Cattle and Cattle-breeders Part 2

During the French war the price of cattle became very high; and 4 a-head, and even much more, would sometimes be lost or gained on droving cattle.

My father when a young man went to the far north--to Caithness, Sutherland, Skye, and the islands--and bought large droves of Highland cattle and brought them home. They were disposed of often by public roup in this county, or driven to the southern markets. At that time there were few regular markets in these counties, but the dealers when they went to the country cried a market, announcing that they would meet the sellers on a certain day and at a convenient place, and in this way the trade was carried out. Large profits were obtained; but the dealers were liable to heavy losses, especially in spring, the cattle being then but skin and bone, and many dying in the transit. My father lost in one night, after swimming the Spey, seventeen old Caithness runts. There were no bridges in those days. It came on a severe frost after the cattle had swam the river. The value of bone-manure was unknown, and their bones bleached in the sun on the braes of Auchindown for more than thirty years, and remains of them were visible within the last few years. My father not only carried on a very large trade to the Falkirk markets, but also a very extensive business to England, and had a salesman who attended all the great English fairs, particularly in Leicesters.h.i.+re, who sold drove after drove that were bought by my father here. Referring to doc.u.ments in my possession, I find he had in one year 1500 head of cattle at the October Tryst of Falkirk, 800 of which were Highlanders, and the remainder Aberdeen cattle. The Highlanders were grazed in Braemar, on the Geldie, Boynach, and Corryvrone, the property of the Earl of Fife.

His books show a clear profit at that fair of 2000, and the year following of 1500. Prices of cattle were very high during the war. I observe the prices of three heavy lots of horned Aberdeen cattle sold in c.u.mberland--viz., 22, 23, 10s., and 25 a-head. A Carlisle carrier, I have often heard my father say, was the purchaser. He declared he bought them for eating up his horse-litter.

Steam navigation and the use of bone-dust being both introduced about the same time, shortly produced a complete revolution in the cattle trade; feeding soon became general, from the larger breadth and heavier crops of turnips grown; droving annually diminished, till now it has all but ceased, almost all the herds in Aberdeens.h.i.+re being fattened, besides many brought in from north and south.

The late Mr Hay, Shethin; Mr Lumsden, Aquhorthies; and his brother, Mr Lumsden, Eggie; Mr Milne, Fornet; Mr Mitch.e.l.l, Fiddesbeg; Mr Stoddart, Cultercullen; Deacon Milne, and Deacon Spark, took the lead; and to these gentlemen the credit is due for being the first to introduce a proper and profitable system of feeding cattle in Aberdeens.h.i.+re. More attention was also paid to the breeding department. James Anderson, Pitcarry, was the first man who s.h.i.+pped a beast from Aberdeen to London; his venture was two Angus polled oxen. The late Mr Hay, Shethin, was the first who sent cattle by rail from Aberdeen; his venture was a truck of Highlanders.

The s.h.i.+pping of cattle gradually and rapidly increased, and soon became a great trade from our ports, many sailing-vessels, as well as steamers, being brought into requisition. Lean cattle were sent by sea instead of road. We had at that time no railway, and the expense was heavy. On a fat bullock it was from 2, 10s. a-head to 3 by steamer; by the sailing-vessels, however, it was only about 1, 10s. a-head.

Sometimes they made quick pa.s.sages, but this was uncertain; and I have known them a month at sea. I have seen the same cargo of cattle driven back to Aberdeen two or three times. I have been in the hold of the vessel when they were driven back, and shall never forget the scene when the buckets and water were brought forward; you would have thought the s.h.i.+p would have rent asunder by the struggles of the cattle to get at the water. I have sent cargoes of lean cattle by sailing-vessels to Barnett, Woolpit, &c. I have had them driven back after being days at sea. It was while inspecting one of these cargoes that I witnessed the scene of watering I have described. I lost money by that branch of my business, and I gave it up. Although the loss by deterioration of condition must have been great, it was astonis.h.i.+ng how few deaths occurred in the sailing-vessels; the proportion was greater in the steamers. A year seldom pa.s.sed without the s.h.i.+ppers having heavy losses. I was owner of part of the cattle when every beast on board the Duke of Wellington, except three (one belonging to me, and he had to be carted from the boat, and two belonging to Mr Farquharson of Asloun), was either thrown overboard or smothered in the hold. The sailors told that a blackhorned Bogieside ox, belonging to Mr Hay, swam for several miles after the s.h.i.+p. I have made inquiry of the cattle-man as to the scene in the hold of a steamer in a storm amongst the cattle. He said, "I went once down to the hold amongst them, but I was glad to get back with my life; and although you had given me the s.h.i.+p and all upon her, I would not have gone back." He declared that, though you had set a hundred men with heavy flails in operation at one time beating upon the side of the s.h.i.+p, it would not have been worse than the legs of the cattle beating upon each other and all within their reach.

