138 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
To my taste, nothing can be so attractive a spectacle of the kind as i 
a show of fine bred short-horns in high condition, such as are to be 
seen at Dunse June fair, or the monthly markets at Kelso and 
Coldstream in May and June. 
BREEDING IN-AND-IN. 
The preservation of the valuable breed of short-horns is a consi¬ 
deration of paramount importance; and, fortunately, it is in the 
power of breeders themselves to secure it. It consists entirely in 
maintaining the purity of blood in vigor. This desirable end is best 
secured by avoiding, on the one hand, the evil of breeding in-and-in, 
that is, the union of too close relationship in blood, and on the other, 
too violent a cross. A strong mark of the purity of blood being in 
vigor, is the circumstance of like producing its like; and no breed 
will in this respect incur so little disappointment to the breeder as 
short-horns, after a proper selection of the dam and sire. 
The evil of breeding in-and-in, or, in other words, producing too 
great refinement of tone, is manifested in the first instance, by a 
tenderness of constitution; the animals not being able to withstand 
the extremes of heat and cold, rain and drought. If the evil is 
prolonged through several generations, the forms of the animals be¬ 
come affected, the bone becomes very small, the neck droops, the 
skin of the head becomes tight and scantily covered with hair, the 
expression of the eye indicates extreme sensibility, the hair on the 
body becomes thin and short, and the skin as thin as paper; the 
points continue good, and predisposition to fatness increases, but the 
whole carcass becomes much diminished in size, though retaining its 
plumpness and beautiful symmetry. The evil, however, does not 
terminate in the production of these symptoms. Internal diseases 
ensue, such as disorganization of the liver, or rot, polypi in the tra¬ 
chea, or dyers, malformation of the bones of the neck and legs, and 
general deformity. 
It is true that both Mr. Bakewell and the Messrs. Collins bred 
much in-and-in. Such a practice may be excusable in those who 
are attempting to establish a particular kind of stock, as by that 
means it will be sooner brought to maturity. But the same license 
cannot with propriety be taken by breeders who have abundance of 
well-bred stock within their reach from which to select their breed¬ 
ing stock. The invariable injurious tendency of breeding in-and-in 
proves that nature herself places a barrier against abuse in breeding. 
CHOICE OF BULLS. 
The practice of breeding in-and-in leads me to remark on the 
subject of judging of large and small bulls. I have had frequent 
opportunities of observing that premiums, at local shows, are given 
by the judges to large bulls. This I conceive a great mistake. In 
my opinion, the size of a bull ought to be considered of secondary 
importance in judging of him as a breeding animal. That which 
shows the greatest number of good points , ought to be chosen, and 
these should be counted by the judges. One bull may possess one 
point better than another; but that one possessing the greatest 
number of points ought to be preferred, particularly among a com¬ 
petition of aged bulls. Some young bulls, it is true, do not show 
their points till they are one or even two years old, whilst others 
show them from the first. When all the points are not visible on a 
young bull, he must be partly judged of by his pedigree. If the 
blood is well descended, free from intermixture, and not too nearly 
related in blood on both sides, then a young bull may be safely judg¬ 
ed of by his pedigree. The points of well-bred young bulls improve 
as they advance in years. 
CHOICE OF COWS. 
In judging of cows I should make some modification of the rules 
recommended for bulls. They should be always large, having capa¬ 
cious parts to support the calf to a large size, and to permit its egress 
freely at the period of calving. Purity of blood, of course, must be 
attended to as the first consideration; but, in order to obtain a well- 
bred large cow to breed from, I would overlook a point or two in 
the symmetry or quality. As in the case with bulls, small cows will 
generally show finest symmetry, yet I would deviate a little on the 
score of points, which are everything to a bull, to obtain a large ca¬ 
pacious cow, which generally carries a strong healthy calf. 
MILKING PROPERTIES. 
It has been frequently asserted, that short-horned cows are bad 
milkers, indeed that no kind of cattle are so deficient in milk. Those 
who say so do not know the still greater deficiencies of the Here- 
fords, a species of cattle quite unknown in Scotland. The higher 
bred stocks of the Messrs. Codings, Mr. Mason, and Mr. Robertson, 
yielded little milk. Indeed Mr. Robertson’s could not supply milk 
sufficient for their own calves, at least not in the quantity which it 
was desired by him they should receive. Cows were kept for the 
purpose of supplying the deficiency of milk of the high-bred cows. 
