Shorthorns  in  Scotland  and  Ireland. 
59 
and  other  fertilisers,  the  turnip-crop  was  so  much  increased  as 
to  require  a greatly  augmented  stock  of  cattle  to  consume  it. 
These  extraneous  supplies  of  young  store-cattle  have  been 
derived  from  the  northern  counties  of  England,  from  the 
grazing  farms  in  the  upper  valley  of  the  Tweed  and  its  tribu- 
taries, and  from  Ireland.  This  demand  for  store-cattle  has 
gone  on  increasing,  and  has  now  attained  very  large  dimen- 
sions. I cannot  say  much  for  the  quality  of  these  imported 
cattle.  They  are  all  more  or  less  of  the  Shorthorn  type,  and  a 
portion  are  really  well-bred;  but  a large  portion  are  of  very 
mongrel  breeding,  and  nearly  all  have  been  further  deteriorated 
by  being  poorly  fed  during  their  first  year.  I do  not  need  to 
point  out  that  animals  which  have  been  poorly  kept  as  yearlings 
can  never,  by  any  process  of  after  feeding,  be  finished  off  so  as 
at  all  to  equal  the  quality  of  others  that  have  been  well  kept 
from  their  birth.  A large  proportion  of  the  home-reared  calves 
in  this  district  are  the  produce  of  the  cows  which  belong  to  the 
farm-servants,  and  which  consist  chiefly  of  an  inferior  class  of 
Ayrshires,  and  yet,  when  crossed  by  a really  good  Shorthorn 
bull,  it  is  altogether  astonishing  to  see  how  good  the  calves  are.  ’ 
With  but  little  modification,  Mr.  Wilson’s  remarks  might  be 
applied  to  the  whole  of  the  Lothians  and  the  eastern  counties  as 
far  north  as  Forfarshire.  In  some  districts  home-breeding  kept 
pace  with  the  demand  for  fattening  cattle  to  a later  date  than  in 
Berwickshire ; but  all  the  lower  and  better-favoured  parts  of 
the  extensive  region  indicated — the  parts  adapted  to  the  growing 
of  wheat  and  potatoes — have  for  many  years  had  to  buy-in  a 
large  portion  of  their  supply  of  store-cattle  chiefly  from  upland 
Scotch  farmers,  and  from  Ireland  and  the  north  of  England. 
In  these  bough t-in  cattle  there  has  been  a most  marked  improve- 
ment in  recent  years.  A good  many  are  still  inferior  in  form 
and  quality,  and  badly  reared,  but  the  great  majority  approach 
nearly  to  the  Shorthorn  type,  and  are  thus  far  superior  to  the 
corresponding  class  of  cattle  even  ten  or  fifteen  years  ago.  The 
home-bred  cattle  are  decidedly  better  than  either  the  English 
or  Irish,  but  the  home-bred  stock  are  now  very  scarce.  In 
recent  years  there  has  been  a marked  decline  in  cattle- 
breeding  in  upland  as  well  as  lowland  districts  of  Scotland,  a 
circumstance  attributable  mainly  to  the  want  of  confidence, 
aroused  by  periodic  outbursts  of  destructive  contagious  diseases. 
W ith  less  risk  of  loss  from  contagious  diseases,  home-breeding 
would  certainly  increase,  and  the  country  would  thereby  be 
vastly  benefited.  The  improvement  in  store-cattle  offered  for 
sale  in  Scotland  has  shown  itself  even  to  a greater  extent  in 
form,  quality,  and  precocity  than  in  size.  Formerly,  few  cattle 
were  fattened  until  they  were  more  than  four  years  old  ; now 
the  majority  are  slaughtered  before  they  complete  their  third 
