger or professional breeders were by no means 

 unrepresented. 



The horse section of the show was well represented by 237 

 animals, the quality of which, considering that at least half 

 were sent by peasant farmers, was most satisfactory. It is not 

 to be expected, however, that a farmer who has fifty or a 

 hundred acres can maintain the same class of horse as 

 a landowner or large farmer. But the small farmers know 

 and like to keep a good animal, and in many parts of 

 Hungary horse-breeding is an important part of the year's work. 

 These Hungarian peasants breed large numbers of the horses 

 used in several European armies. It is well to remember that 

 in Hungary horses are used for draught and ordinary farm 

 work to an extent not common in other Continental countries, 

 where cattle are employed almost exclusively, which fact explains 

 the greater number of. horses kept. Among the horses exhibited 

 were a number of good Arabs, a few thoroughbreds, and a con- 

 siderable selection in which hunter and hackney blood was 

 evident. About twenty years ago Arabs were chiefly employed 

 for crossing with the Hungarian native Mura, the latter a hardy 

 but slow-moving animal. Since that time English thoroughbreds, 

 hunters and hackneys, have been preferred, giving a more useful 

 and, therefore, more saleable animal. Heavy Belgian stallions 

 have also been used to a more limited extent. The Mura is very 

 low in the back, and, consequently, the cross is not always 

 according to our English ideas of conformity. 



The cattle section was very large, consisting of upwards of 800 

 exhibits, and here was to be found a much greater limitation of 

 type than might have been expected. The Alfoldi cattle are 

 chiefly kept on the low lands bordering the Danube and the 

 plains, and are used for draught purposes. They are heavy in 

 bone, and would scarcely be worth keeping if that were not so, 

 as the meat is hard, and the milk given by cows very scanty, 

 though rich in butter-fat. They have neat heads, surmounted by 

 very long, widely-branching horns, and are large in body. These 

 powerful animals are bred in a natural manner, are never housed, 

 and the calves are allowed to suck their dams. Another breed is 

 the Erdelyi, which is usually found on the higher lands and in 



