occasion to make purchases. The following are a few
of his admonitions :--

diminished; the bowels should be gently relaxed by the frequent use of mashes; the water should be given sparingly through the day, although at night the thirst "In buying a horse, one of the chief requisites to be aybe of the animal should be fully satisfied; and exercise attended to, is the degree of nervous energy which the should never be taken when the stomach is full."-animal possesses; and it is the union of this energy (Lib. Use. Know.)

there

Curb-Bog-Spavin-Bone-Spavin.

with good conformation that makes many horses inva-
luable. Its absence or presence, however, is not likely
to be discovered by the purchaser without a trial, and
to avoid disappointment in this respect, it is therefore
advisable to obtain one prior to purchase. The horse
should be set to the work he will be called on to per-
form; and if he is intended for the saddle or single
harness, he should have no companion on his trial, for
many horses work well in company that are downright
sluggards when alone.

The hock-joint is particularly liable to derangement,
so as to render the animal unsound. One of these
affections is called curb, which arises from over-exer-
tion of the ligaments, and takes the form of an enlarge-
ment a few inches beneath the joint of the hock. A
more serious complaint of the hock is the bog-spavin,
which takes place from over-exertion, and is an inflam-
tuation in the vesicles containing the lubricating mate- Some horses have an unpleasant way of going, or are
rial for the joint. This disease is almost incurable; difficult to manage, or have some vice which is only
and the poor animal is in general only fit for ordinary displayed when at work. These are so many more
and moderate work all the rest of his life. The bone- reasons for having a trial prior to striking a bargain.
patin is a still more formidable disease. It is an But if that cannot be obtained, some sort of conclusion
affection of the bones of the hock-joint, caused by vio-regarding the animal's spirit may be drawn from his
lent action, or any kind of shoeing which throws an general appearance. The way he carries his head, his
undue strain on certain ligaments, and deranges the attention to surrounding objects, his gait, and the lively
action of the bones. A bony deposit takes place, the motion of his ears, may all or each be looked to as in-
joint is stiffened, and the consequence is a lameness or dicative of bottom' or willingness to work. It is
stiff motion in the hind legs. Blistering, as a counter-only, however, in a private stable, or in that of a re-
irritant, and rest, are the chief remedies prescribed for
the complaint; but the best thing of all is not to over-
load the horse, or put him to any violent exertion, so
to prevent not only this but other similar com-
plaints.

Physicking.

Horses that are attended to with the greatest care casionally get into a condition which requires physic, that is, purgative medicine; as, for example, when they have been too long on hard food and require a laxative, when they get into a heated state of body from constant work, when their bowels get overloaded or disordered, or when they are getting too fat. The most simple laxative is a bran-mash. Bran is put into a pail and softened with boiling water; when cooled sufficiently, it is given to the animal as the last feed at night, instead of corn or hay. About half a pailful is a dose. Horses used by commercial travellers or others during the whole week, and fed on corn, are indulged in a mash Saturday night; and this, with the rest on Sunday, ps them in good condition.

When a working-horse is lamed, or becomes sick, and must remain idle for a few days, he requires to be believed by a dose of physic. Generally, this consists of from four to nine drachms of Barbadoes aloes, powdered and formed into a round moistened mass, fit to e allowed. It requires to be administered by a skilful room, who will push it over the throat adroitly that alarming the animal. Sometimes the powder mixed with a little Castile soap. An hour or less aller taking physic, a bran-mash should be given, and then the horse be gently exercised; on his return to the stable he may be offered a drink of water from which the chill is taken, or as warm as he will take it. We should consider it imprudent to offer any further Explanations of the materia medica of horses; and gain recommend all unskilled or but partially intracted persons not to attempt doctoring their horses hemselves, but to call in at once the advice of a veter

nary surgeon.

ADVICE IN PURCHASING A HORSE.

spectable dealer, that these criteria can be depended upon; for in a market-place, the animal is too much excited by the cracking of whips, and the too frequent application of them, to be judged of as regards his temper. Neither must the buyer be thrown off his guard by the animation which horses display at an auction, or on coming out of the stable of a petty dealer; for it is a fact which cannot be too well made known, that there are many unprincipled dealers who make it their business, before showing a horse, to put some life in him,' that is, they torture him with the lash, till, between pain and fear, the poor animal is so much excited as to bound from side to side with his utmost agility, at the least sound or movement of the bystanders."

