Nevertheless, man, like some other animals, might live on vegetables; and flesh, which seems so analogous to flesh, is not a better nourishment than corn or bread; that which contributes to the nutrition, development, growth, and maintenance of the body, is not that visible matter which seems to be the texture of flesh or herbs, but of those organic particles which they both contain, since the ox, by eating grass, acquires as much flesh as either man or beast, that live on flesh and blood. The only real difference between these aliments is, that, in an equal quantity, flesh, corn and seeds, contain more organic particles than grass, leaves, roots, and other parts of plants; of which fact we may be certain by observing infusions of these different matters, insomuch that man, and other carnivorous animals, whose stomachs and intestines are not sufficiently capacious to admit a great quantity of aliment at once, cannot eat herbs enoughto receive a quantify of organic particles sufficient for their nutrition; and it is for this reason that man, and those animals which have but one stomach, can only live on flesh and corn, which, in a small bulk, contains a great quantity of these organic and nutritive particles, while the ox[C], and other animals, that chew the cud, who have many stomachs, one of which is very capacious, and consequently can contain a large mass of herbage, can extract therefrom a sufficient quantity of these organic particles for their nourishment, growth, and multiplication; the quantity here compensates for the quality of the food, but the foundation is the same; it is the same matter, the same organic particles, which nourishes man, the ox, and all other animals.
[C]The term ox is generally applied to cattle in general, but when used in its confined sense, we shall mark it withItalics.
[C]The term ox is generally applied to cattle in general, but when used in its confined sense, we shall mark it withItalics.
Some may observe that the horse has but one stomach, and even that very small; that the ass, the hare, and other animals, which live on herbage, have also but one stomach, and, consequently, this explanation, though it seems probable, is not well grounded. But these exceptions, so far from controverting, appear to confirm this opinion, for although the horsehas one stomach he has pouches in the intestines, so very capacious that they may be compared to the paunch of ruminant animals; and hares have a blind gut of so great a length and diameter, that it is at least equal to a second stomach; thus it is not astonishing that these animals can live on herbage alone. We find in general it is wholly on the size of the stomach and intestines that their manner of feeding depends; for ruminating quadrupeds, as the ox, sheep, goats, camels, &c. have four stomachs, and the intestines of a prodigious length; these live on herbage, and that alone suffices them. Horses, asses, hares, rabbits, guinea pigs, &c. have but one stomach, but they have a gut equivalent to a second, and live on herbs and corn. Wild boars, hedgehogs, &c. whose stomachs and bowels are less capacious, eat but little grass, and live on corn, fruits, and roots. Those, such as the wolf, fox, tyger, &c. which have the stomach smaller than other animals, in proportion to the size of their bodies, are obliged to chuse the most succulent aliments; and those which abound most with organic particles, and to eat flesh and blood, corn, and fruits.
It is on this necessary and physical relation, then, much more than on the varieties of taste,that is founded the diversity which we see in the appetites of animals, for if necessity did not determine them oftener than taste how could they devour corrupted flesh with as much avidity as that which is fresh and juicy? Why do they eat equally of all kinds of flesh? We see that domestic dogs, which have it in their power to chuse, constantly reject certain meats, such as the woodcock, thrush, pork, &c. whilst wild dogs, wolves, foxes, &c. eat equally the flesh of the hog, woodcock, birds of all species, and even frogs, of which I once found two in the stomach of a wolf. When they can neither get flesh nor fish, they will eat fruit, corn, grapes, &c. but they always prefer that food, which, in a small portion, contains a large quantity of nutritive or organic particles, proper for the nourishment and subsistence of the body.
If these are not sufficient proofs let us consider the method made use of to fatten cattle. They begin by castration, thus stopping the passage through which the organic molecules escape in most abundance; then, instead of leaving theoxto his usual pasture, of herbage alone, they give him bran, corn, and turnips; in a word, more substantial aliments than grass. In a little time the flesh, juices, andfat of the animal augments, the fat abounds, and, from a flesh hard and dry, forms a viand so succulent and good, that it is the chief of our best repasts.
It also results from what has been said, that man, whose stomach and intestines are not so capacious with respect to the size of his body, could not live on herbage alone; yet it is proved by facts, that he can live on vegetables, corn, and seeds of plants, since there are whole nations, and particular orders of men, who are forbid by their religion to eat of any thing that has had life; but these examples, though supported by the authority of Pythagoras, and recommended by some physicians, do not appear sufficient to convince us, that it would benefit the health of mankind, or that the human species would multiply in a greater proportion, if they lived on vegetables and bread; the rather as peasants, whom the luxuries, and the sumptuousness of the great, reduce to this mode of living, languish and die much sooner than persons in a middle station of life, to whom wants and excesses are equally unknown.
