The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1861-09-10 00:00:00

auriculittre.

Mr. Shepherd, in a letter to the Globe, says that
after the 10th instant we shall have no. weather,
with only one or two trifling exceptions, to the end uf
the month ; but I should advise our farmers, and more
especially those farming heavy clay soils, to get their
lsod in order fur reed during the nresent mouth, as
October will be a wet, damp month."
BAKKE} FAlK.—This great cattle fair was held on
Wednesday. Toursday, and Friday. During the
previous week large droves of cattle of every breed had
been taken into the fields in and around Hornet, for
someconsiderable distance- -The sheep (sir was livid on
Barnet Coiiin,utm, and esiongst tbe 6.000 and 7.000
penned op were the famed Susses, Hants and Wilts,
pure Southdown breeds, Dome, lionsereet and Wilts,
horned Socks, with many Leioesters, Litiradtis, and
half-bred ditto. There were immense strings of car-

nage, hunting, ordinary riding and dnving horses, cobs,
ponies of every description, quality, size, and shape,
net only from the North of England. but from North
and South Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, with many
heavy dray •tid cart horses from the comities of Suffolk.
Norfolk, Yorkshire, and other districts celebrated for
breeding. There were perch...ere present from almost
every county in England, including Muldleees, Essex,
Kent, Suffolk, Norfolk, and LlllOllll. and the famed
mousuitsion-lioise-dealers of London, as well as thuee
from Bristol, Norwich., and Birmingham. There were
also many present from France, Belgium, Bitola, end
other parts of the C ditinent. From r early hour in
11.. morning of Wednesday, the different roadsahuuling
on the Inman road to Barnet presented the.r annual
scene of riot and bustle, owing to the continuum' streams
of vehicle', from the four•in-hand to the donkey-cart,
that were wending their way to the cattle.mart. which,
as the visitor daw-ended Barnet-hill, presented A reap
trout that was truly astounding and p-selesiog. Within
half a-wile of the foot of the hill, where the display of
cattle commenced, the road was lined on each side with
hundreda of cabs, chaisacarts, vans, donkey-trucks,ke.,
the cattle froiu which had been relieved of their bur.lens
and were quietly grating in adjacent fields ; and on the
right and left eaten led, as far as the eye mold reach,
. obe apparent confusion of Louth's, hope*, oleo. Aileen,
gingerbreadoitalls, ride galleries. roundahouts. swings,
Aunt Sallies, and, in fact, all the perephernalia that
con,ditute • fair upon an enormous scale, were there in
gutsily array to commemorate the annivenairy of Barnet
Fair—the fair so celebrated fir rows pork and
onions, the flavour of which, being distinctly perceptible
on the brow of the 1.111, caused many a jailed nag to
have an extra lashing, in order that its hungry master
might the sooner Wady his sharpened appetite with
this really inviting repast. The number of beasts ws.
very large. There were about 1,800 South Wales ratite,
which were of very good quality, awl sold tolerably
well, varyiug from £8 to £lO per head. Thom from
! North Wales, about 1,000 in number, were also in very
good condition ; the calves fetching from fli his, to 27
10a. ; slows, calving heifers, £7 to Li ; and good Angle-
We runts averaged £lO to Cl 2. For the Welsh bugle.,
there was scarcely any demand, although mine of the
b.st fetched their prim, For thp Gerona, numbering
i about 2.000, there was a good demand, and they west
off aell from elf to £ll3 per head. The Herefords,
too, of which there were about 1.000, were in Admirable
condition, and realised £l2, £l3. £ll, and £l6 per
head. The Scotch beasts, numbering 2000, seemed also
to be in great requisition, the "Island." 'etching from
£9 to £ll. and tho pale Scotch front £l5 to £lB. Of
the short-horn heifers (Midland Counties), there were
atone 900; the demand for this claw was not so great,
hot what was sold realised from no to £lB per head.
The supply of short-horn bulls wax by no means large,
there being scarcely 100 in all: the sale, however. was
very good, and the prices realised per heal fermi £8 to
£l6. There 'wing generally very little call for mutton
at this fair, the number of sheep in all did not exceed
7.000, of which 6.000 were South Downs, WhiCi. west
) off tolerably well from3k,lo 46e. ilea ; of the Welsh
Aire were 1,000. theme also sole well, and fetched from
16a. to 16s. each. Thole was • great display of hones
of all kinds from the hunter to the cant-horse; but for
these the. call generally was not neat, although good
cattle deeidally fetched their worth ; for hiatus«, Mr.
Gaitge Taunton, of the Lon ton-roil, sold two horses,
reslising seventy guineas emelt ; and it was a frequent
occurrence for Mr. John Bacon to toll hie hones at
from 10 to 60 guineas each.—Colonel Teesdale was ob-
served busily engaged with some of those extensive
horse dealers, i urchaaing artillery horses for Govern-
ment.- The booths were generally well patronised, espe-
cially that of Kr. Warner, of the Welsh Harp Fishery,
Edgewase•road, who certainly had the call for the
"roast pork and onions."