The owners of the Aberdeen steamers have always been anxious to accommodate their customers; and about twelve years ago they raised an insurance fund for the protection of the s.h.i.+ppers. They laid past one s.h.i.+lling for every beast they s.h.i.+pped to meet deaths and accidents, and they have most honourably paid the losses incurred by the s.h.i.+ppers of cattle. It is a good arrangement for both parties; it gives confidence to the s.h.i.+ppers, and no doubt has a tendency to make the owners more careful in not sending their s.h.i.+ps to sea if danger is apprehended. The cattle go well by sea when the weather is moderate, but in rough weather they are safer by rail. The above description will give some idea of the hards.h.i.+ps the poor beasts endure in the hold when overtaken by a storm. I have seen my own cattle, after they were taken from the hold of the steamboat at London, so changed in appearance that I could not identify them, and could not tell whether they were black or grey.

I should most seriously advise the Railway Company to adopt some method of insurance, to avoid the unseemly squabbles that are daily occurring with the senders of live cattle and dead meat. It is not my province to make any remarks on the late rise of the freight on cattle by the Steamboat Company and the Railway. The matter is in their own hands; but I think conciliation, owing to the present state of feeling, might have been their wisest policy; however, we will allow them to be the best judges. It will now be our study, for our own protection, to exert our influence in the proper quarter to have our grievances removed. The method of transit is an important subject to the owners of the cattle, to the landowners, and to the consumers. I have no doubt whatsoever that a legislative enactment will make all right by-and-by. I cannot leave this subject without noticing Scott, the cattle-traffic manager of the Caledonian Company at Aberdeen, and John Henry, the cattle-traffic manager of the Aberdeen and London Steam Navigation Company--men who deserve to wear a better coat, and who have done everything in their power for the interest of the senders of cattle. I believe there is difficulty in avoiding causes of complaint at all times where there are so many servants, and the senders of cattle are sometimes themselves to blame. I have never myself lost a beast by rail; I prepare my cattle for their journey before they start from home. My heavy cattle are turned out three different times at least before they are sent to rail. I walk them in a lea field: the first day they are put out four hours; I then give them a day to rest; turn them out again on the second day and increase the distance, and they come quite fresh out of the trucks at London. What can an owner of cattle expect but that some will go down if he take his cattle six, eight, or ten miles without their ever having left the stall for five or eight months before, and put them on to rail? Many hundreds of good oxen have been lost in this way, or crushed and bruised. Cattle when tied up are kept in an unnatural state; they often take founder when at the stall as a consequence, and sometimes paralysis; but such moderate exercise as I have described tends to bring them back to their natural state. I have often been asked the question by those who had seen my Christmas market cattle--"How is it that your beasts are so good upon their legs compared with others?" The first day after the cattle are put out for four hours they will not look so well, and will return to the stalls very much fatigued; but on the second and third days of their exercise they will recover their wonted appearance. They will walk eight or ten miles in a morning and go fresh into the truck, and on reaching their destination will come out and stand well up in the market.

Founder generally yields to bleeding and two or three doses of salts with sulphur and ginger: I never saw this treatment fail. Paralysis is a more serious matter: in that case the firing-iron must be applied, and after the most skilful treatment the results are often very unsatisfactory. Cattle of all ages that are confined are liable to paralysis of the hind quarters; the complaint, however, is most prevalent among young bulls, and although removed, they generally lose from six to twelve months' growth. Cattle that have been confined to the stall, and even straw-yard cattle, are utterly unfit for the road, on account of the softness of their hoofs, and when put to it at once, are very apt to take paralysis if not carefully prepared by previous exercise. A certain season of the year is more especially to be guarded against--viz., from the middle of March to the middle of May. Cattle that have been two weeks at gra.s.s may, however, be safely droved.