Next to man, animals which live on flesh only are the greatest destroyers: they are both the enemies of nature, and the rivals of man. It is only by a careful attention that our flocksand fowls can be sheltered from birds of prey, the wolf, fox, weazle, &c. and it is only by a continual war that we can preserve our grain, fruits, and even clothing from the voracity of rats, moths, mites, &c. for insects are among those creatures which do more harm than good.
The ox, sheep, and those other animals which feed on grass, are not only the best, most useful, and most precious to man, but consume and cost him least. The ox, above all the rest, is the most excellent in this respect, for he gives as much to the earth as he takes from it, and even enriches the ground on which he lives; while the horse and the greatest part of other animals, in a few years impoverish the best pasture-lands.
But these are not the only advantages that this animal procures to man; without the ox, the poor and the rich would have much difficulty to live; the earth would remain uncultivated, the fields, and even the gardens would be dry and sterile; it is on him that all the work of the country falls, he is the most useful domestic of the farmer, and does all the labour of agriculture[D]. Formerlyhe formed the only riches of mankind, and still he is the basis of the riches of states, which only flourish, and are supported by the cultivation of the lands, and the number of their cattle; since these are the only real wealth we possess, all others, even gold and silver, being only arbitrary representations, and are of no worth but what the produce of the earth can give them.
[D]Modern practice, at least in England, proves that with all the superior qualities of the ox, he is not entitled to this particular encomium, since in many parts it is found the horse can be much more advantageously employed in the culture of lands, and even in some countries the service of the ox in that respect is quite exploded.
[D]Modern practice, at least in England, proves that with all the superior qualities of the ox, he is not entitled to this particular encomium, since in many parts it is found the horse can be much more advantageously employed in the culture of lands, and even in some countries the service of the ox in that respect is quite exploded.
That the ox is not so proper as the horse, ass, camel, &c. for carrying burthens, the form of his back and loins clearly demonstrate; but the thickness of his neck, and the broadness of his shoulders, sufficiently indicate his qualification for the yoke. Although it is in this manner that he draws with the most advantage, yet in some provinces of France they oblige him to draw with his horns; for which they give as a reason, that when harnessed in this manner he is managed with more ease. His head is very strong, and he may draw very well when so yoked, but certainly with much less advantage than when he draws by the shoulders. He seems to be made on purposefor the plough; the size of his body, the slowness of his motions, the shortness of his legs, and even his tranquillity and patience when he labours, concur in making him proper for the cultivation of the ground, and more capable than any other animal of overcoming the constant resistance that the earth opposes to his efforts. The horse, although perhaps as strong as the ox, is, however, less proper for this work, his legs are too long, his motions too great and sudden, and he is also more impatient, and more easily fatigued; we take from him his lightness, all the suppleness of his motion, and all the grace of his attitude, when he is put to this laborious work, which requires more constancy than ardour, and more strength and weight than swiftness.
In those species of animals which man has formed into flocks, and whose multiplication is his principal object, the females are more useful than the males. The produce of the cow, is a benefit almost perpetually renewed; the flesh of the calf is healthy and delicate, the milk; is excellent food at least for children; butter relishes the greatest part of our victuals, and cheese is the common food of the country people. How many poor families are reduced to live entirely on their cow! These same menwho toil from morning to night, groan with anguish, exhausted with continual labour of cultivating the ground, obtain nothing from the earth but black bread, and are obliged to give to others the flour and substance of their grain. It is through them that the harvests are abundant, though they partake not thereof. These men who breed and multiply our cattle, who take care of, and are constantly occupied with them, dare not enjoy the fruits of their labour; they are debarred from the use of flesh, and reduced by the necessity of their condition, or rather by the brutality of the great, to live like horses, on barley and oats, common herbs, &c.
