Robert Wallace and William Fream

“ As a hardy race, capable of thriving on poor rough pastures, the Sussex are highly valued in their native districts, where they were rapidly improved before the end of the 19th century. They are essentially a beef-producing breed, the cows having little reputation as milkers. By stall-feeding they can be ripened for the butcher at an early age. Sussex cattle are said to “die well,” that is, to yield a large proportion of meat in the best parts of the carcase. ”

“ The Hereford breed is maintained chiefly in Herefordshire and the adjoining counties. Whilst a full red is the general colour of the body, the Herefords are distinguished by their white face, white chest and abdomen, and white mane. The legs up to the knee or hock are also often white. As a protection against the sun in a hot climate dark spots on the eyelids or round the orbits are valuable. The horns are moderately long. Herefords, though they rear their own calves, have acquired but little fame as dairy cattle. They are very hardy, and produce beef of excellent quality. ”

“ Although a smaller breed than the Shorthorn or the Hereford, they weigh better than either. The horns of the female are somewhat slender, and often curve neatly upwards. Being fine-limbed, active animals, they are well adapted for grazing the poor pastures of their native hills, and they turn their food to the best account, yielding excellent beef. They have not yet attained much celebrity as milch kine, for, though their milk is of first-class quality, with a few notable exceptions, its quantity is small. ”

“ The roan colour is very popular, and dark red has its supporters, as in the case of the Lincolnshire Red Shorthorns; white is not in favour, especially abroad. The Shorthorn breed is more noted for its beef-making than for its milk-yielding properties, although the non-pedigree milking Shorthorn of the north of England is an excellent cow with dual-purpose qualifications of the first order. ”

“ Black is not seen in a pure-bred Shorthorn. The biggest and heaviest cattle come from the beef-making breeds, and are often cross-bred. Very large or heavy beasts, if pure-bred, usually belong to one or other of the Shorthorn, Hereford, Sussex, Welsh, West Highland, Aberdeen-Angus and Galloway breeds. The Devon, Red Polled and Guernsey are medium-sized cattle; the Ayrshires are smaller, although relatively the bullocks grow larger than bulls or cows. ”

“ In infant communities a man’s wealth was measured by the number and size of his herds—Abraham, it is said, was rich in cattle—and oxen for a long period formed, as they still do among many savage or semi-savage tribes, the favourite medium of exchange between individuals and communities. ”

“ In the Welsh breed of cattle black is the prevailing colour, and the horns are fairly long. They do not mature very rapidly, but some of them grow eventually into great ponderous beasts, and their beef is of prime quality. The cows often possess considerable reputation as milkers. As graziers’ beasts Welsh cattle are well known in the midland counties of England, where, under the name of “Welsh runts,” large herds of bullocks are fattened on the pastures or “topped up” in the yards in winter. ”

“ The Ayrshires are the dairy breed of Scotland, where they have considerably overstepped the limits of the humid western county whence they take their name. They are usually of a white and brown colour, the patches being well defined. The neat, shapely, upstanding horns are characteristic. The Ayrshires are under medium size and move gracefully, and the females display the wedge-shape typical of dairy cows. They are a hardy breed, and, even from poor pastures, give good yields of milk, especially useful for cheese-making purposes. ”

“ Heifers feed faster than bullocks, and age tells on the rate at which an animal will mature: a three-year-old will develop into prime beef more quickly and easily than a two-year-old. It is difficult to produce “baby beef” at a profit, and it can only be done with picked animals of the best flesh-producing breeds, which cannot be bought at a price per cwt. below the finished sale price, for animals producing baby beef must from start to finish (under two years old) be at all times fit to go to the fat market. ”

“ Black is the dominating colour of the Welsh, Aberdeen-Angus, Galloway, Kerry and Dexter. A yellowish hue is seen in the West Highland, Guernsey and South Devon breeds. Various shades of fawn colour are usual in Jersey cattle and also appear among Highlanders. The Herefords, though with red bodies, have white faces, manes, and dewlaps, whilst white prevails to a greater or less extent in the Shorthorn, Longhorn and Ayrshire breeds. The Shorthorn breed is exceedingly variable in colour ”

“ The yellow colour inside the ears is a point always looked for by judges. The cows, large-bellied and narrow in front, are truly wedge-shaped, the greatly developed udder adding to the expanse of the hinder part of the body. They yield an abundance of milk, rich in fat, and are excellent butter-producers. ”

“ A sucking calf of one of the large breeds should gain 3 ℔ per day for the first month, 2·5 ℔ for the second, and 2 ℔ during the later calf period. Colostrum, or first-day milk after calving, contains more than five times the albuminoid compounds found in average cows’ milk. In the course of three or four days it gradually becomes normal in composition, although the peculiar flavour remains a few days longer. Nature has specially prepared it for the young calf with extremely nourishing and also laxative properties, and it is of practically no value for any other purpose. ”

“ In cold and stormy districts cattle thrive best in covered courts, but in a mild climate they do equally well in open yards with shelter-sheds. The more air they get the less liable they are to tuberculosis—example Lincolnshire and the drier south-eastern counties. ”

“ They are slow in coming to maturity, but are very hardy. The bullocks feed up to heavy weights, and the cows are fair milkers. No lover of cattle can view these quaint creatures without a feeling of satisfaction that the efforts made to resuscitate a breed which has many useful qualities to commend it have been successful, and that the extinction which threatened it in the 'eighties of last century is no longer imminent. In 1907 there were twenty-two Longhorn herds containing about four hundred registered cattle located mainly in the English midlands and Man. ”

“ They are symmetrically built, of medium size, and of uniformly red colour. They have a tuft of hair on the poll. As dairy cattle, they are noted for the length of the period during which they continue in milk. Not less are they valued as beef-producers, and, as they are hardy and docile, they fatten readily and mature fairly early. Hence, like the Lincolnshire Red Shorthorn, they may claim to be a dual-purpose breed. As beef cattle they are always seen to advantage at the Norwich Christmas cattle show, held annually in November. ”

“ The colours most preferred are “whole” fawns of many shades. The light silver-grey, which was in high repute in England in the early ’seventies of the 19th century, is out of favour. Browns and brindles are rarely seen. ”

“ Many Aberdeen farmers emigrated to Canada, and bought Shorthorn calves in their native county to take with them. The Cruickshanks held their bull sales at that time, and many of their animals were bought by the small breeders in Canada. ”