Numbers of Live Stock in Great Britain in 1905. 255 
Britain, being 1*1 per cent, more than last year’s total. The most striking 
additions are in Wilts, Sussex, and Cheshire ; while in Scotland there has been, 
on the whole, a decrease, particularly in Aberdeen. On the other hand, among 
cattle of two years old and above, which over the whole country show a larger 
proportionate increase than the cows, the advance is especially marked in 
Scotland, and in Forfar an addition of over 5,000 head (or more than 31 per 
cent.) over the 1904 total in this class has been reported. The increase in this 
county is mainly attributed to the difference in the conditions obtaining in the 
early part of the year, as compared with the previous season, feeders having 
held their stock back longer in the spring of 1905 than in that of 1904. Cattle 
of one year and under two show a proportionate increase almost as great as the 
older cattle, this being most marked in England, especially Lincoln. Calves 
under one year increased by 1*3 per cent., the largest increase occurring in 
Sussex ; while reductions on last year’s corresponding figures are to be found in 
Wales and Scotland. 
Sheep , for the first time since 1899, are slightly augmented, although the 
flocks of Great Britain are still 2,000,000 less than they were six years ago. A 
slight increase in the number of ewes kept for breeding is perhaps the most 
satisfactory feature, although the largest absolute addition is recorded among 
other sheep under one year old. The lambing season appears to have been, on 
the whole, favourable, but the increase is partially attributed to the lateness of 
the season, which probably delayed the marketing of the usual proportion of 
lambs before the date of the returns in June. The local changes in the distri- 
bution of sheep have been very diverse. Thus, while England loses 50,000, 
Wales and Scotland gain 45,000 and 55,000 respectively. Large variations as 
between county and county are also conspicuous, decreases of 28,000 in 
Lincoln, 17,000 in Warwick, 14,000 in Northampton and Suffolk being 
counterbalanced by increases of 21,000 in Cumberland, 18,000 in the East 
Riding and in Wilts, with other increases of 10,000 to 15,000 in Dorset, West 
Riding, Dumfries, Westmorland, and Montgomery. The relative increase of 
the sheep stock of Wales has been a subject of remark when compared with 
the retrogression in the flocks of England ; and it may be noted that while 
Welsh flocks never reached 3,000,000 until 1890, they have never fallen below 
that figure in the past fifteen years, and have stood at an average of over 
3,500,000 since 1902 ; while in England, where sheep in the late “ seventies ” 
considerably exceeded 18,000,000, the total during the past three years has not 
reached 15,000,000. 
Pigs . — Only two English counties (Middlesex and London) and six Scotch 
show any increase in swine, while decreases of over 20,000 head are recorded 
in Suffolk, Norfolk, Lincoln, and the East Riding respectively. Both 
categories into which pigs are grouped show a decline, but this is somewhat 
less among the breeding sows than in other pigs. Although the fall in the 
aggregate amounts to 15 - 3 per cent, on the year, it must be remembered that 
the total of pigs has always been subject to wide fluctuations, and has 
frequently been lower, once as recently as 1902, while the number of pigs 
enumerated in Great Britain in 1905 is about equal to the average of the past 
thirty years. 
THE WEATHER DURING 
THE AGRICULTURAL YEAR, 1904-1905. 
In the all-important matter of weather, the past agricultural 
year, though by no means free from times of anxiety, was, upon 
the whole, of a favourable character. The dry autumn of 1904, 
which provided a good seed bed and allowed farming operations 
to proceed with little interruption, was followed by a winter in 