Every one who has been in the cattle trade will recollect the losses he has sustained in spring, in the transit of cattle, by the animals throwing their hoofs; and we can all remember how often we have seen our beasts, especially in dry warm weather in spring, lying on the roads, and how we had to cart them home or to the nearest slaughtering shop. If there be a separation of the hoof at the top from the skin, and if a white frothy substance oozes out at this break, it is a sure sign that irreparable injury has been done. The beast will pine on for six months, and at last throw the old hoof when a new one has grown up.

This is a more teasing case to the owner than when the hoof is thrown at once. The animal should be slaughtered immediately, if at all in condition, as it will not only lose condition every day till the hoof comes off, but be a bad thriver ever after. Five or six miles of bad driving at this season is enough to do the whole business. If cattle should cast their hoofs, or even one hoof, suddenly, if at all in condition, they should also be slaughtered without delay, as they will pine for six months and be a daily grievance to the owner. If it be a young or valuable breeding animal, however, it should be bled, and get two or three doses of cooling medicine to remove the inflammation; then soiled in a loose-box, and his feet well bound up with tow and tar. If animals are not slaughtered, I would recommend soiling in all cases, if possible. But "prevention is better than cure;" and all this can be avoided if we will only take proper precautions. I shall state the method I adopt in my practice, and I have paid dearly for my experience. I generally buy a good many beasts in spring in Morays.h.i.+re, and sometimes winter a lot or two there. Until within a few years we had no railway conveyance, and the cattle all came by road. Before the time appointed for lifting the cattle, I sent across three or four able-bodied men who were acquainted with the dressing of the feet.

Beginning their operations at the most northern point of the county, and going from one farm to another where the cattle were wintered, they dressed every hoof of every bullock that required it. By dressing, and by the proper training of the cattle before starting, I have brought home thousands of them safe and sound. Proper attention was no doubt paid to the droving, the men who had charge of them being trained to the occupation. Short stages and plenty of food are indispensable to their safe arrival. It is of great importance, in order to cattle thriving upon gra.s.s, to have their feet properly dressed; and many of our careful farmers have their cattle's feet dressed every year before they are put out to gra.s.s, even although they are not sent from the farm. The general method adopted in dressing is to take up the leg with a rope run from the couple; this, however, must be a severe strain on the beasts. The method I adopted when I was in the lean-cattle trade was different: the bullock was driven to a wall; a man, or two men, secured him by the nose and the back of the neck. The fore feet were easy to hold up--one man could generally manage them; but the hind feet were not so easy a matter, and it always required two, and sometimes three, strong men to hold them up. It is done entirely by method: not allowing the beast to stretch out his legs is the whole secret. The bullock has no power if his legs are kept close to his hind quarters; but if he is allowed to stretch them out, he will throw off any number of men. Two men, one on each side, put their backs close to the hind quarters of the bullock, and keep in his leg, not allowing him to strike it out. There he is fixed; and the topsman, who is generally an adept at the business, dresses the foot.

Before the introduction of railways shoeing was sometimes required, but more frequently in autumn than in spring. In bad weather many of the cattle had to be shod, else they never could have performed their journeys. In wet weather their hoofs wore through to the sensitive parts, and they got lame; but when properly shod, they immediately recovered and took the front of the drove. The following may appear incredible, but it will show the proficiency some men attained in the art. Robert Gall of Kennethmont on one occasion shod seventy cattle to me in one day, near Perth, and no rope ever touched them in the field.

It should, however, be remembered that cattle, after being driven a distance, get more easily handled. Robert Smith, one of the few of the old race of drovers now alive, and who is still in my service, a.s.sisted in this great performance. I should explain, for the sake of the general reader, that the inside hoof of the fore foot is generally the first to wear through. Many of the cattle had only one or two hoofs shod, others perhaps three or four, and an exceptional beast would have every one of the eight done. The shoes were made at the Crossgates of Fife; they were sent by coach to different cattle stations, and the men, by rotation, had to carry a supply upon their backs. It may seem a strange fact that no other blacksmith could make nails equal to those made at the Crossgates. The men would not hear of any others; they said they would not drive. The Crossgates blacksmith not only supplied the Scotch drovers, but also the English lean-cattle jobbers.