Engraved for Barr’s Buffon
Fig. 20Bull
Fig. 21Cow
The cow (fig. 21.) may also be used for the plough; and though she is not so strong as the ox, yet she is often made use of to supply his place; but, if employed for this use, care should be taken to match her with an ox of the same size and strength; or with another cow, in order to preserve the equality of the draught, and to keep the plough in an equilibrium between the two powers attending to facilitate the labour, and preserving the tillage more regular. From six to eightoxenare frequently made use of for stiff land, but more especially in fallow grounds which break up in large clots, whilst two cows are sufficient to plough light, and sandy soils. The ancients confined theoxto 120 paces, as the extent of the furrow, he was capable of tracing without stopping; after which they suffered him to take breath a few moments before he went on with the same furrow, or began a fresh one. The ancients took delight in the study of agriculture and gloried in ploughing themselves, or at least in encouraging the labourer, and sparing him and theoxas much trouble as possible; but among us, those who enjoy the greatest share of the blessings of the earth are those who know least how to esteem, and to encourage the art of cultivation.
The bull (fig. 20.) serves chiefly for the propagation of his species, and though we can make him submit to work, yet we are less sure of his obedience, and must be on our guard against the improper use he may make of his strength. Nature has made him indocile and haughty; in rutting time he is unmanageable, and frequently furious; but by castration these impetuous motions cease, whilst it robs him of none of his strength; it rather renders him larger, weightier, and more proper for the work for which he is intended; it has also an effect upon his disposition, and makes him moretame and patient, more docile and less troublesome to the rest; a number of bulls would prove an unruly herd, which man could neither tame nor guide.
The country people adopt different modes for castration, but they in general consider the best time when the animal is between eighteen months and two years of age, as they seldom live when it is performed more early, yet those who do survive the operation, if performed while young calves, always become the largest and fattest oxen. If left to a late period they retain all the impetuous ferocity of the male sex, and are scarcely governable. The females are commonly in season from about the 15th of April to the 15th of July; they go nine months with young, and bring forth at the beginning of the tenth; therefore calves are always plenty during the spring and summer.
The bull, like the stallion, should be chosen from the handsomest of his species; he should be large, well made, and full of flesh; his eyes black, his looks haughty and fierce, forehead open, head short, horns thick, short, and black, ears short and soft, muzzle large, nose short and straight, neck fleshy and thick, shoulders and breast large, loins firm, back straight, legs thick and muscular, tail long andwell covered with hair, step firm and sure, and his coat of a reddish colour. The cows frequently retain the first, second, or third time, and as soon as they are with calf the bull takes no more notice of them, although they have still some appearance of ardour; but this usually goes off as soon as they have conceived, and they also refuse the approaches of the bull.
Cows are also subject to abortion if put to the plough, and not properly managed; and care should be taken to prevent their leaping over hedges, ditches, &c. they should also be put into the richest pastures, which, without being too humid or marshy, afford plenty of herbage. For six weeks before they calve they should be more fed than usual, giving them grass in their stalls, if summer, and, during the winter bran, lucerne, saintfoine, &c. They should not be milked from that time; the milk being necessary for the nourishment of the f[oe]tus. There are some cows in which the milk ceases a month or six weeks before they calve, but those which have milk to the last are the best mothers, and the best nurses. The milk, towards the time of calving, is generally bad, and in small quantities. More care is necessary to be taken of the cow at andafter her delivery than of the mare, being apparently more weakened and fatigued. She should be put into a stable and kept warm, giving her good litter, and feeding her well, during ten or twelve days, with bean-flower, corn, oats, &c. mixed with salt water, and plenty of lucerne, saintfoine, or good grass. This time is sufficient to re-establish her strength, after which she may be brought by degrees to her usual manner of living and pasturing. Not any of her milk should be taken for the two first months, but left solely to the calf; besides, the milk at this time is not of the best quality.
The calf should be left with his mother for five or six days, that it may be kept warm, and suck as often as it has occasion; it may then be removed, for it would weaken the cow too much if it was always kept with her. It is sufficient to let calves suck two or three times in a day; and to fatten them quickly, they should every day have raw eggs, and boiled milk and bread. At the end of four or five weeks calves thus taken care of will be excellent eating. It is sufficient to let a calf suck, designed for the butcher, thirty or forty days; but those which are intended to growup should be suffered to suck for two months at least; the longer they are allowed to suck the stronger and larger cattle they become. Those brought forth in April, May, and June, are the fittest to be raised; for calves which come later never acquire strength enough to resist the injuries of the following winter, and almost all languish and perish with the cold. Before the milk is entirely taken from them, they should have a little good grass, or saintfoine, cut fine to accustom them by degrees to their future food; after which they should be entirely separated from the mother, and not suffered to go near her, either in the stable, or field. To the latter they should be taken every day, and suffered to remain from morning to night during the summer; but as soon as the cold begins in autumn, they should be taken out late in the morning and carried home soon in the evening; and during winter, as cold is extremely hurtful to them, they should be kept warm in a close well littered stable; and with their usual food, they should have saintfoine, lucerne, &c. and not suffered to go out, except in mild weather. Great care must be taken of them for the first winter, as it is the most dangerous time in their lives; for they get strength enough during thefollowing summer not to fear the cold of a second winter.[E]
[E]It is evident here that our author did not draw his conclusions from a general view of the subject, but possibly rather from the practice followed in France, which, in many cases, with regard to cows and calves, is diametrically opposite to that pursued in England, both in respect to food and management.
