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THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



shall be borne out when I say so, that pure stocks are 

 the exception, and that animals of the various established 

 breeds are principally used for crossing. The progress 

 crosses have made in this country is proved by their 

 competition at the Smithfield Club. Through the kind- 

 ness of Mr. Brandreth Gibbs I am enabled to give the 

 return of the entries. Prizes were first established for 

 cross-breds in 1843, now seventeen years ago. During 

 the first nine years the average number of pens was only 

 82, but during the last eight years they have averaged 

 within a fraction of 17 j while the Leicesters during the 

 first nine years averaged 19 pens, they have during the 

 last eight only reached to 17. I do not intend to go 

 into the question of food, for it must be admitted that 

 the long-woolled breeds will doubtless put on the 

 greatest amount of fat in proportion to the food con- 

 sumed than any other. But this is not all the farmer 

 requires : when he has produced his mutton he wants a 

 market for it : crosses find a more ready sale, and a 

 much better price, which more than makes up for the 

 increased consumption of food. There is a very great 

 difference of opinion upon the subject of crossing, 

 many, very many still contending that it is not desira- 

 ble to go beyond the first cross; and the most success- 

 ful and common mode pursued is to use a long-woolled 

 ram upon South or Hampshire Down or other dark- 

 faced ewes. This course has been found to answer bet- 

 ter than a short-wooUed ram upon long-v/oolled ewes ; 

 for the produce generally partakes of the size of the 

 male, and this, having an eye to the butcher, is a great 

 desideratum in crossiuij. The great objection urged by 

 many against this system is that, as all the produce is sold 

 off annually, the breeder is driven into the market every 

 year for ewes, which are mostly the draughts of other 

 people's flocks, thereby running the risk of introducing 

 all manner of diseases on to his farm ; besides, there is 

 a want of uniformity in the lambs, some taking after 

 the sire and others after the dam ; moreover, having to 

 purchase ewes every year, the demand is increased and 

 the supply is diminished. This cannot be desirable ; 

 for with a fast increasing and flourishing population, 

 bringing with it a growing demand for meat, the breed- 

 ing of sheep cannot be too extensively carried on. Al- 

 though I may be travelling somewhat out of the record, 

 I would observe, in passing, that I am aware an objec- 

 tion is raised by some farmers to the keeping of a 

 breeding flock, but taking a run of years on most farms 

 I must think it to be greatly in favour of such a system. 

 A custom has become prevalent, in rnany quarters, of 

 keeping only what is called a dry flock, with an idea 

 that such a course is more profitable : it certainly may 

 be attended with less trouble, but I very much doubt 

 its policy. I can look round me and find that 

 most of those men who have made farming a suc- 

 cessful occupation have generally been extensive 

 breeders and rearers of stock. The objections I 

 have stated to the mode of crossing I have 

 described have been felt by many, and successful efforts 

 have been made by the men of Shropshire, Oxfordshire, 

 and other districts to produce sheep that unite the well- 

 known and acknowledged good qualities of the Down 

 with the larger-framed and heavier-fleeced long-wools. 

 What has been done can be done again. If it was pos- 

 sible for Mr. Bakewell, by a judicious selection from the 

 various long-wools, toproduce the new Leicester, and for 

 the Hampshire men, by the use of the Sussex Down, to 

 change the characteristics of their native-horned breed, 

 who shall say it is not possible at the present day, with 

 our enlarged knowledge and increased facilities, to pro- 

 duce results equal to those who have gone before us ? 

 The Oxfordshire and Shropshire men, in their attempt 

 to establish these newer breeds, are backed up in their 

 principles of breeding by a vei-y high authority—a gen- 



tleman who is a member of this Club. I allude to Mr. 

 Spooner, who has written a most excellent paper upon 

 the cross-breeding of sheep, in the Journal of the Royal 

 Agricultural Society of England ; and I will take this 

 opportunity of saying that, for practical papers and 

 good downright farmers' reading, no previous journal 

 has equalled it. Mr. Morton, I know, did his best to 

 make it so. I trust, now that it has fallen into other 

 hands, it may be conducted in like manner. Mr. 

 Spooner says, in one of his concluj-ions bearing upon 

 this point, ' Although the benefits are most evident in 

 the first cross, after which, from pairing the cross-bred 

 animals, the defects of one breed or the other, or the 

 incongruities of both, are perpetually breaking out, yet, 

 unless the characteristics and conformation of the two 

 breeds are altogether averse to each other. Nature op- 

 poses no barrier to their successful admixture ; so that, 

 in the course of time, by the aid of selection and care- 

 ful breeding, it is practicable to establish a new breed 

 altogether. This, in fact, has been the history of our 

 principal breeds.' Mr. Spooner goes on to show that 

 the Leicester was produced from crossing in the first 

 instance, the Cotswold and Lincoln have been improved 

 by the Leicester, and the Hampshire and Wiltshire have 

 also been crossed and improved by the Southdown : and, 

 as regards the latter, there is a doubt in some minds 

 whether their improved chines and backs were not 

 brought about by some such means. From all this it 

 would appear the word " pure " is out of place when 

 speaking of any breed, and therefore I prefer to use the 

 term happily chosen by Mr. Robert Smith in his re- 

 ports of the Royal Agricultural Shows at Chester and 

 Warwick, viz , " the ' established ' breeds." Having 

 thus introduced the subject of crossing, I shall now pro- 

 ceed to speak of those sheep that have not yet arrived at 

 the honourable position of being placed amongst the es- 

 tablished breeds. Our friends the Shropshire men will 

 deem it, no doubt, very impertinent of me in associating 

 them still with Oxfordshire men; but I cannot allow 

 them to part company until after the Canterbury Show, 

 where, after repeated applications to that very useful, 

 but irresponsible and slow-moving institution, the Royal 

 Agricultural Council, they are at last to have a class to 

 themselves. They will doubtless avail themselves of their 

 improved position, and show it in such numbers and excel- 

 lence that will entitle them for the future to take rank 

 amongst the other established breeds of this country. 

 There is no doubt that Shropshire, for very many 

 years past, has possessed a breed of sheep pecu- 

 liar to that county ; the originals had a speckled face, 

 and were larger and coarser than the present Shrop- 

 shire breed. This breed has been established by a pru- 

 dent selection of the breeding animals, and I learn from 

 a gentleman who kindly favoured tne with information 

 upon the point that the late Mr. Meire was the first to 

 improve upon the original type. This he did in the 

 first place by the use of the Leicester ; as their faces be- 

 came white he would then have recourse to a Southdown 

 or other dark- faced sheep. It was, however, left to the 

 son to carry out and bring to a successful issue what the 

 father had commenced, and Mr. Samuel Meire no doubt 

 may be looked upon as, the founder of the improved 

 Shropshire Downs. We gather from his address to the 

 Wenlock Farmers' Club that he accomphshed this, not 

 by revetting to any of the established breeds, but by using 

 the best animals from his own large flock. 1 have 

 received a somewhat different account of the origin of 

 the Shropshire sheep. It is from a gentleman who is a 

 native of the county, but has since left it, to manage an 

 estate in another. I will read some extracts from his 

 letter. He states : 1st. " Having been born in the 

 county, and accustomed to the sheep as long as I have 

 known any, there cannot be a question raised in favour 