This writer continues, in relation to the head and other parts of the animal:"The head, as being a part not at all contributing to progression, should in the saddlehorse be small, that it may be light the nostrils expanded to admit plenty of air, and the space between the branches of the lower jaw, called the channel, should be wide, that there may be plenty of room for the head of the wind-pipe. In the draught-horse, a heavy head is not, as far as utility is concerned, an objection, for it enables him to throw some weight into the collar; and hence, excepting its ugliness, it is rather an advantage if he is used entirely for draught. But it makes the saddle-horse bear heavy on the hand of the rider, makes him liable to stumble, and, when placed at the end of a long neck, is apt to wear out the fore feet and legs by its great weight. The neck of the saddle-horse should be thin, not too much arched, and rather short than long, for the same reason that the head should be light: and, in the draught-horse, it may be thick, stallion-like, and sufficiently long to afford plenty of room for the collar, and for the same reason that the head may be large in this animal. The windpipe should be large, and standing well out from the neck, that the air may have an easy passage to and from the lungs. The horse used for both carrying and drawing should have a head and neck neither too light nor too heavy.

That the saddle-horse may be safe, and have extensive action, it is necessary that the withers be high. The purchasing of a horse is ordinarily a matter of This advantage is indicated by the horse standing well very serious difficulty, in consequence of the prover-up before; and it is usual, in showing a horse, to extrickiness of dealers, and the many defective points aggerate the height of the forehand, by making him the animal's constitution which cannot be seen with stand with his fore feet on a somewhat elevated spot. the care that may be bestowed. In offering any A horse with low withers appears thick and cloddy nts on this important particular, we must refer to the about the shoulder. In the ass and mule, the withers structions of authorities whose testimony is worthy are very low, and the shoulders very flat, and this is i confidence. Mr Stewart has written a valuable little the reason why they are so unpleasant to ride, and why manual, entitled, " Advice to the Purchasers of Horses," it is next to impossible to keep the saddle in its proper Ahich should be in the hands of all who have frequent place without the aid of a crupper. High withers,

however, are not essential to the racer or the draughthorse. The former does all his work by leaps, and that is performed best when the horse stands somewhat higher behind than before: neither are high withers necessary to the draught-horse; but in the roadster they are as important as the safety of the rider is, for a horse with a low forehand is easily thrown on his knees. In the draught-horse, this tendency towards the ground is obviated by the support the collar affords. The chest should be deep and wide in all horses, but especially so in one intended for quick work, in order that there may be plenty of room for those important organs, the lungs.

The back should not be too long nor too short; for though length is favourable to an extended stride and rapid motion, yet it makes the horse weak, and unable either to draw or carry any considerable weight. On the other hand, if the back be too short, the horse's action must be confined; and short-backed horses, in general, make an unpleasant noise when trotting, by striking the shoe of the hind foot against the shoe of the fore one: and though they are in general very hardy, and capable of enduring much fatigue, and of living on but little food, yet a back of middling length is better by far than one immoderately short or long. The back should be nearly straight.

stance as this ought not in general to injure the character of a horse; but it is indisputable that it does so in the estimation of buyers.

In the saddle-horse, and where safety is desirable, the position of the fore leg is worthy of attention. It should be placed well forward, and descend perpendicularly to the ground, the toe being nearly in a line with the point of the shoulder. The pasterns should neither be turned in nor out. When they are turned inwards, the horse is in general very liable to cut the fetlock-joint by striking the opposite foot against it. The draught-horse may be excused, though he leans a little over his fore legs, but the saddle-horse will be apt to stumble if he does so."

Horses are sold either with or without warranty. At sales at repositories, the terms of warranty are generally announced in a public manner; but when the sale is private, no warranty is binding which is not expressed in writing in the receipt. The principle that a price above ten pounds warrants a horse sound, is not now recognised as binding. The warranty must be something different from a mere understanding or illusory custom. "When a horse," says Mr Lawrence, "is simply warranted sound, that does not extend either to his qualifications or disposition; it merely guaran tees that the animal, at the time of sale, is neither lame, blind, broken-winded, or in any respect diseased, or has any impending cause of unsoundness. Broken mees do not impede a sound warrant." We offer these bas on warranty with much diffidence, for the rules on the subject are constantly altering by legal decisions.