As to fat cattle for market, after they are trained, they should not go a yard except by rail or steamboat. As to trucking store cattle, this must be regulated entirely by the season of the year and the weight of the cattle, &c. I have always had a reluctance to truck store cattle if I could possibly avoid it, not only for the expense, but for the risk incurred from dirty and infected trucks. I would recommend, if the cattle have a distance to travel in March, April, and May, and until they have been fourteen days at gra.s.s, that they should be trucked. But I have often been astonished at the recklessness of farmers buying cattle in a fair, going straight to the nearest station, and turning them into any dirty truck they can get--(when are trucks other than dirty?) The danger is great; despite the utmost circ.u.mspection, even the most careful may sometimes be caught. If those who act so escape, it is not owing to their good management. I would recommend my friends, when they go to a fair for the purpose of purchasing cattle, to take a confidential servant of their own along with them, or else make it a part of the bargain that the owner keeps the cattle for a certain time, till the buyer can get the trucks properly cleaned--which I find no difficulty in getting done--so that before they allow their cattle to be trucked they may be satisfied the trucks are thoroughly cleaned.

They should be washed over with chloride of lime, or, what is still better, given a fresh coat of paint. Three to four s.h.i.+llings will paint a truck; that is a small matter--say sixpence a-head; but care must be taken that the paint is dry before the cattle are put into the truck, else the beasts will be poisoned. If this is neglected, there is great risk of bringing home foot-and-mouth disease, or even the lung disease.

Some say that it was impossible to attend to such an operation--that business called them home, and that people would not take home their cattle. I have never found any difficulty in my own experience; but I must allow that some sellers are too distant to send the cattle home.

In such an emergency the beasts should be laid past upon a little hay or straw for a day in the neighbourhood; there is always a field to be had, or the market green. What is a day, or a man or two, and a night's hay, if your beasts come safe? Disease has been carried in this way to hundreds of steadings, and the results have been most disastrous. The day's rest will be a great advantage to the cattle after the fatigue of standing in the market. The main object with store cattle should be to keep them sound on their feet and free from disease. If their transit is to be by rail, the quality of their food for a day or two is of minor importance; they will soon recover.

It would be foolish to truck store cattle after they have been at gra.s.s for a few weeks. Their feet get hardened, and in the end of May, and in June, July, and August, there is no risk of injuring the beasts by driving in easy stages from ten to fourteen miles a-day. At that season cattle can hedge it; they will live almost on what they pick up on the roadsides as they go along. Your cattle arrive safe and sound, and free from all trouble and risk as respects trucks.

In the dead-meat trade there has now sprung up a new trade and almost a new race of men. The quant.i.ty of dead meat sent from Aberdeen regulates the Newgate market. Mr Bonser, the great dead-meat salesman, states in his evidence before a committee of the House of Commons, "that there are no others that know the beasts for the London market equal to the Aberdeen butchers, and from no other place does it arrive in the same condition; and this may be owing to the cold climate." Mr Wilson of Edinburgh put the question to the Chamber of Agriculture, "What is the reason that the Aberdeens.h.i.+re cattle proved better and carried more good flesh than any other cattle?" Mr Wilson's question is perhaps not very easily answered, but I should give as some of the reasons the following:--The Aberdeens.h.i.+re farmers have turned their attention almost exclusively to the breeding and feeding of cattle. They have continued for a long period, without regard to price, in many cases, to introduce the best blood into their herds. By a long-continued infusion of first-cla.s.s animals, and weeding out inferior animals, they have established a breed unequalled for meat-producing qualities in Britain.

The Aberdeens.h.i.+re turnips have been proved by a.n.a.lysis to be of a very superior quality, and it is likewise a good grazing county. Another point is the great attention paid to calves after weaning, and not allowing them to lose the calf-flesh, which, if lost, can never be regained. But the indomitable perseverance of the farmers in selecting good and weeding out inferior animals is, I think, the main cause.