But this deficiency of milk did not altogether proceed from the cir¬ 
cumstance of the cows being of the short-horned breed; because 
those eminent breeders devoted their whole attention to the deve¬ 
lopment of flesh, and not at all to the development of milk. Had 
the flesh been neglected as much as the milk, and the property of 
giving milk as much cherished as the development of flesh, their 
short-horned cows would^have been deep milkers. As it is the ge¬ 
nerality of short-horned cows are not bad milkers. Indeed, it is not 
to be doubted, that where the general secreting powers of the ani¬ 
mal system have been increased, as it has been in that of the short¬ 
horns, the power of secreting milk will be increased with the power 
of secreting flesh and fat; all that seems requisite, is to encourage 
the power of that secretion, which for the time is most wanted. I 
have no doubt that it is completely in the power of the breeders of 
short-horns to make them good milkers. It would be to desire an 
impossibility, to desire the full development of flesh, fat, and milk, at 
the same time ; but there is no absurdity in desiring a large secre¬ 
tion of flesh and fat at one time, and a large secretion of milk at 
another, from the same cow. Accordingly, this is the very charac¬ 
ter which has been acquired by short-horn cows. They will yield 
from six to sixteen quarts a-day throughout the season ; and they 
are so constant milkers, that they seldom remain dry above six weeks 
or two months before the time of calving. 
But the practice of the owners of public dairies in towns, were 
there no other proof, would prove the milking powers of short-horn 
cows. They prefer them as the greatest and most steady milkers ; 
and it is now difficult to see cows of any breeds but short-horns, or 
crosses with them, in these dairies. In London Edinburgh and Li¬ 
verpool, fine short-horn cows may be seen at the public dairies.— 
They are brought by the milkmen whenever they come of age, that 
is, about five or six years old. They give milk till they attain the 
age of eight or nine, and are then fed off 1 fat for the butcher. 
These cows can be fed off fat. This property, and that of milking, 
prove clearly, that short-horns possess both in a remarkable degree. 
They do not, it is true, possess both in an eminent degree at the 
same time; but they exhibit either property separately when it is de¬ 
sired. They thus give a return in flesh for part of their original 
high price, whilst they remunerate their owners in the mean time 
with an abundance of milk for their food. 
From the Edinburgh Quarterly Journal of Agriculture. 
ON ROT IN SHEEP. 
The attention of your readers having again been called to the in- 
1 ternal rot of sheep, I would humbly offer the following remarks to 
1 their consideration, hoping they may be of some use in leading either 
; to a prevention or cure of that distressing disease which has been 
■ the means of ruining so many of our poor farmers, and perhaps of 
r injuring the health of many of our people, who have been fed with 
5 unwholesome mutton. I first, then, would recommend your readers 
1 to read a small book published in 1823, at Berwick-upon-Tweed, by 
: a Lammermuir farmer,* not that I agree with him as to the cause 
r of the disease, but he gives many interesting facts, and useful hints. 
- He supposes that the rot is occasioned by feeding in a luxuriant 
; after-growth of grass, but I have yet to learn that a luxuriant 
after-growth of clover occasions this disease. The fact I believe to 
be, that it is some particular plant which affects the animal. It is 
3 surely no longer believed that it is wet or cold; for if a ewe, when 
- giving milk, does not suffer, is she more likely to escape the effects 
3 of cold than another sheep 1 But I believe it is admitted by medical 
2 men, that women giving milk are not so apt to suffer from poison as 
- other persons : so also with sheep. I am inclined to believe that the 
l butter-cup ( Ranunculus ,) is the plant which is the cause of the mis- 
1 chief. Green in his Universal Herbal says, all the parts of this plant 
2 are exceedingly acrid. In the Isle of Sky, it is used instead of Spa- 
- nish flies to raise a blister. Curtis states that when cattle are 
tempted or forced to eat it, their mouths become sore and blistered ; 
and, according to Linnaeus, sheep and goats eat this plant, but cat- 
I tie, horses and even pigs, refuse it. Geese also eat it. Now, sheep 
* This is an excellent practical treatise on the management of sheep in up¬ 
land pastures. Its author, the late Mr. John Fairbairn of Hally burton, we had 
r the pleasure of knowing well; and many will bear us out when we state that 
> no Lammermuir farmer could show a better flock of Clievoit sheep than he 
i had.— Ed. Q. J. A. 
