404 
The Management of a Shortliorn Herd. 
of the milk from the deep-milking cows. The calves are kept 
during- the first winter in a yard or shed ; afterwards, Mr. Strat- 
ton's favourite practice is to keep his cattle as much as possible 
in the open field, with good sheltering hedges, no sheds. He 
likes the hedges better than sheds ; and he holds that if the 
animals get a little cut up in winter they thrive all the faster 
when summer comes. For about two months in the dead of 
winter the milk-cows and calves of the first winter are kept 
indoors ; all the rest of the female stock (except the one or two 
for shows) " roughing it " in the field. To the cows indoors a 
supply of water ad libitum is allowed. It stands before them all, 
and they can drink whenever they please. The heifers generally 
produce their first calves at about two years and nine months 
old. With suckling dams, some little delay is occasionally 
experienced in breeding again, as they will not always take 
the bull before their calves are weaned. The indoors diet for 
those that require it is hay, roots and meal (or crushed oats), 
but this, with the exceptions already specified, is not given to 
anything in larger quantity than would be given to the com- 
monest dairy cattle. Even the young l)ulls are not got into 
more than ordinary working condition, but are reared so as to 
make satisfactory bulls for farmers. 
Mr. Thomas Morris, of Maisemore Court, near Gloucester, 
keeps a herd of Shorthorns of about 130, or rather more, as the 
average number. The herd was founded by his father, in 
the year 1828, by the purchase from Mr. Strickland of two 
pure-bred cows, from which all the cattle now comprised in it 
are descended, with the exception of stock bulls. These, for the 
necessary changes of blood, are obtained from other breeders. 
The main business of Shorthorn breeding at Maisemore is the 
production of good bulls for ordinary farmers, and they realise 
at one year old averages of 30 guineas and upwards. The 
highest year's average for young bulls sold in one year was 48 
guineas. The bulls, to meet the demands of customers, must 
be of large scale, healthy, robust, kindly thrivers, and of good 
dairy families : for such Mr. Morris has a ready private sale 
among tenant-farmers. He farms about 600 acres ; but as hay 
of indefinite quantity is sold, and sheep are kept, I am unable 
to give with sufficient accuracy for my purpose here an estimate 
of the acreage fairly apportionable to the Shorthorns, which 
have the range of good grass-land. 
The calves are not suckled. Besides the profit from the sale 
of young bulls, the sale of butter is a source of income, and for 
this object, necessarily, the cream is taken from a large pro- 
j)ortion of the milk. The bull-calves, nevertheless, are brought 
up liberally, to make them useful and saleable at twelve months 