It will be seen by the following table that the dead-meat trade has become one of the great inst.i.tutions of the country. There are hundreds engaged in the business, and it is yearly increasing. Amongst the greatest senders are Messrs Butler, Skinner, Wishart, and Wisely, and White of Aberdeen; but a great deal of dead meat is also sent from the rural districts. When the supply is short, some of our most enterprising butchers attend the Glasgow market, bring down cattle, and slaughter them in Aberdeen, and send their carca.s.ses to London. I have known Mr Butler bring down fifty in one week. The following table shows the number of cattle and tons of dead meat sent to the London and other markets during 1865 and the six previous years; it also shows what was sent by rail and sea respectively:--

CATTLE. DEAD MEAT.

Year. Rail. Sea. Rail. Sea.

1859 13,130 7,282 6,905 tons. 48 tons.

1860 13,993 3,782 5,769 tons. 53 tons.

1861 8,852 8,324 8,041 tons. 127 tons.

1862 6,281 4,518 9,392 tons. 76 tons.

1863 9,623 4,163 9,395 tons. 58 tons.

1864 7,624 3,551 9,840 tons. 2 tons.

1865 9,031 4,558 10,074 tons. 61 tons.

Taking the year 1865, there were 10,074 tons of dead meat sent by rail, and 61 tons by sea. Calculating that 6 cwt. was the average weight of the cattle, this will show that 33,783 cattle were sent away from Aberdeen as dead meat, against 9031 live cattle by rail and 4558 by sea, so that 20,194 more were sent away dead than alive. The live cattle would weigh 7 cwt., or 1 cwt. more than the dead.[4]

[4] Since the amalgamation between the Caledonian Railway and the Scottish North-Eastern took place, the returns of cattle and dead meat sent to London and elsewhere have not been given to the public. The Caledonian Company refused repeatedly to give them, and when pressed by myself, offered to let me have access to the acc.u.mulated pile of forwarding-notes for the last four years! The following valuable statistics, compiled by Mr James Valentine, Aberdeen, show that the proportion of dead meat sent to London is on the increase:--

1. The _cattle and dead meat sent by sea_ during the past three years stood:--

CATTLE. DEAD MEAT.

Year. Number. Tons.

1866, 5483 499 1867, 2770 487 1868, 6313 380

2. _Of dead meat booked "through" per Great North of Scotland Railway_, the amount for five years was:--

Year. Tons.

1864 1848 1865 2874 1866 3346 1867 3414 1868 3544

3. The number of _cattle-hides_ pa.s.sing through the hands of the dealers in Aberdeen during 1867 was, in whole, 49,181.

In 1868 the number was 42,115, besides 13,167 from the county, and 3125 from Kincardines.h.i.+re. If we set down each animal slaughtered at 6 cwt., this would give a total of 17,500 tons; or, deducting the town's consumption (say 2500 tons), 15,000 tons sent south for the year. Probably, however, though hides to this amount dealt with in Aberdeen, represent meat as stated, part of the meat may be included in the category "booked through per Great North." Supposing, therefore, that the whole amount of dead meat despatched from Aberdeen from every quarter, in 1868, was 15,000 tons, we may a.s.sume that, in addition, 7500 cattle were sent south. The tendency of late years has undoubtedly been to send fewer live stock and more dead meat to the London market, and also to send more cattle by sea and dead meat by rail.

I have stated that almost a new race of men has sprung up within the last forty years. Very few are now alive that were prominent in the cattle trade at that time; there are, however, some alive that I may name: Mr Anderson, Pitcarry; Mr Lumsden, Aquhorthies; and Mr Stoddart, Cultercullen. These must always hold a prominent position in the cattle trade of Aberdeens.h.i.+re, as Mr Anderson was the first man that s.h.i.+pped cattle from Aberdeen, and Messrs Lumsden and Stoddart distinguished themselves in Aberdeens.h.i.+re as two of our best judges, and were amongst the first to see and take advantage of steam communication. They are now the oldest of the Aberdeen s.h.i.+ppers of cattle. They were some of the first to develop and mature that system of feeding which has made Aberdeens.h.i.+re celebrated through Britain. The Aberdeen butchers have a higher standing than can be claimed by their brethren in any other part of the kingdom. The butchers in other cities are generally only purveyors, and never dispute the honours of the show-yard with the grazier or breeder. They buy their weekly supply at their weekly markets; but many of the chief Aberdeen butchers do not depend upon the market for their supplies, but feed large lots of fine cattle and sheep themselves to meet emergencies, upon which they can fall back. They do more than this; they are the largest and most successful exhibitors at our great annual fat shows. They are not only great purveyors themselves, but they supply a good proportion of the Christmas prize animals to the chief butchers of London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Newcastle, York, Darlington, Edinburgh, Glasgow, &c. The names of Martin, Stewart, Knowles, &c., are celebrated not only in Great Britain, but in France. Such men are public benefactors, and ent.i.tled to the grat.i.tude of their country. Messrs James and William Martin (butchers to the Queen) kill and retail 40 beasts and 100 sheep weekly.

