402 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, 



was uot calculated to do justice to the breeders of Shropshire 

 sheep : the plan was for his friends to take their good-natured 

 faces into other parts, and to challenge the whole county, so 

 that the excellence of .the Shropshire Downs might be made 

 palpable to public view. Mr. Meire dwelt at some length on 

 this subject, emphatically enforcing the principle of open and 

 unrestricted competition on a broader basis than could be 

 afforded by a merely local show, and arguing that no one 

 should suppose any landlord or country gentleman who be- 

 came an exhibitor did so with the paltry motive of obtaining 

 a £5 prize. The object was one of improvement, and it ought 

 to be encouraged. Specially referring to the injury resulting 

 from the operation of a restrictive principle, he said that, if he 

 had not been excluded by the rules of the Society, he should 

 have exhibited a ram which he had purchased in Staffordshire. 

 He did not know whether anyone supposed that he should be 

 proud if he had done so and had won three or four pounds, 

 but he did know that bis own feeling would have been one of 

 pride at the exhibition of an animal which he believed would 

 give evidence of his good judgment. He would recommend 

 the Society to allow competition without any restriction, no 

 matter where the animals came from, or by whom they were 

 bred (" No, no "), being fully convinced that that was the 

 only plan to ensure the full development of any breed of sheep 

 or cattle, or any branch of agricultural operations. Repeating 

 his desire to see the Bridgnorth Society become an itinerant 

 one 'throughout the country, Mr. Meire commented on the 

 ill-fame into which Shropshire had been brought by the in- 

 solvency of the Shrewsbury Society, and added that, as a 

 purely local ^exhibitor, he should not care twopence about 

 beating Mr. Jasper or Mr. Wilson, who, by the way, had 

 beaten each other so often that neither knew which was the 

 best man. On a broader field of competition, however, addi- 

 tional honour would be gained, and he was confident that the 

 interests of agriculture would be promoted. 



Mr, Taylor explained that Mr. Meire was mistaken in 

 supposing that the rules of the society excluded him from ex- 

 hibiting the ram to which he had referred. In the classes for 

 male animals there was no restriction whatever, either as to 

 the breeder or the time the animal had been iu the possession 

 of the exhibitor. He concurred in the general remarks of Mr. 



Meire, but he thought that, with the explanation he had 

 given, that gentlemen would be of opinion that the society 

 was not quite so confined iu its operations as he had sup- 

 posed. 



Mr. Henry Smith, Jun., maintained that the Bridgnorth 

 society occupied a prominent position, not only in reference to 

 Shropshire, but in reference to adjoining counties, and he 

 stoutly contended for the pre-eminence of the Shropshire- 1 

 down breed of sheep. He was a breeder of Shropshire sheep^ I 

 but it was a great error if any one supposed that the Shrop- 

 shire people were his best customers : he could look to the 

 whole of England and Wales, to Russia, and to Australia, for 

 his customers. The Shropshire sheep were unequalled in the 

 production of the greatest amount of wool and mutton on the 

 smallest quantity of food. Formerly people used to go to 

 Mr. Jonas Webb for Southdowns, to Mr. Game for Cotswolds, 

 and to Mr. Pawlett or Mr. Sanday for Leicesters ; but now, 

 they were all turning to the Shropshire downs. He referred 

 to the fact that he had already won about about 45 prizes, and 

 hoped to make the number 50 ; aud that number of prizes 

 obtained in four years was the best commentary that could be 

 given on the excellence of the breed. Commenting on the 

 character of some of the sheep which had been exhibited that I 

 day, he said he noticed that four out of five of Lord Dart- i 

 mouth's ewe lambs had black heads. As black heads some- 

 times indicated black tails also, aud as black tails indicated 

 an absence of wool on the belly ai;d the back, he could not 

 recommend their being patronised at a time when wool was 

 reaUsing 20d. per lb. He deprecated the notion of a cross 

 between the Cotswolds and Shropshire-downs, and said that 

 such a cross would be something like that of a polar bear with 

 Welsh rabbit. After further enlarging on the merits of the 

 Shropshire sheep, Mr Smith went on to notice the solvent and 

 flourishing position of the Bridgnorth Agricultural Society, 

 and contended that, while it was in such a position, they 

 should be careful what steps they took to effect amalgamation 

 with other societies. He augured a successful career for the 

 society, and declared it able to withstand any " £3 blows" 

 that might be directed against it : as long as there was a 

 Whitmore to patronise and support the society, there should 

 be a Smith to show Shropshire sheep. 



SALE OF LORD BATEMAN'S HEREFORD HERD, 



AT SHOBDON. 



The sale of this famous herd took place pursuant to an- 

 nouncement on Tuesday, Sept. 25, at Shobdon, his Lordship's 

 seat, near Kingsland. Previous to the sale, a large party of 

 agriculturists were entertained at luncheon, served in a tent, 

 Lord Bateman presiding, and the ofiice of vice-chairman being 

 filled by Mr. Russell, the auctioneer. 



The biddings were steady, without excitement, and the 

 prices were in no case up to the " fancy " rates which have in 

 some cases provoked the censures of our leading agricultural 

 papers. The following are some of the highest prices realized. 

 A majority of these animals had been prize-takers at the Royal 

 Agricultural and the local Societies. 



Peeress, by Monarch (Powell), £23. 

 Lady, by The Knight (Capt. Heygate), £26 53. 

 Vesta, by Carlisle, dam Lady (Powell), £35 Hs. Her bull- 

 calf (Dent), £6 63. 

 Nymph, by ditto, dam Little Beauty (Wright), £42. 

 Superb, by Carlwle, dam Strapper (Wright), £32 Is. 



Damask, by Carlisle, dam Mr. Gallier'a Dainty (Sexty) 

 £19 19s. 



Lily, by Royalty, dam Victoria (HoUoway, Hopton), £25 

 4s. Her buU-calf (ditto), £19 193. 



Pretty Maid, by Carlisle, dam Old Cowslip (Oldworth), 

 £31 lOs. 



Gem, by Quicksilver, dam Silver (Vaughan), £17 17s. 

 Her heifer-calf (ditto), £4 48. 



Shut, by Carlisle, dam Strapper (Bulmer), £30 9s. 



Gentle, by Carlisle, dam Lady (Stone), £31 10s. 



Lioness, by Carlisle, dam Lofty (Wright), £34 13s. 



Baroness, by Carlisle, dam Little Beauty (Stone), £31 lOs. 

 Her bull-calf (Hughes, Lady Court), £10 lOs. 



THE TWO-YEAR OLD HEIFERS. 



Hebe, by Carlisle, dam Young Spot (Stone), £42, 

 Nelly, by Carlisle, dam Peeress (Stone), £37 16s. 

 Verbena, by Carlisle, dam Flower (Sexty), £19 193. 

 Sylph, by Carlisle, dam Lily (Bateman), £21 lOs. 

 Empress, by Carlisle, dam Strapper (Bateman), £21. 

 Two heifers, by Carlisle, daoM little Beauty and Peeress 

 (Stone), £50 8s, 