[E]It is evident here that our author did not draw his conclusions from a general view of the subject, but possibly rather from the practice followed in France, which, in many cases, with regard to cows and calves, is diametrically opposite to that pursued in England, both in respect to food and management.
At 18 months old, the cow arrives at puberty, and the bull when he is two years; but though they can engender at this age, it is better to keep them asunder till they are three years old. These animals are in their greatest vigour from three weeks old till nine; after this, neither cows nor bulls are fit for any thing but to fatten for the slaughter. As at two years of age they are almost at their full growth, the length of their lives is also, like that of most other animals, seven times that, or about fourteen years; they seldom live beyond fifteen.
In all quadrupeds the voice of the male is stronger and deeper than that of the female; and I believe there is no exception to this rule; though the ancients say, that the cow, the ox, and even the calf, have deeper voices than the bull; but the contrary is certain, since he can be heard much the farthest. What has afforded grounds to think that his voice is less deep, is, that his bellowing not being a simple sound,but composed of two or three octaves, the highest of which strikes the ear most forcibly, and the others are not perceived, yet if we give attention thereto, we hear a grave sound, much deeper than the voice of the cow,oxor calf, whose lowings are also much shorter. The bull only bellows when he is enamoured; the cow more frequently lows through fear and dread, than from any other cause; and the calf bellows from pain, want of food, or a desire of being with its mother.
The dullest and most idle animals are not those which sleep the soundest, or the longest. The sleep of the ox is short, and not very sound; for he awakes on the least noise. He usually lies on his left side, and the left kidney is always larger and fatter than the right.
Oxen, like other domestic animals, differ in colour; but the red appears the most common colour, and the redder they are, the more they are esteemed; some prefer the black, while others assert that those of a bay colour last longest; that the brown are sooner fatigued and shorter lived; that the grey, brindled, and white, are not proper for work, and are only fit to be fattened for slaughter. But whatsoever be the colour, the coat of theoxshould be shining, thick, and soft to the touch; for if itis rough and uneven, it indicates the animal is not well, or at least of a weak constitution. An ox for the plough should be neither too fat nor too lean; his head should be short and thick, his ears large, with a soft even coat, his horns strong, shining, and of a middling size, his forehead high, his eyes large and black, his muzzle large and flat, his nostrils wide, his teeth white and even, his lips black, his neck short, his shoulders thick and strong, his breast large, his dewlap, that is, the fore part of the neck, long, and hanging down to his knees; his loins very large, his belly spacious and prominent, his flanks thick, his haunches long, his rump round, his legs and thighs big and nervous, his back straight and full, his tail hanging down to the ground, and covered with a fine tuft of curling hair, his feet firm, his skin thick and pliable, and his muscles large and elevated; he should also be sensible of the goad, obedient to the call, and well trained: but it is only by degrees, and beginning early, that we can make him submit willingly to the yoke. At the age of two years and a half, or three years at most, we should begin to use him to subjection; if it is deferred later, he frequently becomes unmanageable. Patience, gentleness, and caresses, are the only methodsto be used; violence and ill-usage only serve to make him sullen and untractable for ever: he should be stroked and caressed, and frequently fed with boiled barley, bruised beans, and other nourishing food of the same kind, mixed with a little salt, all of which he is very fond; he should be frequently tied by the horns some days before he is put to the yoke; and he should at first be yoked to the plough with another ox of the same size which is already trained. They should be tied together at the rack, and led to the same pasturage, that they may become acquainted, and habituate themselves to the same common motions. The goad should never be used at the beginning, as it would only serve to make him ungovernable. He should only work a little at a time, for he is soon fatigued when not perfectly broke; and for the same reason, he should then have more food than at another time.