Messrs Knowles, Stewart, and Milne, have grand retail trades, but Mr White perhaps retails as much as, if not more than, any of them. It is a great sight to see the display of meat and the immense crowd of purchasers in his shop on a Friday forenoon. Mr White is a man who has raised himself to the highest position by his steadiness and persevering energy. He is one of those men who cannot be kept down.

These butchers are also great senders of live cattle to London. At the great market they stand pre-eminent. The Messrs Martin, who stand at the top, send as many as 100 or 150 cattle, worth from 35 to 50 a-head. Messrs Stewart, Knowles, Wishart, and Wisely, &c., send yearly splendid lots. Messrs Wishart and Wisely, as feeders and dealers, are gradually drawing to the top. They feed a great many superior cattle, and put an immense number through their hands. Many of them they send alive to London, but they also send an enormous quant.i.ty of dead meat.

No men in the trade know their business better. Mr Martin, however, must still stand at the top. As an example, I may mention that he exhibited a four-year-old Highlander at Birmingham, London, and Liverpool in 1868, which gained the first prize at each of these places. His head now adorns Mr Martin's shop in New Market, alongside of the royal arms, the firm being butchers to her Majesty. It is a perfect model of what the head of a Highlander should be. Deacon Milne, however, surpa.s.sed them all for several years, if not in numbers, in the quality and value of the animals he forwarded to the great Christmas market. For several years Mr Skinner, Woodside, has sent about 100 valuable animals to the Christmas market. He is one of the greatest senders of dead meat, and he also feeds a large lot of bullocks. To speak of all the senders of dead meat, butchers, and jobbers, in the city and the provinces, would be a hopeless and an endless task. I believe there cannot be fewer than 500 in Aberdeens.h.i.+re alone; and, long as I have been connected with the cattle trade, I could not name one in ten.

I have briefly noticed the cattle trade in connection with the Aberdeen butchers: let me now glance at the s.h.i.+ppers and jobbers of the provinces, as it is from them that the raw material is furnished. The following remarks apply to Aberdeen, Banff, and Moray s.h.i.+res: our provincial jobbers are a host in themselves, and are a very heterogeneous mult.i.tude: from the man who can pay thousands, through all the intermediate stages, down to the man that buys a beast and cannot lift it unless he can sell it there and then for a profit. We have a large cla.s.s of the first, who can not only pay their hundreds but their thousands. We have an intermediate cla.s.s that job, generally occupiers of two and four horse farms. There is no end to their peregrinations, toil, and industry; in summer, in winter, in fair and foul, by night and by day, by moonlight and by starlight, they scour the country, and collect cattle from all points of the compa.s.s, and sell them at the fairs to farmers, butchers, and dealers. We have also the dealer of smaller pretensions, who can only afford to buy a beast or two, which he drives to market himself; such a beginning, however, I have known end in becoming the proprietor of 25,000 worth of landed property. We have the cow-jobber, and it is sometimes a very lucrative business; many have been very successful in the trade. Mr Forrest was a cow-jobber: he rented all the gra.s.s land round Hamilton Palace for many years from the Duke of Hamilton. He bought nothing but cows, and it was said he would ride 100 miles to buy a farrow cow. He died worth a fortune, and proprietor of a good estate. We have the jobber who buys only lean store cattle, and the jobber of fat cattle alone. Banffs.h.i.+re can claim a Stoddart, and Morays.h.i.+re the two M'Kessocks, the Laird of Ardgay, and the tenant of Balnaferry; and I do not know which to admire most, the daring and skill of the laird, or the caution and skill of the tenant, Macdonald of Blervie, through whose hands three-fourths of the store cattle in Morays.h.i.+re pa.s.s. We have in Aberdeens.h.i.+re Mr Reid, Greystone, in the Vale of Alford; Mr Stoddart, Cultercullen; the Messrs Bruce in Alford, Clova, and Strathbogie; and Mr Mennie of Huntly. Mr Reid, Greystone, has attained the highest position as a feeder and grazier amongst British agriculturists. His stock have for many years taken a most prominent place at our national shows at London, Birmingham, Liverpool, York, Newcastle, Leeds, Edinburgh, &c. &c.

