THE CULTIVATOR. 
280 
Sept. 
WEST EIIGHLAMD CATTLE. 
It is by no means uncommon to hear some of our do¬ 
mestic animals spoken of as belonging \to u native 
breeds /” and from the little consideration which is usu¬ 
ally given to the subject, it is not improbable that some 
people have lost sight of the fact that all these animals, 
(including poultry, with the exception of turkeys,) 
were introduced into America from ihe Old World. 
True, we have two indigenous species of the ox, the 
Buffalo or Bison, and the Musk Oxj and also a wild 
species of sheep, (the American argali, or Rocky 
Mountain Sheep,) but ail these are specifically different 
from our domestic races. 
Only about three centuries and a-half have elapsed 
since the first permanent settlement of this country was 
established by Europeans, and it is but. little more than 
two centuries since our forefathers planted themselves 
on the territory which we occupy. It is obvious, there¬ 
fore, that our horses, cattle, sheep, swine, &c., have 
been disseminated here within the period alluded to— 
the parent animals having been introduced at various 
times. 
The numerous herds of cattle and horses which roam 
over the vast plains of South America, were derived 
from domestic stocks brought by the Spaniards from 
their native country, and turned loose to subsist and 
propagate their species, in a great degree uncontrolled 
by man. The small, half-wild ponies occasionally seen 
on our western prairies, and the ponies in the posses¬ 
sion of our Indian tribes, are the descendants of ani¬ 
mals derived from the French colonists in Canada, or 
from the Spanish settlements at the South. 
In the English settlements, the cattle, as well as most 
of the other domestic animals, were brought chiefly 
from the British Islands. The inquiry has often been 
made—to what variety the common cattle of our coun¬ 
try originally belonged? It is not easy to answer tic 
question. There were probably importations of vari¬ 
ous stocks, though we have no authentic account or de¬ 
scription of them. The heterogeneous character of our 
common cattle has led to the idea that the progenitors 
were not selected with much regard to purity ol blood 
or similarity of points; but it must be admitted that 
they have generally been bred in so careless and indis¬ 
criminate a manner, that they would not be likely to 
make any approach towards a standard of uniformity. 
An exception should, perhaps, be made in reference t© 
some parts of New England, where the original stock 
is believed to have been obtained chiefly from Devon¬ 
shire and Sussex, and has assumed more nearly the ap¬ 
pearance of a distinct breed than the general stock of 
the country. 
It was not, however, till the middle of the last cen¬ 
tury that any systematic attempts we/e made to im¬ 
prove the breeds of British cattle; and as the importa¬ 
tions of stock to this country for the purpose of effect¬ 
ing improvement, have been made since that period, it 
is comparatively easy to ascertain the varieties from 
which they were taken. 
It may be proper to observe that the present breed® 
of British cattle are arranged in four general divisions? 
via., Long-Horns, Middle-Horns, Polled Cattle and 
Short-Horns, exclusive of the Alderneys. These am 
subdivided into many varieties, each having its distinc¬ 
tive name. Thus, among^ the Middle-Horns we hav© 
the Devon, Hereford, Sussex, and several Scotch and 
Welsh breeds; among the Long-Horns we have th« 
Bake well, Lancashire and Irish; and among the Short- 
Horns, the Yorkshire, Durham, &c. 
Within the last sixty years, we have had importa¬ 
tions of several families of Short-Horns, and Long- 
Horns, together with Herefords, Devons, Ayrshires and 
Alderneys. These breeds, for the particular purposes 
and localities for which each is adapted, haye succeed¬ 
ed well, and have been of great advantage. But con. 
sidering the great extent of our country, and the great 
variety of climate and surface which it embraces, the 
inquiry is presented, whether there are not breeds 
which have never been introduced here, that would b© 
better suited to some sections than any we have yet ob¬ 
tained? We allude particularly to those parts of th@ 
country in which animals are required to endure Consi* 
derahle expbsure, and to obtain their subsistence from 
rough or sterile grounds. Our northern districts, in¬ 
cluding a large portion of New-England, New-York* 
and the Canadas, and all the mountain ranges frem 
thence to Georgia, are of this character. 
In reference to the question—what would be the best 
and most profitable cattle for tfiese sections^ we he$ 