Theoxshould only be worked from three years old to ten; and he should then be taken from the plough to fatten, as the flesh will be better than if he be kept longer. The age of this animal is known by his teeth and horns. The first front teeth fall out when he is ten months old, and are replaced by others which are larger and not so white; at 16 monthsthose on each side of the middle teeth drop out, and are replaced by others; and at three years old, all the incisive teeth are renewed; they are then all long, white, and even; and, in proportion as theoxadvances in years, they decay, and become unequal and black. It is the same with the bull and cow; so that neither sex nor castration makes any alteration in the growth or fall of the teeth, nor does either make any difference in the casting of the horns, for they fall off at three years equally from the ox, bull, and cow; these are replaced by other horns, which, like the second teeth, fall off no more, only those of theoxand cow grow longer than those of the bull. The growth of these second horns is not uniform. The first year, that is to say, the fourth of the animal’s age, two little pointed horns sprout, which are even, and terminate at the head by a kind of knob; the following year this knob grows from the head, pushed out by a cylinder of horn, which forms and terminates also by another knob, and so on; for as long as the animal lives, the horns continue to grow; these knobs are easily distinguished, and by which his age may be easily known, by adding three years to the number of intervals between the other knobs.
The horse eats slowly, but almost continually, theoxon the contrary, eats quick, and takes in a short time all the food which he requires; after which he lies down to ruminate. This difference arises from the different conformation of their stomachs. Theox, whose two first stomachs form but one vast bag, can, without inconvenience, receive a large quantity of grass, which afterwards, by chewing, digests at leisure. But the horse, whose stomach is single and small, can receive but a small quantity of grass, he therefore fills it in proportion as it digests, and passes into the intestines, where is performed the principal decomposition of the food. Having observed in theoxand the horse the successive product of digestion, but, above all, the decomposition of hay, I remarked in the ox, that at the entrance of that part of the paunch which forms the second stomach, it is reduced to a kind of green paste; that in this form it is retained in the plaits of the third stomach; that the decomposition is entire in the fourth stomach; and that scarcely any thing but the dregs passes into the intestines. In the horse on the contrary, the food is not decomposed at all, either in the stomach or in the first intestines, where it only becomes more flexibleand supple, macerated with the liquor with which it is surrounded, it arrives at the cæcum and colon, without much alteration; it is principally in these two intestines, of which the enormous capacity answers to that of the paunch of ruminant cattle, that in the horse is performed the decomposition of the food; but this decomposition is never so entire as that which is made in the fourth stomach of the ox.
For these reasons, and from the inspection of the parts, it seems easy to conceive how chewing the cud is effected, and why the horse neither ruminates nor vomits. Chewing the cud is but a vomiting without straining, occasioned by the re-action of the first stomach upon what it contains. The ox fills his two first stomachs, or portions of the paunch. This membrane acts with force on the food it contains; it is chewed but a little, and its quantity is greatly increased by fermentation. Were the food liquid, this force of contraction would occasion it to pass into the third stomach, which communicates with the other by a narrow conveyance, the orifice of which is situated in the posterior part of the first, and almost as high as the [oe]sophagus; thus this conduit cannot admit the food, until it has become somewhat fluid. The dry parts, must, therefore, riseup again into the [oe]sophagus, the orifice of which is larger than that of the conduit; in fact, they go up again into the mouth, and the animal again chews and macerates them, imbibes them afresh with its saliva, and thus by degrees liquefies them sufficient to pass into the third stomach, where it is again macerated before it goes into the fourth; and it is in this last stomach that the decomposition of the hay is finished, which is there reduced to a perfect mucilage.
What chiefly confirms the truth of this explanation is, that as long as the animals suck, or are fed with milk and other liquid aliments, they do not chew the cud; and that they chew the cud much more in winter, when they are fed with dry food, than in summer, when they eat tender grass. In the horse, on the contrary, the stomach is small, the orifice of the [oe]sophagus is narrow; and that of the pylorus very large. This alone would render chewing the cud impossible, for the food contained in this little stomach, though perhaps more strongly compressed than in the stomach of the ox, does not mount upwards, since it can easily descend through the pylorus, which is very large; and it is not necessary that the hay should be reduced to a soft running paste, becausethe force of the contraction of the stomach pushes the aliment through when almost dry.