IV. BLACK POLLED ABERDEEN AND ANGUS CATTLE & SHORTHORNS.

It is not my purpose to treat of shorthorns: I may, however, glance at some of the princ.i.p.al breeders of that kind of stock in the north. Mr Alexander Hay, Shethin, was the first who introduced shorthorns into Aberdeens.h.i.+re. He bought the celebrated bull "Jerry" from the late Mr John Rennie of Phanta.s.sie; and he was the first shorthorn that crossed the Dee. I should have mentioned his brother, the late William Hay, Shethin, the celebrated breeder of shorthorns, and one of the greatest feeders in the north. He was the first man in Aberdeens.h.i.+re who gained a prize at the Smithfield Club Show, the animal being a Hereford ox; and he was also the first that sent cattle by railway to London. He and the Messrs Cruickshank, Sittyton, had everything their own way in the show-yard for years. The late Mr Grant Duff of Eden was one of the greatest and most systematic breeders of shorthorns in the north. He paid 170 guineas for "Brawith Bud," and she made his "herd's fortunes."

He astonished the country by his crosses between the shorthorns and West-Highlanders. He was dead against the system of forcing for the show-yard.

Foremost among eminent breeders of shorthorns in the north at the present time are the Messrs Cruickshank, Sittyton. Their fame is European; they own the largest herds of shorthorns in the world. It is only necessary to name "Fairfax Royal," "Prince Edward Fairfax,"

"Velvet Jacket," "Matadore," "Lord Sackville," the "Baron" by "Baron Warlaby," "Master b.u.t.terfly," the "2d John Bull," "Lancaster Comet,"

"Lord Raglan," "Ivanhoe," "Lord Garlies," "Malachite," "Windsor Augustus," "Sir James the Rose," and last, though not least, "Forth"--to show the distinguished position their herd has taken.

Suffice it to say that no other breeder of shorthorns can claim having owned such an array of first-cla.s.s bulls. Amongst the eminent breeders of shorthorns, Mr Campbell, Kinellar, occupies a distinguished place. I believe no one is a better judge of shorthorns, and no other has been more successful as a breeder. Mr C. began to breed this cla.s.s of stock about twenty years ago, and "Lord Scarboro'," "Mosstrooper,"

"Beeswing," "Garioch Boy," "Scarlet Velvet," and "Diphthong," are some of the celebrated bulls that have been introduced into the herd.

"Scarlet Velvet" and "Diphthong" gained the Aberdeens.h.i.+re challenge-cup in 1862-63. At his annual sales his bull calves bring high prices; for some as much as sixty, eighty, and a hundred guineas each have been paid. His stock has for years taken a high position in our show-yards.

Mr George Shepherd, Shethin, who succeeded his father-in-law, Mr Wm.

Hay, had one of the largest herds of shorthorns, which were mostly sold off some years ago. Mr Shepherd's herd was of the highest blood, and won many prizes. The bull "Cherry Duke the Second," bred by Mr Bolden and bought by Mr Shepherd, jun., from Mr Atherston, was invincible.

