602 
BREEDING OF STOCK. 
maternal grandsire of “ Eclipse”), purchased from a water- 
cart, become the fountain-head to which cattle breeders and 
horsemen desire to trace up the pedigrees of their stock? 
Why were they selected, but because they possessed, in a 
marked degree, most of the very best qualities which were 
desired in ox or horse, and because the purchasers believed 
and acted upon the idea that “like begets like;” and “f 
like begets like” in good qualities, why not in the bad? 
“Like begets like” in the bad equally, if not, indeed, more 
surely than in the good. Malformation in a vigorous animal 
is often handed down to his progeny for generations, even 
if none of his known ancestors possessed the fault; but it 
rolls on with fearful power if the defect he an hereditary one. 
If the individual animal possess great vital energy, his 
characteristic form will be stamped on his progeny. Thus, 
in the ' Philosophical Transactions’ of 1813, and in 'Thomp¬ 
son's Annals of Philosophy,’ vol. ii, there is a description of 
a new variety of sheep as follows :—“ Seth Wright, who pos¬ 
sessed a small farm on the Charles River, about sixteen miles 
from Boston, had a small flock, consisting of fifteen ewes and 
one ram. One of these ewes, in 1791? produced a singular¬ 
shaped male lamb. Wight was advised to kill his former 
ram and keep this new one in place of it; the consequence 
was, the formation of a new breed of sheep, which gradually 
spread over a considerable part of New England, but the 
introduction of the Merino has nearly destroyed them again. 
This new variety was called the Otter, or ‘Ankon’ breed. 
They are remarkable for the shortness of their legs, and the 
crookedness of their fore legs, like an elbow. They are 
much more feeble and much smaller than the common sheep, 
and less able to break over low fences ; and this was the reason 
of their being continued and propagated.” This fact proves 
that an individual animal starting a defect may propagate this 
defect, although descended from a race without such pecu¬ 
liarity. Where, then, is the wisdom of selecting an animal 
which possesses few of the qualities we desire, but w r hich 
comes before us with the magic of a name, and surrounded 
by the artificial halo of a pedigree? 
As regards the form of the head, I attach great importance 
to a large wide forehead and a somewhat short face in all 
cattle intended for grazing purposes. There was a very fine 
specimen of a head in the yearling bull “ Bushire 2nd,” bred 
by Mr. Leeke, and sold for forty guineas at Mr. Cox’s sale. 
The head of that young animal was a model, and, 1 was 
going to add, alone worth the sum for which the fine fellow 
was sold. Animals with the forehead wide between the eyes, 