It is by this difference, then, that the ox chews the cud, and that the horse cannot perform this operation. But there is still another difference in the horse, which hinders him from chewing the cud, and is the reason why he cannot vomit; the passage of the [oe]sophagus being placed obliquely in the stomach, the membranes of which are very thick, makes a kind of gutter in them so oblique that it must close still more instead of opening by the convulsive motions of the stomach. Although this difference, as well as many others we observe in the conformation of the bodies of these animals, depend on their constant nature, nevertheless, there are in the development, more particularly in the soft parts, differences constantly in appearance, but which may, and actually do, vary from circumstances. The vast capaciousness of the ox’s paunch, for example, is not entirely owing to Nature; it is not of that size in its primitive conformation, but attains it by degrees, from the large quantity of aliment it receives; for, in the calf, which is not very young, but has eat no grass, the paunch is much smaller in proportion than in the ox. This capaciousness of the paunch proceeds,then, from the extension which is occasioned by the large quantity of aliments, of which I was well convinced by an experiment that appeared to me decisive. I brought up two lambs of the same age, one on bread, the other on grass, and when they were a year old, on opening them, I found the paunch of the lamb which had lived on grass was much larger than that which had lived on bread.
It is said thatoxenwhich eat slowly are more capable of working than those which eat quick; thatoxenfed on high and dry lands are more lively, vigorous, and healthy, than those which live on low and humid grounds; that they are all stronger when fed on dry hay than when fed with grass; that they meet with more difficulty on the change of climate than horses, and that, for this reason,oxenfor the plough should never be purchased but in their own neighbourhood.
In winter, asoxendo nothing[F], it is sufficient to feed them on straw, with a little hay; but at the season they work they should have more hay than straw, likewise a little bran, ora few oats. If hay is scarce they should have fresh-cut grass, leaves of ash, elm, oak, &c. but this food should be given in a small quantity, because the excess of it, being what they are very fond of, occasion them to avoid bloody urine; but lucerne, saintfoine, lupins, turnips, boiled barley, &c. are very good for them, and as they never eat more than is necessary, they should always be supplied with as much as they will take. They should not be put to pasture till about the middle of May; they should be kept at pasture all the summer; and, about the middle of October they should be brought back to fodder, only observing not to change them too suddenly from green to dry food, or from dry to green, but to bring them to it by degrees.
[F]This is not the case in England, as in many counties the farmer, excepting in hard weather, finds it the best time to keep them in full employ.
[F]This is not the case in England, as in many counties the farmer, excepting in hard weather, finds it the best time to keep them in full employ.
Great heat incommodes this animal more perhaps than great cold. During summer they should be brought to work at day-break, taken to the stable, or left to feed in the woods, during the heat of the day, and not yoked again till three or four in the afternoon. In spring, winter, and autumn, they may be worked from eight or nine in the morning, till five or six in the evening. They do not require so much care as horses, yet to keep themhealthy and vigorous they should be curried every day, and their hoofs carefully greased and washed; they should be taken to drink at least twice a day; they are fond of water that is fresh and cool, while the horse loves it muddy and luke-warm.
Nearly the same food and care are requisite for the cow as theox; but the cow that suckles requires more particular attention, as well in the chusing as in the management. It is said, that black cows give the best milk, and that white cows give the most: but of whatever colour, she should be fleshy, have a brisk eye, and be light in her walk; she should be young, her milk plentiful, and of a good kind; she should be milked twice a day in summer, and once in winter; and, if we would increase the quantity, she must be fed with more succulent food than herbage.
Good milk is neither too thick, nor too thin; its consistence should be such, that a drop should preserve its roundness without running. In colour it should be of a beautiful white: that which is inclinable to blue or yellow is worth nothing; its taste should be sweet, without any bitterness or sourness. It is better in the month of May, and during the summer, than in winter; and it is never perfectly goodbut when the cow is of a proper age, and in good health. The milk of young heifers is too thick, that of old cows is too dry, and during the winter it is too thick. The milk of the cow is not good when she is in season, near her time, or has lately calved. In the third and fourth stomachs of the calves which suck, there are clots of curdled milk, which, dried in the air, serve to make runnet, and the longer it is kept the better it is, and it requires but a small quantity to make a great deal of cheese.
