FACTS AND OBSERVATIONS. 
405 
Number of Cattle in the United Kingdom. —As 
far as can be ascertained, there are in the United Kingdom 
nearly 8,000,000 head of cattle, thus distributed :—In 
England there are something over 3,500,000; in Ireland, 
2,250,000, and in Scotland there are about 1,000,000. 
The total number of sheep is about 40,000,000; and the 
total number of pigs, 4,300,000. The aggregate value 
of that property, reckoning the cattle worth £10 a-head, 
the sheep at £l each, and the pigs also at £l, was no less 
than £121,800,000. 
Exportation of Horses. —The number of horses 
exported last year was 5,235, against 4,288 in 1862, and 
2,954 in 1861. The export of horses to France seems 
steadily extending, 2,178 horseshaving been shipped thither in 
1863, against 8,985 in 1862, and 1,429 in 1861. The value 
of the horse stock exported last year was £271*380, against 
£267,956 in 1862, and £237,813 in 1861. 
Statistics of Domestic Animals in France.— It 
appears from official returns that there are, in round num¬ 
bers, 3,000,000 horses in the 89 departments of France, 
400,000 asses, 330,000 mules, 10,200,000 horned cattle, of 
which 300,000 are bulls, 2,000,000 oxen, 5,800,000 cows, 
2,100,000 yearlings, 4,000,000 calves, 35,000,000 sheep and 
lambs, of which 26,000,000 are merinos or half-bred; goats 
and kids, 1,400,000; hogs above one year old, 1,400,000; 
sucking pigs, 3,900,000. 
Supposed Origin of the Petroleum in the Springs 
of America. —Dr. A. Gesner believes the hydro-carbon to 
be a product of the chemical action by which ligneous matter 
is transmuted into coal. In some instances, he suggests, 
animal matter may also have been the source. It is stated to 
be derived from Silurian, Devonian, and carboniferous rocks. 
The borings for it pass through each class, and as soon as the 
oil-stratum is reached, an escape of carburetted hydrogen 
takes place, oftentimes with considerable violence; after 
which the oil rises. 
Dr. Dawson has found numerous remains of land animals 
in the coal measures of Nova Scotia, and also reptiles and 
insects in a fossilized tree. 
The Cinchona Plant in Jamaica. —The annual 
report of the island botanist, presented to the Jamaica 
House of Assembly, contains some interesting information 
relative to the experiment of cultivating the cinchona plant 