Minute attention should be bestowed on the examination of the fore legs and feet; these, in fact, are the great trying points. If the feet be not round and full, so as to stand firmly and flatly on the ground, and if tender or thin in the hoofs, the animal is not to be trusted for saddle-work, Mr Lawrence on this subject remarks "The feet of saddle-horses, be they ever so sound and good in nature, detract greatly from the value of the nag, unless they stand even on the ground; since, if they deviate inward or outward, the horse will either knock or cut in the speed, that is to say, will strike and wound the opposite pasterns, either with his toe or his heel; and if he bend his knees much, and is a high goer, will cut the inside of the knee joint. Nature has been very favourable in the hinder hoofs, with which we have seldom much trouble; but there is, now and then, a most perilous defect in them; namely, when the horse is so formed in his hinder quarters, that he overreaches, and wounds his fore heels with the toes of his hind feet." The defect here spoken of will be observed to cause an unpleasant clattering noise in trotting.

THE DUTIES OF HORSES.
Draught.

The horse is equally willing to make himself usefu as a beast of burden or draught; but his powers are best adapted for draught, and particularly on a level road. The formation of his body does not suit be for climbing or going up-hill with a load; and has strength is always exerted to greatest advantage when he can throw his centre of gravity forward as a make weight. The amount of load which he can draw a wheeled vehicle, depends on the arrangement of the load to the pull. The pulling point is across the shel ders, and the most advantageous method is to ma the line of traction proceed direct from the shoulders to the load-in no shape bent or distracted from 156 course. The load should be placed lower than the ne of the shoulders, thus making the line of tract by a straight slope to the seat of resistance. The should not be at a greater distance than will alo freedom of motion to the hind legs. If the load placed too low, a part of the power will be useles spent in lifting it.

According to the calculations of James Watt, the weight which a horse can draw, called a horse porn a 1,980,000 lbs. raised one foot high per hour, or 3 lbs. raised one foot per minute. The weight is sup to hang at the end of a rope passing over a freely m ing pulley. This calculation is based on considerav more favourable than those which usually attend h labour. There are, in reality, no rules to guide ta imposing of loads on horses; for every thing dever on the degree of friction on the wheels of the carr the nature of the road, and the strength of the aud in question. One thing is certain, that a horse £*** exerts his power better by himself than when with others. The load which it requires four to draw unitedly, if divided, could be drawn with al The fore legs, from the knees downwards, should be ease by three. The following observations in the clean made, sound, and flexible at the joints. Bad man newspaper (June 1839), referring to the operativas usage knocks up a horse, or founders him; and his of Sir C. Stuart Menteith, deserve to be noticed legs, being in a kind of benumbed state, will either wholly or partially refuse to perform their office. By use of animal power upon common roads, he is of "From the experience this gentleman has had in the ease and physicking the horse recovers; but his sys- nion that the most economical mode of emper tem has been shaken, and he is apt to come down. This horses in draught is to give every horse his own t is a fearful defect in a horse; for no one is for a mo- riage, and that he should solely depend upon his ment safe on his back. Weakness in the fetlock joint exertions in drawing the load, as otherwise it is will also cause a horse to stumble and come down, and known that it is difficult to find either man or b is therefore an equally serious defect. When the horse equally willing or capable to make the same exer stumbles, so as to come down on his knees, the likelihood or to have the same spirit or motion; and at the is that the knees are broken; and it is well known time never to exceed six miles on one stage, and that wounds of this nature never heal over to resemble performed twice daily. In a stage of three miles the original. The horse with broken knees is, in short, a half, Sir C. Stuart Menteith employs waggons damaged for life, at least in as far as he is a marketing eighteen ewt., in which horses draw three tous able commodity. A good horse, however, may be road is in general upon a declivity of one foot of thrown down on his knees by a bad rider, merely from for every eight, sixteen, or eighteen feet, with se his head not being held well up while running or quick ascents of one foot in every thirty feet, up which trotting downhill over a hard road. Such a circum-draws the load of three tons, and a waggon of eugli

ened. He should also, to remain in good condition,
have a rest during the whole of Sunday. In journey-
ing with light loads, a distance of from twenty to
twenty-five miles is considered a sufficient day's task.