Both cows andoxenlove wine, vinegar, and salt, and they will devour with avidity a seasoned salad. In Spain, and some other countries, they place near the young calf one of those stones, called salegres, which are found in salt mines; they lick this salt stone all the time the mother is at pasture, which excites the appetite, or creates thirst so much, that the moment the cow returns, the young calf sucks with great eagerness; and this makes them grow fatter and faster than those to whom no salt is given. For the same reason, whenoxenloath their food, they give them grass soaked in vinegar, or strewed with salt; salt may also be given to them, as it excites their appetites in order to fatten them in a short time. It is usual to put them to fatten when ten years old;if we stay longer, there is less certainty of success, and their flesh is not so good. They may be fattened in all seasons, but summer is generally preferred, because it is attended with less expence; and by beginning in May or June, we are almost certain of having them fat before the end of October. When we begin to fatten them they must not be suffered to work any longer. They should drink much oftener, and have succulent food in abundance, sometimes mixed with a little salt, and be left to chew the cud at leisure, and to sleep in the cow-house during the heat of the day. In four or five months, if thus attended to, they will become so fat that it will be difficult for them to walk, or be conducted to any distance but by small journeys. Cows and bulls, whose testicles are twisted, may also be fattened; but the flesh of the cow is drier, and that of the bull is redder and harder than that of the ox, and the latter has always a strong disagreeable taste.
Bulls, cows, andoxen, are very apt to lick themselves, especially when quiet and at rest; and as this is supposed to prevent their fattening, it is usual to rub all parts of their bodies which they can reach with their own dung. When this precaution is not taken, they raise up the hair of their coats with their tongue, and swallowit in large quantities. As this substance cannot digest, it remains in the stomach, and forms round smooth balls, of so considerable a size, as to incommode and prevent digestion. These balls in time get covered with a brown crust, which, though nothing but a thick mucilage, becomes hard and shining; they are only found in the paunch, and if any of the hairs get into the other stomachs, they do not remain, but seem to pass off with the aliments.
Animals which have incisive teeth, such as the horse and the ass, in both jaws, bite short grass more easily than those which want these teeth in the superior jaw; and if the sheep and goat bite the closest, it is because they are small, and their lips are thin. Butoxen, whose lips are thick, can only bite long grass; and it is for this reason that they do no harm to the pasture on which they live; as they only bite off the tops of the young herbage, they do not stir the roots, and the growth is scarcely checked; instead of which, the sheep and the goat bite so close, that they destroy the stalk and spoil the root. Besides, the horse chuses the shortest and most delicate grass, leaving the largest to grow for seed; but theoxeats these thick stalks, and by little and little destroysthe coarser grass; so that in a few years, the field in which the horse has lived becomes poor, and that on which the ox has broused, becomes an improved pasture.
Our oxen, which we must not confound with the buffalo, bison, &c. seem to be originally of this temperate climate, great heat, or excessive cold, being equally injurious to them. Besides this species, which is so abundant in Europe, is not found in the southern countries, and is not extended beyond Armenia and Persia; nor beyond Egypt and Barbary in Africa. For in India, the rest of Africa, and even in America, the cattle have a bunch on the back, or are animals of a different species, which travellers have called oxen. Those found at the Cape of Good Hope, and in many parts of America, were carried from Europe by the Dutch and Spaniards. In general, countries which are rather cold agree better with our oxen than hot climates; they are larger and fatter in proportion as the climate is humid, and as it abounds in goodness of pasture. The oxen of Denmark, Padolia, Ukraine, and Calmuck Tartary, are the largest; those of England, Ireland, Holland, and Hungary, are larger than those of Persia, Turkey, Greece, Italy, France, and Spain; and thoseof Barbary are the smallest. The Dutch every year bring from Denmark a vast number of large thin cows, which give more milk than those of France; and it is possible they are of the breed of cows which has been carried into Poitou, Aunis, and Charente, for those cows are larger and much thinner than common cows, and produce double the quantity of milk and butter. They have milk at all times, and may be milked all the year, excepting four or five days before they calve. Though they eat no more than common cows, their pasture, however, must be excellent; and as they are always lean it is certain that all the superabundance of their food turns into milk; instead of which, common cows become fat, and cease to give milk when they have lived some time in rich pastures. With a bull of this breed, and common cows, a bastard kind is produced, which is more fruitful, and abounds more in milk than the common race. These bastard cows have frequently two calves at a time, and they give milk all the year. These milch cows form a part of the riches of Holland, from which place they export butter and cheese to a considerable amount; they give as much milk again as French cows, and six times as much as those of Barbary.
In England, Ireland, Holland, Switzerland, and other northern countries, they salt and smoke the flesh of the ox in large quantities, both for the use of the navy and for the advantage of commerce. They export also from those countries large quantities of leather; the hide of the ox, and that of the calf, serving for an infinite number of uses. The fat is also very useful. The dung of the ox is the best manure for light dry soils. The horn of this animal was the first instrument ever made use of for drinking or augmenting sounds; the first transparent matter ever used for windows and lanthorns. It is now softened to make boxes, combs, and a thousand other things. But I must conclude, for, as I said before, Natural History finishes where the History of the Arts begin.
