Breeding, Rearing, and Feeding Horses, Cattle, and Sheep. 97 
the superiority of home-bred cattle. Inspecting a lot of well- 
bred animals, rising three years old, in the commodious court- 
yards of Mr. Robson Scott, of Newton, Roxburghshire, in 
October last, I called attention to an animal that was evidently 
the worst of the lot. "Oh!" replied the steward, "that's the 
only one in this yard that was bought-in ; the others were all 
bred by ourselves." There was certainly a very marked differ- 
ence, and the animals had for a long time been subjected to the 
same feeding. While the bullocks bred by Mr. Scott were worth 
from 35/. to 40/., the ox bred nobody knew where would have 
been dear at 28/. And this animal was far from the worst — 
indeed, he was above the average — of the age and breed I saw 
during a week's tour on the Borders. In that one court-yard at 
Newton the great advantage of keeping on the calf-flesh was 
demonstrated in an instructive and unmistakable manner. 
Nor are the enhanced prices for the home-bred beasts the only 
benefit arising from breeding, rearing, and feeding, where at all 
practicable on the same holding. Many farmers do not require 
to be reminded of the great advantages of having their feeding- 
stock descended from at least a well-bred bull. The cows may 
also be of a pure breed, but the bulls must. Though happily a 
large number of farmers are fully aware of these facts, not a few, 
unfortunately, are either unaware of them, or are comparatively 
unconcerned in the matter. Some of those who do breed cattle 
appear to think almost any sort of bull sufficient ; that is to say, 
they are not particular as to whether the animal is pure of its kind. 
If it has a dash of Shorthorn blood and plenty of carcase they 
seem satisfied. It is almost needless to say that from such bulls 
the stock will not be nearly so good as the produce of pure-bred 
animals. There is nowadays no excuse for, but very strong 
objection to, the use of cross-bred or non-pedigree sires. Short- 
horn bulls, of pure and tolerably long descent, are neither diffi- 
cult to get nor unreasonably dear. During the past year, while 
in some parts of the country nondescript bulls were in service, 
numbers of the better-bred young Shorthorn bulls were almost 
unsaleable, even at very small prices. It was freely said last year 
in England that bull-breeding was rather overdone, that the knife 
was too sparingly used on the calves. To some extent that may 
be true ; but I believe that if the farmers generally throughout 
England were as careful as they ought to be, not only in avoid- 
ing mixed-bred bulls, but in selecting well-descended sires, 
there would have been fewer young bulls withdrawn or sold at 
a sacrifice at many of the English Shorthorn sales. This idea 
is supported by the state of matters in the north-eastern counties 
of Scotland. Perhaps in no similiar area in the United King- 
dom are so many bulls bred as in the lower parts of Aberdeen, 
VOL. XII. — S. S. " H 