Riding.

The art of riding or equitation, forms a regular branch of instruction, and is seldom well performed by those who have not been regularly taught. It is not to be supposed that any thing we can say can supersede the instructions of the riding-school; but it may be of use to offer a few hints on the subject from the best authorities.

cwt.; but in order to facilitate the ascent, a continuous line of sandstone railroad is first laid down, upon which a plate of iron, six inches wide, by a quarter of an inch thick, is fixed down. In order to enable a horse to bring a load of three tons down any rate of descent, a friction-break has been employed, similar to the one in common use in Belgium, from which Sir C. Stuart Menteith derived this important application. The break is a strong plank, fixed to the back of a cart or waggon, which, by means of a screw, the carter presses against the two hind wheels of the machine, so as to give a sufficiency of friction to retard the too rapid descent of the carriage. This plan has been employed with great success by Mr Croal, coach-proprietor in Edinburgh, from the suggestion of Sir C. Stuart Menteith, who has now dfs used it more than fourteen years upon his coal-waggons. The mode adopted by Mr Croal is to fix a lying axle to the plank pressing upon the hind wheels of a coach, and which is turned by an upright shaft, with a bevel wheel connecting the two shafts, and turned by a winch by the hand of the coach-guard, without moving from his Beat Were this break applied to every coach, the lives and limbs of thousands would be preserved, as the guard would be able to stop horses when running away with a carriage-as it is thought that treble, as it were, of the weight of a coach is to be drawn, if the two hind wheels are prevented from revolving by the break. This kind of break enables a coachman to drive with perfect security down a descent of any length, and at any rate of speed. If the employment of horse waggons, weighing from twelve to thirteen cwt., were adopted in Conveying coal through the streets of London, one horse ould do the work of two; at present, four immense borses draw three chaldrons of coal, or four tons the ewt., in a waggon weighing two tons; so that the shaft-horse is obliged to draw a weight of six tons in turning out of one street into another, which is the greatest eruelty to which a poor animal can be subjected." The larger the size of wheels in a vehicle, within a reasonable proportion, so is the friction in overcoming obstacles on the road less, and so is the draught more Easy to the horses. The benefits of large wheels, howver, have often been completely lost by not making them run fairly in an upright position. The custom has been to make them dished or bevelled outward from the axle, and to cause the axle to lean downward teach extremity to accommodate this peculiar shape. It is of importance to understand that a wheel always runs best when its tire is of equal diameter, when the spokes are at right angles to the axle, and when the ale projects straight out. This is exemplified in the Branding of a hoop: a hoop which is perfectly upright and even on the rim, requires less force to send it forward and keep it moving than if it were bevelled, and lined to go round in a circle. For the sake of conence, wheels may be a little dished, though now that the roads are good, that is scarcely necessary. The power of draught of a horse depends on the rate which he is compelled to proceed. He exerts his power to most advantage at a fair pull, when moving the rate of from two and a half to three miles per hour. If he go at a greater speed, he is less able to dras. As a general rule, if the speed be doubled, the and should be halved; and if the speed be twice doubled, the load should be quartered; yet this will only hold correct for short distances. Much work may be procured from a horse if he be impelled only for short Mages. A horse in a stage-coach, running only five mes at a time and then resting for a few hours, will at least four times longer than another horse of al power which runs ten miles at a time. This is hell understood by all stage-coach proprietors, and stages have now almost every where superseded ong ones. Such a fact should also be known to all ivate travellers. Whether employed in a gig, chaise, for riding, the horse on a journey should take his ay's work in two distinct stages; one in the morning, another in the afternoon, when rested and refresh

