NEW 
“ TO IMPROVE THE SOIL AND MIND.” 
SERIES. 
Vol. IV. 
ALBANY, JANUARY, 1847. 
No. 1. 
OUR PLATE—THE GALLOWAY CATTLE. 
The beautiful engraving accompanying this number, 
is the portrait of a four years old Galloway bull, be¬ 
longing to the Duke of Buccleugh, which obtained the 
first prize of thirty sovereigns at the show of the High¬ 
land Agricultural Society of Scotland, in 1845. We 
presume there have never been but few, if any, of this 
valuable breed of cattle in this country, and our object 
at this time is to give a correct idea in regard to them. 
The notion seems to be entertained in some quarters, 
that all polled or hornless cattle are Galloways ; hence 
we have sometimes seen it stated that there are Gallo¬ 
ways in Massachusetts, though it is very evident, from the 
description, that the stock has but few characteristics 
in common with the breed under consideration. Most 
of the hornless cattle to be met with in this country, 
correspond more to the Suffolk and Yorkshire polled 
breeds, than to any others of which we have any know¬ 
ledge, and though they have in general a mongrel 
character, and degenerate appearance, they are no 
doubt much nearer allied to the last named varieties, 
than to the Galloways, as will fully appear from the 
following description. The true Galloways are de¬ 
scribed by Low, Youatt, and other British writers, as 
being generally of a black color, though sometimes red, 
brindled, and dun ; but the black being regarded as most 
indicative of the pure breed, other colors have become 
more rare than formerly. They are, says Youatt, 
straight and broad in the back, and nearly level from the 
head to the rump. They are round in the ribs, and also 
between the shoulders and the ribs, and the ribs and the 
loins. They are broad in the loins, without any large 
projecting hook (or hip) bones. In roundness of bar¬ 
rel and fullness of ribs, they will compare with any 
breed, and also in the proportion which the loins bear 
to the hook bones or protuberances of the ribs. When 
viewed from above, the body is said to appear beautiful¬ 
ly rounded like the longitudinal section of a roller. 
“ They are long in the quarters and ribs, and deep in 
the chest, but not broad in the twist. The slightest 
inspection will show that there is less space between 
the hip or hook bones and the ribs than in most other 
breeds, a consideration of much importance, for the ad¬ 
vantage of length of carcass consists in the animal be¬ 
ing well ribbed home, or as little space as possible lost 
m the flank.” 
“ The Galloway is short in the leg, and moderately 
fine in the shank bones—the happy medium seems to 
be preserved, in the leg, which secures hardihood and a 
disposition to fatten. With the same cleanness and 
shortness of shank, there is no breed so large and mus¬ 
cular above the knee, while there is more room for the 
deep, broad, and capacious chest. He is clean, not 
fine and slender, but well proportioned in the neck and 
chaps ; a thin and delicate neck would not correspond 
with the broad shoulders, deep chest, and close compact 
form of the breed. 
“ The Galloway is covered with a loose mellow skin 
of medium thickness, and which is covered with a 
long, soft, silky hair. The skin is thinner than that of 
the Leicestershire, but not so thin as that of the im¬ 
proved Durham, but it handles soft and kindly. Even 
on the moorland, where the cattle, during the greater 
part of the year, are fed on the scantiest fare, it is re¬ 
markable how little their hides indicate the privations 
they endure.” 
The Galloway cows are not remarkable for giving a 
large quantity of milk, but it is very rich in quality , and 
yields a large proportion of butter. Mr. Youatt says, 
“ a cow that giv^s from twelve to sixteen quarts of milk 
per day, [wine measure.] is considered a very superior 
milker, and that quantity produces more than a pound 
and a half of butter.” 
The Galloway breed of cattle is considered one of the 
mountains rather than the lower country. They derive 
their name from a district of country in Scotland, em¬ 
bracing portions of several counties. Mr. Youatt ob¬ 
serves that “ there is, perhaps, no breed of cattle 
which can more truly be said to be indigenous to the 
country, and incapable of improvement by any foreign 
cross, than the Galloways.” The same remark is made 
by Prof. Low. “ The breed of Galloway,” says he, “ is 
peculiarly confirmed in its characters, and thoroughly 
adapted to the condition of the country.’ 5 There is no 
doubt of the correctness of these remarks, and hence it 
results that all efforts to improve the breed by crossing 
it with others, have proved unsuccessful. According to 
Mr. Gulley, a cross was tried in Mr. Bakewell’s 
time, with the Dishley variety of the Long Horns, and 
at a later day, improvements have been attempted with 
the Short Horns. 
Prof. Low in allusion to this. sa 3 r s “ efforts have 
from time to time been made to cross the breed by the 
Dishley Long Horns, the Ayrshires, and the modern 
Short Horns. These attempts, it is believed, have 
been all failures, in so far as they were designed 
to improve the general breed of the country ,• and 
modern breeders with better khowledge, have turned 
their attention to the improvement of the existing race.” 
Mr. Youatt, in reference to the same subject, remarks, 
that the Short Horns have in many instances improved 
the stock of the districts where they have been intro¬ 
duced. “ They have,” he says, “ at least in the first 
cross produced manifest improvement, although the ad¬ 
vantage has not often been prolonged much beyond the 
second generation •, but even in the first cross the Short 
Horns have done little good in Galloway, and as a per- 
