MAMMALS been killed around Cheadle some of these I find were turned out in the spring of last year, but Mr. Bill of Farley tells me that there have generally been a few in the moor- land district of our county.' Of course no one will suppose that the mountain or ' Scotch hare is indigenous in Staffordshire. 32. Rabbit. Plentiful. Lefus cuniculus, Linn. UNGULATA 33. Chartley White Cattle. Bos taurus, Linn. No account of the mammals of Staffordshire could be considered complete without refer- ence to the famous herd of white cattle so long preserved in a half-wild condition at Chartley Park by the Earls Ferrers. These magnificent animals are white, with the ears, hoofs, and generally the muzzle, black. Black spots and blotches are usually seen on the lower part of the fore-legs and sometimes on the hind-legs also. The horns are white finely tipped with black, are long and sweeping, not short and sharply curved upwards as in the Chillingham and Cadzow herds, and remind one of the fine Old English long-horn cattle and the Highland breed in the bold way in which they stand out from the sides of the head. A remarkable feature is a large tuft of long curly hair which adorns the forehead and reaches as low as the inner corners of the eyes, and especially in old bulls possesses a parting down the centre which gives to the tuft the appearance of a carefully arranged and very beautiful wig. In the cows the horns are thinner than in the bulls and with a more decided upward trend. As a rule the disposition of these Chartley cattle is mild and timorous, and when approached by strangers the herd slowly retreats. At certain seasons the animals be- come dangerous, and it is at all times unsafe to approach too closely to the cows when accompanied by their calves, the first signs of a projected attack being stamping with the fore-feet and an angry tossing of the head. When alarmed the members of the herd collect together and at first retreat a short distance. They then suddenly turn and face the object of their resentment, the herd standing in the form of a semicircle. On being further pressed they again retreat and again turn towards their adversary, and if still molested do not hesitate to charge. Few spectators, however rash and curious, will be found to await the latter consummation, and prudently retire to the shelter of some pine- clump or group of birch trees after one or two demonstrations of hostility on the part of the herd. Even young calves but a few days old when met with away from their dams butt with great spirit and fierceness. Black calves are occasionally born and are invariably destroyed by the keepers, but black and white calves seem to be unknown. The birth of a black calf was anciently considered to foretell disaster to some member of the Ferrers family. Originally driven into Chartley Park from Needwood Forest by William, Earl of Derby, in the reign of Henry III., these cattle have been carefully preserved pure by his descend- ants, the Earls Ferrers, and although inbred for over 650 years they still survive. At times however they have been very near extinction, for about twenty years ago they were reduced to 17 head. By 1887 the herd had doubled in numbers, and from 1890 to 1900 averaged about 45 head. Within the last few years the numbers have steadily declined, and in April, 1903, they were reduced to less than a dozen. 34. Red Deer. Cervus e/afhus, Linn. The red deer preserved at Chartley, Bagot's Park, and elsewhere in the county are probably the direct descendants of the wild deer which anciently inhabited Needwood Forest, the largest herd being that at Chartley which now numbers 50 head. 35. Fallow Deer. Cervus dama, Linn. Although not indigenous to Staffordshire any more than to other parts of these islands, fallow deer have from very ancient days abounded in the county and great herds wandered at liberty on Needwood Forest, and in smaller numbers on Cannock Chase, down to comparatively recent times. In 1798 Dickenson estimated the number of deer on Needwood Forest at more than 3,000, and remarked that many of them were of the dark brown variety ' introduced from Norway by James I.' Dickenson, like many a writer since his day, was probably in error when he penned the remark quoted above, for Mr. J. E. Harting has shown (Essays on Sport and Natural History) that a dark race of fallow deer existed in England as early as 1465. In a state of semi-domestication fallow deer are kept in the deer-parks at Chartley, Bagots- Bromley, Wooton, Dunstall, etc., whilst a few exist in a state of freedom on Cannock Chase, 167