Riding should be performed in that manner which
is least calculated to oppress the horse and fatigue the
rider, and which will be most secure for both parties.
The first principle in horsemanship is, that the horse
and his rider should act and react on each other, as if
governed by one common feeling. To attain this end, the
rider must acquire the knack of balancing himself pro-
perly on the animal, and establishing the means of mak-
ing himself understood through certain movements of
hand and body. A good horseman will act according to
the following directions, given in Walker's Manly Exer-
cises :-"The place of the rider's seat is that part of
the saddle into which the rider's body would naturally
slide were he to ride without stirrups. This seat is to
be preserved only by a proper balance of the body,
and its adaptation to even the most violent counterac-
tions of the horse. In relation to the thighs, the rider,
sitting in the middle of the saddle, must rest chiefly
upon their division, vulgarly called the fork, and very
slightly upon the hips. The thighs, turned inward,
must rest flat upon the sides of the saddle, without
grasping; for the rider's weight gives sufficient hold,
and the pressure of the thighs on the saddle would only
lift him above it. The knees must be stretched down
and kept back, so as to place the thighs several degrees
short of a perpendicular; but no gripe must be made
with them, unless there be danger of losing all other
hold. If the thighs are upon their inner or flat side
in the saddle, both the legs and the feet will be turned
as they ought to be. Thus turned, they must be on a
line parallel to that of the rider's body, and hang near
the horse's sides, but must not touch; yet they may
give an additional hold to the seat, when necessary,
and the calves must act in support of the aids of the
hands. The heels are to be sunk, and the toes to be
raised, and as near the horse as the heels, which pre-
vents the heel touching the horse. As to the body, the
head must be firm, yet free; the shoulders thrown
back and kept square, so that no pull of the bridle may
bring them forward. The chest must be advanced,
and the small of the back bent a little forward. The
upper parts of the arms must hang perpendicularly
from the shoulders, the lower parts at right angles with
the upper, so as to form a horizontal line from the
elbow to the little finger. The elbows must be lightly
closed to the hips, and, without stiffness, kept steady,
or they destroy the hand. The wrist must be rounded
a little outwards. The hands should be about three
inches from the body, and from the pommel of the
saddle, and from four to six inches apart; the thumbs
and knuckles pointing towards each other, and the
finger-nails towards the body.
the proper position on horseback without stirrups, his
nose, breast, knee, and instep, are nearly in a line;
and with stirrups, his nose, breast, knee, and toe, are
in a line. The man and the horse throughout are to
be of a piece. When the horse is at liberty, or dis-
united, as it is termed, the rider sits at his ease; and,
as he collects and unites his horse, so he collects and
unites himself. There must, however, be no stiffness
of manner more than in sitting on a chair; for it is
ease and elegance which distinguish the gentleman."

When the rider is in

Riding, to one accustomed to it, is best performed with a curb and snaffle bridle; the curb, however, being only employed to bring the animal up by pressure on the mouth, when occasion requires. As some horses

has been accustomed to spurs, and finds that your heels are not provided with these appendages, your case is very hopeless. We must allow Walker to point out the course to be pursued with a restive horse. If he persists in turning round, the rider must continue to attack his unguarded side, turn him two or three times, and let the heel and spur, if necessary, assist the hand, before he can arm or defend himself against it. If he still refuse to go the right way, the rider must take care that he go no other, and immediately change his attack, turning him about and reining him backward, which the horse is easily compelled to do when he sets himself against going forward. In these contests, the rider must be collected, and have an eye to the surrounding objects; for restive horses try their atmost to place their riders in awkward situations, by sdling to other horses, carriages, the foot-pavement, the houses, &c. In this case, the rider, instead of paling him from the wall, must bend his head to it, by when his side next the wall is rendered concave, and his utmost endeavours to do injury are prevented. The instant, therefore, that the rider perceives his horse sidling to any object, he must turn his head to that object, and back him from it. There are some horses who fix themselves like stocks, setting all endeavours to move them at defiance. There, happily, their de fence can in no way endanger the rider. It must, however, be converted to punishment. Let them stand, make no attempt to move them, and in a short space frequently less than a minute-they will move of thenselves."

