1 TO
total number may be about 9000 ; of which 5558 are supposedto be work horses of'a full size, 2500 young ones, and such as areunder 13 bands high, and 951 saddle horses. A sufficient num-ber is not reared to keep up the stock of the county.
Sixinc are kept chiefly at mills and breweries. There are veryfew rabbits. Poultry are reared in considerable numbers ; par-ticularly dunghill fowls. Pigeons are numerous, and are sup-posed to consume their own weight of grain daily, besides whatthey destroy by treading. In this, as in every other county, thelaws that protect this destructive race are the subject of generalcomplaint. There are a great many bce.-hives ; but their pro.tluce is not so great as formerly.
V. The Nortii-East Lowlands.
1. Kincardineshire , or The Mearns.
1. Cattle. The number of every description in the county atthe time of writing the Report, was 24,825 ; which was almostprecisely one beast for every' three acres in cultivation. Of thisnumber, 6236 were milk cows, from which 5280 calves werereared ; and after allowing for losses, the number sold annually,at from two to five years old, may be about 5016, independentof the flying stocks bought in chiefly from Aberdeenshire . Thecolour most esteemed is black ; and a large spreading head ofhorns is a great recommendation, because by this their breed isascertained in the English markets. The value of the cattle onan average may be stated at about 61. 8s. a-head, or 158,880/.in all. The value of those annually disposed of, including theincrease upon those that are bought in from other places, will beabout 58,395/. To this must be added the value of the dairyproduce, amounting to 28,176/.; so that the yearly revenue a-rising from cattle is altogether 86,571/. It is much to be regret-ted that similar estimates have not been presented in most of theOther county Reports.
2. Sheep. The number, exclusive of lambs, w-as ascertained,about Midsummer 1807, to be 24,957 ; of which about 21,500were fed on the Grampians , and the remainder in the low partof the county. The small native breed still exists here ; but theBlack-faced heath breed are now more numerous. The primecost of the whole sheep in the county may approach to 20,000/.;and the yearly produce to 10,480/.: a very small sum, consider-ing that there are 120,000 acres of sheep walk in the county,besides the pastures of the cultivated land, of which sheep havealso a share.
3. The Horses are of the Clydesdale breed, and the numberreared is nearly sufficient for the supply of the county. Of allages and descriptions there may be about 3587, valued at71,740/.