On Short-horn Cattle. 
209 
early short-horns were not entirely free from it, although not very 
common ; but the sire of Foljambe could not boast of much deli- 
cacy there. The horn has often been called a non-essential, and 
in some respects that may be true ; yet it must be admitted that a 
small moist white or yellowish horn, coming well off the head with 
a graceful circle and with a downward tendency at the end in a fe- 
male, and an inclination upwards in an ox, contributes much to 
the character and appearance of an animal, and denotes a feeding 
propensity. The eye has had its fashion at different periods : at 
one time the eye high and outstanding from the head, and at 
another time the sleepy eye sunk into the head ; but these extremes 
have merged into the medium of a full, clear, and prominent eye, 
with a placid look. The neck-vein forms a collar in front of the 
shoulder, extending from the upper part of it down to the breast 
end/connecting the fat on the shoulder with the fat on the breast, 
thereby promoting a uniform covering of fat throughout every 
part of a beast, commencing at the rump, and proceeding along 
the back to the hip, loin, rib, crop, shoulder, and breast, without 
patch, or any one part having excess of fat beyond that of its 
neighbour. The breast should come prominently out from between 
the fore legs, and extend down to about two or three inches of the 
knee-joint, and its width should never be lost sight of. An animal 
with a loide back and a wide breast cannot fail to have substance, 
fore flanks, wide fore legs, and other indications of a strong and 
vigorous constitution. A wide and fat breast should extend itself 
through the fore legs towards the udder in rolls of fat. The flank 
should be full, and easily found by the unbent fingers, without 
having to lift up the flank or close the fingers to find the fat : it 
should drop into the fingers, as it were. The buttock is a part 
that is not handled as a fat point, but should not pass entirely un- 
noticed, although in the best-bred short-horns there is little occasion 
for caution against the black flesh in this part, which some other 
animals have ; but a want of lean flesh is as great an evil as an ex- 
cess of it : it is necessary, therefore, that there should be great 
fulness nearly as low as opposite the flank, tapering from thence 
to the hock : this fulness should be on the inside as well as the 
outside of the thigh, and give a full twist, lining the division be- 
tween the hams with a continuous roll of fat to the next point 
under the belly. 
Hitherto my observations have been confined to feeding pro- 
pensities only, without any regard to the dairy. It is notorious, 
and much to their detriment, that many of the most superior 
short-horns do not possess that quality in an eminent degree. 
The annual loss to the breeder on each cow is very considerable, 
when we see that of two cows consuming an equal quantity of 
food, one gives six gallons of milk per day, and the other gives 
VOL. VII. p 