have a much more delicate mouth than others, the required, the rider must keep him in his track by dint nature of the bridle must depend on circumstances. of pressure, a touch of the spur, and the hand. If he In holding the reins, a union of firmness, gentleness, and lightness, is the essential requisite. The foregoing authority alludes to the manner in which the reins are to operate on the mouth of the animal :-"The hand being connected with the reins, the reins to the bit, the bit operating in the curb on the bars, and in the snaffle on the lips, the rider cannot move the hand, and scarcely even a finger, without the horse's mouth being more or less affected. This is called the correspondence. If, moreover, the hand be held steady, as the horse advances in the trot, the fingers will feel, by the contraction of the reins, a slight tug, occasioned by the cadence of every step; and this tug, by means of the correspondence, is reciprocally felt in the horse's mouth. This is called the appuy. While this relation is preserved between the hand and mouth, the horse is in perfect obedience to the rider, and the hand directs him, in any position or action, with such ease, that the horse seems to work by the will of the rider rather than by the power of his hand. This is called the support. Now, the correspondence or effective communication between the hand and mouth-the appuy, or strength of the operation in the mouth; the support, or aid, the hand gives in the position or action, are always maintained in the manège and all united paces. Without these, a horse is under no immediate control, as in the extended gallop or at full speed, where it may require a hundred yards to pull before we can stop him. The degree of correspondence, appuy, and support, depends, in horses otherwise similar, on the relative situation of the hand. The act of raising the rider's hand increases his power; and this, raising the horse's The same author recommends the rider to remain head, diminishes his power. The depressing of the perfectly cool in all these awkward circumstances rider's hand, on the contrary, diminishes his power; "When passion," he observes, "possesses the rider, and this, depressing the horse's head, increases his it prevents that concord and unity taking place which power. On these depend the unitedness or disunited-ever should subsist between the rider and his horse. ness in the action of the horse."

Much may be done to animate a horse, either in riding or drawing, by addressing a cheerful word to him, instead of the lashing and scolding with which he is too frequently visited. If a horse requires correction or urging by the whip, he should only be touched lightly behind the girth and saddle, never on any account on the head or in a fore part of the body. Some carters strike their horses with sticks over the head and legs, and yell to them like savages-two practices equally detestable, which we should be glad to see abolished. We have also seen riders so lost to humanity, as to whip their horses when restive over the head and Should a rider find that his horse designs to baffle him, he must be pressed by the legs, urged lightly with the spur, and kept in his proper track, but not drawn up with the curb, or terrified by abuse.

ears.

He should always be disposed to amity, and never suffer the most obstinate resistance of the horse to pot him out of temper. If the contest does not demand his utmost exertion of strength, he should be able to hum a tune, or converse with the same composure a indifference as though his horse were all obedient By these means, the instant a horse finds himself fred, he desists, having no provocation to contend farther, and is abashed at his own weakness. It is the absence of passion which, added to cool observation, makes the English the best riders and drivers in the world."

Neither in the above section nor elsewhere have said any thing of the accoutrements of the horse, articles of this kind must be left to the taste of ta party concerned. The harness made by all sales is now both handsome and commodious, and so The most common pace in road-riding is the trot, be superfluous to say any thing respecting it, forthing calculated for the comfort of the animals, that it w which in effect is a rapid walk, and most difficult for than to recommend its being always kept clean a a rider to perform with address and a small degree of glossy, and that it nowhere galls or presses underca fatigue to himself. In slow trotting, the body should the animal's body. A properly bred and care! adhere to the saddle, and when it becomes fast or treated horse, is proud of his harness as well as rough, the body may be raised at the proper moments coat being kept in a good condition; and these, to ease the jolting. This rising of the body, however, other points in the economy of this highly useful ant is to be a result of the horse's action, not an effort of mal, we press on the attention of all whose duty

the rider. The proper method is to rise and fall with
the leading foot, the body rising from the seat when
the leading foot is elevated, and falling when the foot
sinks. Unskilful riders make an unnecessary effort by
trying to rise and fall in the saddle.

ness.

cludes the care of horses.

other

aspires only to be a manual for horse management In concluding this comprehensive treatise, whic ordinary circumstances, we have much pleasure in r ferring for full information on the subject to a var In the course of either slow or fast riding, the horse of excellent treatises of recent date: among may trouble his rider by plunging, shying, or restive-"The Horse," in the "Farmers' Series-Library If he kick and plunge, sit upright, hold on by Useful Knowledge," which we have occasionally q the legs, and do not vex him by any lashing; when let « Stable Management," and " Advice to the Purcha alone, he is not long in coming out of his freak. When of Horses," by Mr Stewart (Blackwood and Sons)" he shies, or flies to one side, as if afraid of something, volumes which can be recommended for their great press him on the side to which he is flying, keep up his tical utility; also, Walker's " Manly Exercises head, and bring him into his track. Pressing both legs Orr and Co., London), for instructions in Equitatos against his sides will generally keep him from running backward. When he becomes restive, that is, turns Printed and published by W. and R. CHAMBERS, B

round, and has a disinclination to go in the way he is

Sold also by W. S. ORR and Co., London.

