Part 3

Ulcers about the Joints, 312

Warbles, 313 Worms, 315 Worms in the Bronchial Tubes, 316

SURGICAL OPERATIONS, 316

Castration, 316 Tracheotomy, 319 Spaying, 320

LIST OF MEDICINES USED IN TREATING CATTLE, 330

DOSES OF VARIOUS MEDICINES, 336

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE A Prize Bull, 13 The Well-fed Beasts, 19 An Ayrshire Bull, 23 A Short-horn Bull, 33 A North Devon Steer, 41 Draft Oxen, 45 Skeleton of the Ox, 50 Teeth at Birth, 52 Teeth at Second Week, 52 Teeth at Three Weeks, 53 Teeth at a Month, 53 Teeth at Five to Eight Months, 53 Ten Months Teeth, 53 Twelve Months Teeth, 54 Fifteen Months Teeth, 54 Eighteen Months Teeth, 55 Teeth at Two Years Past, 55 Teeth at Three Years Past, 56 Teeth at Four Years Past, 56 Teeth at Five Years Past, 56 Teeth at Ten Years Past, 56 A Good Milch Cow, 58 Milk-Mirror (A), 62 Milk-Mirror (B), 63 Milk-Mirror (C), 63 Milk-Mirror (D), 64 Milk-Mirror (E), 65 Milk-Mirror (F), 66 Milk-Mirror (G), 69 Milk-Mirror (H), 70 Milk-Mirror (K), 72 Milk-Mirror (L), 74 Cow and Calf, 77 Ready for Action, 83 A Sprightly Youth, 89 Feeding, 97 The Family Pets, 102 Buying Cattle, 107 Calling in the Cattle, 112 "On the Rampage", 117 Patiently Waiting, 123 A Chance for a Selection, 129 A West Highland Ox, 139 Barn for Thirty-four Cows and Three Yoke of Oxen, 150 Transverse Section, 152 Room over the Cow-Room, 153 The Preferable Method, 159 Maternal Affection, 168 Frolicksome, 177 Points of Cattle, 185 A Frontispiece, 190 Scotch Mode of Cutting up Beef, 195 English Mode of Cutting up Beef, 197 Diseases and Their Remedies, 205 A Chat on the Road, 218 The Mad Bull, 230 An Aberdeenshire Polled Bull, 244 Taking an Observation, 256 The Twins, 268 A Rural Scene, 285 Taking it Easily, 299 Home Again, 313

History and Breeds

It is quite certain that the ox has been domesticated and in the service of man from a very remote period. We are informed in the fourth chapter of Genesis, that cattle were kept by the early descendants of Adam; Jubal, the son of Lamech--who was probably born during the lifetime of Adam--being styled the father of such as have cattle. The ox having been preserved by Noah from the flood of waters, the original breed of our present cattle must have been in the neighborhood of Mount Ararat. From thence, dispersing over the face of the globe--altering by climate, by food, and by cultivation--originated the various breeds of modern ages.

That the value of the ox tribe has been in all ages and climates highly appreciated, we have ample evidence. The natives of Egypt, India, and Hindostan, seem alike to have placed the cow amongst their deities; and, judging by her usefulness to all classes, no animal could perhaps have been selected whose value to mankind is greater. The traditions, indeed, of every Celtic nation enroll the cow among the earliest productions, and represent it as a kind of divinity.

In nearly all parts of the earth cattle are employed for their labor, for their milk, and for food. In southern Africa they are as much the associates of the Caffre as the horse is of the Arab. They share his toils, and assist him in tending his herds. They are even trained to battle, in which they become fierce and courageous. In central Africa the proudest ebony beauties are to be seen upon the backs of cattle. In all ages they have drawn the plough. In Spain they still trample out the corn; in India they raise the water from the deepest wells to irrigate the thirsty soil of Bengal. When Caesar invaded Britain they constituted the chief riches of its inhabitants; and they still form no inconsiderable item in the estimate of that country's riches.

The parent race of the ox is said to have been much larger than any of the present varieties. The Urus, in his wild state at least, was an enormous and fierce animal, and ancient legends have thrown around him an air of mystery. In almost every part of the continent of Europe and in every district of England, skulls, evidently belonging to cattle, have been found, far exceeding in bulk any now known.

As the various breeds of cattle among us were introduced into this country from Great Britain, we propose, before going into the details of the leading American breeds, to glance somewhat briefly at the history of

THE BRITISH OX.

In the earliest and most reliable accounts which we possess of the British Isles--the Commentaries of Caesar--we learn that the ancient Britons possessed great numbers of cattle. No satisfactory description of these cattle occurs in any ancient author; but, with occasional exceptions, we know that they possessed no great bulk or beauty. Caesar tells us that the Britons neglected tillage and lived on milk and flesh; and this account of the early inhabitants of the British Isle is corroborated by other authors. It was such an occupation and mode of life as suited their state of society. The island was divided into many little sovereignties; no fixed property was secure; and that alone was valuable which could be hurried away at the threatened approach of the invader. Many centuries after this, when--although one sovereign seemed to reign paramount over the whole of the kingdom--there continued to be endless contests among the feudal barons, and therefore that property alone continued to be valuable which could be secured within the walls of the castle, or driven beyond the assailant's reach--an immense stock of provisions was always stored up in the various fortresses, both for the vassals and the cattle; or it was contrived that the latter should be driven to the domains of some friendly baron, or concealed in some inland recess.