SUPPLEMENT.
Oxen are very numerous in Tartary and Siberia; and at Tobolski black cattle abounds. In Ireland I formerly remarked that bothoxenand cows were without horns; but this I findapplies only to the southern part, where there is either scarcely any grass, or it is very bad which gives strength to my position, that horns arise from a superabundance of nourishment. Adjacent to the sea the Irish boil their fish down extremely soft, with which they feed their cows, and of which they are very fond; and it is said the milk has not the smallest disagreeable smell or taste therefrom.
In Norway both cows andoxenare very diminutive; but on the Norwegian coast they are bigger probably owing to their having better pasture, and being allowed to range at perfect freedom; for they are left entirely to themselves without any guides, unless the rams may be so called who accompany them in winter and who scrape the snow from the ground both for themselves and companions, to get at the grass. Living in this wild state they sometimes grow very fierce, and are only to be caught by means of ropes.
Engraved for Barr’s Buffon
Fig. 22Ram
Fig. 23Ewe
European cattle have multiplied in a most astonishing manner in South America. In the vicinity of Buenos-Ayres, they hunt them merely for their grease and hides, and frequently kill large quantities. The coast of Brazil produces very indifferent cattle; they are small, and their flesh has a bad savour, most probably owing to the bad quality of their pasturage. There are great numbers ofoxenin some parts of Africa. The mountains are covered with wild cows from Cape Blanc to Sierra Leona; their colour is generally brown with black horns, and they are so exceedingly prolific, that both Europeans and Negroes find it necessary to be perpetually destroying them by hunting. There are also wild cows of a dark chesnut colour in many parts of Barbary, and in the deserts of Numidia; they are small, run fast, and frequently keep in flocks of one or two hundred together.
THE SHEEP.
It does not admit of a doubt, but that all animals which are now actually domestic were formerly wild. Those whose history has already been given, afford a sufficient proof of it; for there are still wild horses, asses, and bulls. Can man, who has conquered so many millionsof individuals, boast of having subdued an entire species? As they were all created without his participation, is it not reasonable to believe that Nature enabled them to exist and multiply without his aid? If we consider, nevertheless, the weakness and stupidity of the sheep, and reflect, that this animal, without defence, cannot find safety in flight; that he has for his enemies all devouring animals, which seem to seek him in preference, and to devour him by choice; that formerly this species produced but few; and that the life of each individual is but short; we shall be tempted to think, that from the beginning sheep were confided to the care of man; that they had occasion for his protection to subsist, and of his care to multiply; especially as there never were any wild sheep found in the deserts. In all places where man does not rule, the lion, tiger, and wolf reign by force and cruelty; and these animals of blood and carnage, live longer, and multiply faster than sheep. In short, if we were to abandon the flocks, which we have rendered so numerous, they would soon be destroyed and their species entirely annihilated by the voracity of its numberless enemies.
It appears, therefore, that it is only by the help and care of man sheep have been preservedand that they could not have continued to subsist for themselves. The female is absolutely without resource, and without defence. The ram has but feeble arms; his courage is nothing but a petulance useless to himself, inconvenient to others, and which is destroyed by castration. The wedder is still more fearful than ewes. It is through fear that sheep gather so often in troops; the smallest noise to which they are unaccustomed, makes them get close together; and this fear is attended with the greatest stupidity, for they know not how to fly the danger, nor do they even seem to feel the hazard and inconvenience of their situation. They continue obstinately fixed wherever they are, and for neither rain nor snow will they stir. To oblige them to change their route, or situation, they must have a chief who is instructed to walk first, and whom they will follow step by step. This chief, however, would remain without motion if he were not driven off by the shepherd, or the dog which guards them, who, in fact, watches over their safety, defends, directs, separates, assembles, and in short, communicates to them every motion that is necessary for their safety.
Of all quadrupeds then sheep are the most insensible, and have the least resources frominstinct. Goats, which in many things resemble them, have much more sagacity. They know how to conduct themselves, and to avoid danger, and are easily familiarized to new objects; the sheep neither knows how to fly from danger, nor to face it: let their wants be ever so great, they never come to man for assistance so willingly as the goat, and which in animals appears to be the last degree of timidity or insensibility, the female will suffer her lamb to be taken away without shewing any signs of anger, or trying to defend it, nor by the smallest difference in her bleating, expresses the smallest degree of sorrow[G].