མ་ཡོད་

T

CHAMBERS'S

INFORMATION FOR
FOR THE PEOPLE.

CONDUCTED BY WILLIAM AND ROBERT CHAMBERS, EDITORS OF CHAMBERS'S
EDINBURGH JOURNAL, EDUCATIONAL COURSE, &c.

NEW AND IMPROVED SERIES.

CATTLE AND DAIRY HUSBANDRY.

NEXT to the horse, the cow is justly valued as the most useful animal which man has been able to domesticate and retain permanently in his service. The ox tribe, of which it is the female, belongs to the order Ruminantia, in the class Mammalia, these terms implying that the animals ruminate or chew their food a second time, and have mammae or teats with which they suckle their young. In the ox tribe there are different genera and species, all more or less differing from each other; and of the domesticated ox, the varieties from the effect of cultivation are now very numerous. The ox, in one or other of its genera, and for the sake of its labour as a beast of draught, its flesh, or the milk of its female, has been domesticated and carefully reared from the earliest times, in some countries having been raised to the rank of a divinity, or at least held as an object of ex

treme veneration.

PRICE 1d.

that those milk-yielding powers are not equal in the different varieties or breeds of cows. Some breeds, from the influence of circumstances which it is here unnecessary to inquire into, give a large quantity of milk, but of a thin or poor quality, while others yield less milk, but of a good or rich quality. Whether, then, the cow-keeper wish quantity or quality, is the question for him to solve in making a selection of stock. In general, near large towns, where the demand for milk is considerable, the object of dairymen is to keep cows which will give a large quantity of milk, no matter of what sort. Private families in the country are usually more regardful of the quality of the article ; they wish a little milk which is good, some fine cream, and perhaps, also, some sweet butter and cheese, and on that account are more careful in the choice of their Cows. The following is a list of breeds which may aid the selection of cows in these different respects.

BREEDS OF CATTLE.

The breeds of cattle throughout the United Kingdom vary in different districts, from the small hardy varieties of the north Highlands, to the bulky and handsome breeds of the southern parts of England. It has been customary to classify the whole according to the comparative length of the horns as the long-horned, shorthorned, middle-horned, crumpled-horned, and hornless or polled breeds. Besides these, there are many intermixed breeds. The middle-horned cows, which are found in the north of Devon, the east of Sussex, Herefordshire, and Gloucestershire, are among the most valuable and beautiful varieties of the animal.

The intelligent author of the work on Cattle, published by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, thus describes what ought to be the proper form and shape of cattle:"Whatever be the breed, there are certain conformations which are indispensable to the thriving valuable ox or cow. If there is one part of the frame the form of which, more than of any other, renders the animal valuable, it is the chest. There must be room enough for the heart to beat and the lungs to play, or sufficient blood for the purposes of nutriment and strength will not be circulated; nor will it thoroughly undergo that vital change which is essential to the proper discharge of every function. We look, therefore, first of all to the wide and deep girth about the heart and lungs. We must have both: the proportion in which the one or the other may preponderate, will depend on the service we require from the animal; we can excuse a slight degree of flatness of the sides, for he will be lighter in the forehand, and more active; but the grazier must have width as well as depth. And not only about the heart and lungs, but over the whole of the ribs, must we have both length and roundness; the hooped as well as the deep barrel is essential; there must be room for the capacious paunch, room for the materials from which the

The domesticated species of oxen common to Britain and adjacent parts of Europe, is, in all its varieties, materially altered from its wild parentage. Influenced by climate, peculiar feeding, and training in a state of subjection, its bony structure is diminished in bulk and power, its ferocity tamed, and its tractability greatly improved. Our observations in the present sheet will refer chiefly to the cow, on which very great changes have been effected by domestication: the most remarkable of these alterations has been in the capacity for giving milk. In a wild state, the udder is small, and shrinks into an insignificant compass when the duty of suckling is over; but when domesticated for the sake of its milk, and that liquid is drawn copiously from it by artificial means, the lacteal or milk-secreting Vessels enlarge, and the udder expands, so as to be come a prominent feature in the animal. In this manner, by constant exercise, the economy of the cultivated species of cows has been permanently altered, and rendered suitable to the demands which are constantly made on it. Yet it is important to remark,