When the government became more powerful and settled, and property of every kind was assured a proportionate degree of protection, as well as more equally divided, the plough came into use; agricultural productions were oftener cultivated, the reaping of which was sure after the labor of sowing. Cattle were then comparatively neglected and for some centuries injuriously so. Their numbers diminished, and their size also seems to have diminished; and it is only within the last century and a half that any serious and successful efforts have been made materially to improve them.

In the comparatively roving and uncertain life which the earlier inhabitants led, their cattle would sometimes stray and be lost. The country was at that time overgrown with forests, and the beasts betook themselves to the recesses of these woods, and became wild and sometimes ferocious. They, by degrees, grew so numerous as to be dangerous to the inhabitants of the neighboring districts. One of the chronicles asserts that many of them harbored in the forests in the neighborhood of London. Strange stories are told of some of them, and, doubtless, when irritated, they were fierce and dangerous enough. As, however, civilization advanced, and the forests became thinned and contracted, these animals were seen more rarely, and at length almost disappeared. A few of them, however, are still to be found in the parks of some of the leading English noblemen, who keep them for ornament and as curiosities.

The color of this wild breed is invariably white, the muzzle being black; the whole of the inside of the ear, and about one-third of the outside, from the tips downward, red; horns white, with black tips, very fine, and bent upward; some of the bulls have a thin, upright mane, about an inch and a half or two inches long. The beef is finely marbled and of excellent flavor.

At the first appearance of any person they set off in full gallop, and at the distance of about two hundred yards, make a wheel around and come boldly up again in a menacing manner; on a sudden they make a full stop at the distance of forty or fifty yards, looking wildly at the object of their surprise; but upon the least motion they all again turn round and fly off with equal speed, but not to the same distance, forming a shorter circle; and, again returning with a more threatening aspect than before, they approach probably within thirty yards, when they again make another stand, and then fly off; this they do several times, shortening their distance and advancing nearer and nearer, till they come within such short distance that most persons think it prudent to leave them.

When the cows calve, they hide their calves for a week or ten days in some retired situation, and go and suckle them two or three times a day. If any persons come near the calves they clap their heads close to the ground to hide themselves--a proof of their native wildness. The dams allow no one to touch their young without attacking with impetuous ferocity. When one of the herd happens to be wounded, or has grown weak and feeble through age or sickness, the rest set on it and gore it to death.

The breeds of cattle which are now found in Great Britain, are almost as various as the soil of the different districts or the fancies of the breeders. They have, however, been very conveniently classed according to the comparative size of the horns; the long-horns, originally from Lancashire, and established through most of the midland counties; the short-horns, generally cultivated in the northern counties and in Lincolnshire, and many of them found in every part of the kingdom where the farmer pays much attention to his dairy, or where a large supply of milk is desired; and the middle-horns, a distinct and valuable breed, inhabiting, principally, the north of Devon, the east of Sussex, Herefordshire, and Gloucestershire; and of diminished bulk and with somewhat different character, the cattle of the Scottish and Welsh mountains. The Alderney, with its crumpled horn, is found on the southern coast; while the polled, or hornless, cattle prevail in Suffolk, Norfolk, and Galloway, whence they were first derived.

These leading breeds, however, have been intermingled in every possible way. They are found pure only in their native districts, or on the estate of some wealthy and spirited individuals. Each county has its own mongrel breed, often difficult to be described, and not always to be traced--neglected enough, yet suited to the soil and the climate; and among small farmers, maintaining their station, in spite of attempts at improvements by the intermixture or the substitution of foreign varieties.

Much dispute has arisen as to the original breed of British cattle. The battle has been sharply fought between the advocates of the middle and of the long-horns. The short-horns and the polls are out of the lists; the latter, although it has existed in certain districts from time immemorial, being probably an accidental variety. The weight of argument appears at present to rest with the middle horns; the long-horns being evidently of Irish extraction.

Great Britain has shared the fate of other nations, and oftener than they been overrun and subjugated by invaders. As the natives retreated they carried with them some portion of their property, consisting, in the remote and early times, principally of cattle. They drove along with them as many as they could, when they retired to the fortresses of North Devon and Cornwall, or the mountainous region of Wales, or when they took refuge in the retirement of East Sussex; and there, retaining all their prejudices, manners, and customs, were jealous of the preservation of that which reminded them of their native country before it yielded to a foreign yoke.

In this way was preserved the ancient breed of British cattle. Difference of climate produced some change, particularly in their bulk. The rich pasturage of Sussex fattened the ox into its superior size and weight. The plentiful, but not so luxuriant, herbage of the north of Devon produced a smaller and more active animal; while the privations of Wales lessened the bulk and thickened the hide of the Welsh Stock. As for Scotland, it set its invaders at defiance; or its inhabitants retreated for a while, and soon turned again on their pursuers. They were proud of their country, and of their cattle, their choicest possession; and there, also, the cattle were preserved, unmixed and undegenerated.

Thence it has resulted, that in Devon, in Sussex, in Wales, and in Scotland, the cattle have been the same from time immemorial; while in all the eastern coasts and through every district of England, the breed of cattle degenerated, or lost its original character; it consisted of animals brought from all the neighboring, and some remote districts, mingled in every possible variety, yet conforming to the soil and the climate.

Careful observations will establish the fact, that the cattle in Devonshire, Sussex, Wales, and Scotland are essentially the same. They are middle horned; not extraordinary milkers, and remarkable for the quality rather than the quantity of their milk; active at work, and with an unequalled aptitude to fatten. They have all the characters of the same breed, changed by soil, climate, and time, yet little changed by man. The color, even, may be almost traced, namely: the red of the Devon, the Sussex, and the Hereford; and where only the black are now found, the recollection of the red prevails.