ENGLISH AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
341 
to a well-bred male. This observation was first made, I believe, 
by the late Mr. Berry, in an essay for which he received a prize 
from the Highland Society. He accounted for it thus : a well-bred 
animal means one whose ancestors, for several successive genera- 
tions, have all been good, that is, have all possessed the peculiari- 
ties in constitution and shape which it is the object of experienced 
graziers to obtain in their stock. The characteristic, therefore, of the 
family of such an animal will be such peculiarities : but the ances- 
tors of a badly-bred animal will probably have varied in every 
possible way, and therefore there will be no distinguishing charac- 
teristic in its family. It is consequently most probable that the off- 
spring produced from a cross between two animals so circumstanced 
will be more like the one in whose family there is a distinguishing 
characteristic, than the one in whose family ho such characteristic 
exists. The common but, I believe, mistaken notion, that the 
offspring from the first cross is better than that from any subse- 
quent one, probably arises from the improvement in the first' in- 
stance being so much more apparent than, for the reason given 
above, it is likely to be in any one generation afterwards. Now 
it is known to all graziers that the attempt to fatten an animal 
who possesses no feeding propensities produces loss instead of 
profit. If the above observations are correct, the feeding propensi- 
ties descend from the sire. It is quite just, therefore, to say that 
a breeder of cattle or sheep, who considers it a matter of indiffer- 
ence what sort of male animal he uses, does also consider it a matter 
of indifference whether he gains profit or incurs loss. 
The prime object which any breeder of cattle or sheep must keep 
in view, whether he intends to breed bulls or rams, or whether his 
aim is merely to breed oxen or wethers, is that the stock which he 
breeds shall be healthy. The first thing, therefore, to be consi- 
dered in the selection of a male animal are the indications by which 
it may be possible to form a judgment as to his constitution. In 
all animals a wide chest indicates strength of constitution, and there 
can be no doubt that this is the point of shape to which it is most 
material for any breeder to look in the selection either of a bull or 
a ram. In order to ascertain that the chest of these animals is 
wide, it is not sufficient to observe that they have wide bosoms, but 
the width which is perceived by looking at them in the front should 
be continued along the brisket, which ought to shew great fulness 
in the part which is just under the elbows: it is also necessary that 
they should be what is called thick through the heart. Another 
indication of a good constitution is, that a male animal should have 
a masculine appearance. With this view a certain degree of coarse- 
ness is by no means objectionable : but this coarseness should not 
be such as would be likely to shew itself in a castrated animal, be- 
