486 Longhorn Cattle : their History and Peculiarities. 
During that time there was nothing kept but Longhorn cows of the old 
original Staffordshire breed, brindled sides with a white mark along the back. 
I have had thirty-five years' experience in breeding, rearing, and feeding, both 
Longhorn and Shorthorn cattle, but I always give the Longhorn the preference, 
as their milk is much richer in quality. The cheese and butter made from them 
is also superior in quality. They are also more hardy in constitution, and 
consume less food as well as being more docile in the pasture. We scarcely ever 
knew them to leave it unless driven out by the cowman. Many of our 
great Shorthorn breeders of the present age argue that they do not come to 
maturity so soon as the Shorthorn. One great reason of this is, they as a 
general rule are never taken the care of and forced as the Shorthorns are 
now. I sold an ox to Mr. Shipley, of Uttoxeter, two years and nine mouths 
old, which had never tasted cake in his life. He weighed 13 scores per 
quarter, and Mr. Shipley, a man of fifty years' experience, told me that be 
was of his age the very best beast he had ever killed. From my owti ex- 
perience I am quite convinced that, with the same care and attention paid 
them as is bestowed upon the Shorthorn, there are no beasts sui^erior to 
them in Eogland. As a great admirer of the old Longhorn, any farther iafor- 
mation that I can give you will give me great pleasure. 
" T. P. TOMLINSON'." 
" Hardendale Shap, Westmoreland, 
" Deak Sir, " AprU 11th, 1876. 
" You ask me to give you any information I can about the Longhoms. 
When I was a boy they were the only breed kept in Westmoreland, and 1 
consider them the most suitable for high land, as they are a very hardy race 
of cattle ; and by making a wise selection of bulls, and not breeding in- 
and-in, the Longhorn can be farmed to advantage. I consider their milk to 
be very good for butter- and cheese-making. As a proof of this, I was au 
exhibitor of butter at the Westmoreland and Cumberland Show last year, 
and obtained the first prize for a firkin of butter, and a second prize for 
prints. I also exhibited at the Appleby and Kirkby Stephen Show, and came 
off with first honours there. As my few Longhoms are all that are kept in 
Westmoreland, I think that speaks in their favour. They have their draw- 
backs, being very difficult to rear as calves, and require much attention when 
young ; but when they arrive at a certain age, they are heavj'-fleshed, and 
prove well to the butcher. Try them with any other breed, and I think, for 
the food consumed, they will give as good a return, if not better. Should 
they ever again be tried upon the Westmoreland or Cumberland Hills, I 
think they would answer better for the grazier than the Irish cattle, as the 
land is greatly improved within the last forty years where they used to be 
kept. 
"Mathew Heweetsok." 
These letters tend to prove various good qualities in the breed 
to which I have before called attention, and at the same time 
do not shrink from mentioning the drawbacks that are to be 
looked for in it. Mr. Tomlinson's letter is valuable in another 
sense as showing their very great antiquity, and that so far from 
their being " a creation of Bakewell's " they were in his family 
as much as a hundred and eighty years before Bakewell s epoch. 
Having spoken of them as milkers and feeders, there is another 
quality to which I must allude, which is their great longevity, 
no slight advantage to any one, and especially to a poor man 
I 
