A friend has recently acquired a truly classic book in the fondly remembered Puffin Books series with copious illustrations. It is Our Cattle, with illustrations by that master of equestrian art, Lionel Edwards. He is best remembered for his evocative, atmospheric depictions of the hunting field, of named hunts in action in the winter countryside under limpid skies. But my friend's recent acquisition is about the cattle breeds one was likely to encounter in our countryside 60 years ago (it was published in 1948).
Edwards' watercolour Ayrshire Cows depicts a delightful green, lowland landscape with towering elms that hadn't yet been ravaged by Dutch elm disease. The dairy cows are carrying the typical "cock horns" of this breed and high in the sky are shining cumulus clouds. You'd be hard pressed to find such a scene today - the elms are virtually non-existent and there are few Ayrshire herds left.
It's a happier story when we come to look at the section describing Shorthorns, the true dual purpose breed of yesteryear. As I went down into the deep, winter shadows of Narrowdale the other morning, the largest herd of this breed remaining in the country were spread across the broad hill pastures of Gratton Hill. The Bold family of Narrowdale have had a Shorthorn herd for more than 70 years, but its focus has shifted from milk to beef, and nowadays they are treated as free-ranging animals. As the book states, they "have marvellous powers of adaptation to varying conditions of soil and climate". With the winter sun upon their backs, their red-and-white and roan-hued coats added a note of contrast against the winter pastures of these limestone hillsides. In the years since Edwards' death the Shorthorns have struggled on; here at Narrowdale is a rare survival of a large herd.