After gaining every prize in the north and the challenge-cup at Aberdeen, he finished his honourable career as a prize-winner at Edinburgh, when, in 1859, he took the first prize in the aged bull cla.s.s. Mr Milne of Kinaldie is an eminent breeder of shorthorns; he has distanced all other compet.i.tors with his cows. Mr Marr, Uppermill, has got some of the very best shorthorns in the country; and his brother Mr Marr, Cairnbrogie; Mr Scott, Glendronach; Mr Bruce, Broadland; and Mr Mitch.e.l.l, Haddo--are all eminent breeders of shorthorns. Their bull calves command high prices at their annual sales. In Banffs.h.i.+re we have that veteran and successful breeder, Mr Longmore, Rettie, whose stock has long borne a high character. In Morays.h.i.+re we have two eminent breeders--Mr Geddes of Orbliston and Mr M'Kessock, Balnaferry, who have everything their own way in the show-yard north of the Spey. Mr Geddes stood at the top of the Highland Society's prize-list at the Inverness show as the owner of the best aged shorthorned bull, and was a winner along with Mr John M'Kessock in the cla.s.s of shorthorned heifers. Mr Stronach of Ardmellie was a successful breeder of shorthorns. He sold off his stock some years ago. His farm was only 100 acres, but his stock fetched high prices. One yearling quey brought 54, and a cow 53. The proceeds of the sale amounted to about 1000--a large sum, considering the smallness of the farm. Mr Stronach was for many years a successful compet.i.tor at the local shows, and sold a cow to Mr Cruickshank that carried the first prize at one of the Highland Society's shows at Aberdeen. Mr Stronach crossed the yellow Highland cows and heifers with shorthorn bulls, and the result was very successful. Mr Stronach was also an exhibitor at the Paris show.

I have only glanced at the breeders of shorthorns in the north; in conclusion, I may notice some of those n.o.blemen and gentlemen who have distinguished themselves as breeders of Aberdeen and Angus polled cattle. Among these the late Hugh Watson, Keillor, deserves to be put in the front rank. No breeder of polled Aberdeen and Angus will grudge that well-merited honour to his memory. We all look up to him as the first great improver, and no one will question his t.i.tle to this distinction. There is no herd in the country which is not indebted to the Keillor blood. For many a long year Mr Watson carried everything before him. He began to exhibit in 1810, and won during his lifetime some 200 prizes for cattle, sheep, and cart and thoroughbred horses.

The heifers which he exhibited at Perth in 1829 were greatly admired; and the Smithfield heifer of '29 was so good that she was modelled, and her portrait is in the volume 'Cattle' of the publications of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. He gained the Pureell challenge-cup at Belfast for an Angus ox, which was kept by the Prince Consort at the Royal Farm, Windsor, till his death, when his age was seventeen. As an example of the longevity of the race, Mr Watson's celebrated cow, "Old Grannie," the first cow in the Polled Herd Book, died at thirty-five years of age. Mr Watson bred many celebrated bulls, but "Old Jock" was _facile princeps_. He carried everything before him, and in 1844 was sold for a hundred guineas--a large price at that time. To "Angus," who fell into my hands, I am indebted for some of the best blood in the male line. Mr Watson also bred "Strathmore,"

"Windsor," "Pat," and "Second Jock," which last beat all the bulls in a sweepstake at Perth in 1852, after he was thirteen years old.

Mr Bowie, of Mains of Kelly, has been a most successful and energetic breeder of polled cattle. To him I am indebted for "Hanton," who, with "Angus" and "Panmure" in the male line, were my "herds' fortunes." He also bred "Cup-Bearer," who did so much good for Lord Southesk's herd.

"Second Earl Spencer" and "Cup-Bearer" were 1st and 2d prize bulls at Berwick. At our national shows Mr Bowie has been the most successful prize-taker in the Bull cla.s.ses. Where he has exhibited he has generally carried the first honours. At Aberdeen, at Berwick, at Dumfries, and at the Royal Agricultural Society of England, his bulls were invincible. It is most deeply to be regretted that the plague got into his stock, and he has sustained a heavy loss. Still he came out better than any of his neighbours. He saved twenty-three cattle; and his herd will, I trust, in a few years attain its wonted position. I have drawn, at one time or another, largely from Mr Bowie's stock, and have paid him high prices--as high as a hundred guineas for bulls, and forty, fifty, and sixty guineas for females. Mr Bowie is one of the best judges of Aberdeen and Angus cattle in Scotland.

Lord Southesk was one of our most enterprising breeders of polled stock; and before the plague decimated his fine herd last year, it was almost the best in the land. There has been a herd of pure Angus cattle at Kinnaird for fifty years; but when his lords.h.i.+p succeeded to the property it got a fresh start. He introduced "Cup-Bearer" by "Pat" from Mr Bowie's herd, and he did good service. The well-known "Druid," of show-yard celebrity, was descended from "Cup-Bearer" and from "Dora,"