on Heavy and Light Land. 241 



add to the above the early maturity and heavy jacket resulting 

 from the influence of Long-wool blood — not pure Leicester, but 

 Cotswold or improved Lincoln — we have, as might be expected, 

 a very selling description of sheep. The Down Leicesters are in 

 some instances preferred ; their great aptitude for fattening 

 renders them valuable, but they have not the size, hardy charac- 

 ter, or weight of wool which cause the cross-bred sheep above 

 described to find such general favour with the tenant-farmers 

 of Norfolk. In the Lothians the first cross between the Cheviot 

 and Leicester is generally considered to pay better than any- 

 thing else. 



Since no general rule can be laid down where so much must 

 depend upon soil, climate, &c., we may remark generally 

 that, other things being equal, that sheep will pay best that 

 grows the greatest amount of flesh on a given quantity of food, 

 and comes to maturity in the shortest time ; but it must be 

 remembered that in proportion as the kindly qualities of an 

 animal are developed, its strength of constitution and ability to 

 stand hard treatment is lessened, and therefore the amount of 

 cultivation of our sheep in any district must depend in great 

 measure upon the care and attention which we can bestow upon 

 them. 



A Breeding Flock. 



Light arable farms, or mixed arable and grass-land farms, are 

 most suitable for a breeding flock, whether kept alone, or together 

 Avith a feeding flock. It is needless to prove that a breeding 

 flock must here pay better than working dry stock, because a 

 review of the prices of store stock, both sheep and cattle, during 

 the last few years, will show that, too often, the breeder comes in 

 for the lion's share of the profits. Even if at the present moment 

 the two courses were equally profitable, it would still be our duty 

 and interest to practise breeding on suitable land, if we duly 

 regard the rapidly increasing wants of the country. Unfor- 

 tunately we have no statistics to refer to as to the actual number of 

 breeding sheep kept in the country, and their comparative increase 

 from year to year, and, in the absence of such tests, we are met 

 by most conflicting evidence. The probability is that we have 

 slowly increased, especially during the last few years, in conse- 

 quence of the great improvements in Highland farming ; but that 

 this increase has not been at all proportionate to our wants, and 

 that in many instances a much heavier stock may be kept with 

 advantage, is beyond question. 



Hitherto farmers have supposed that a bellyful of turnips was 

 necessary for a breeding animal, and have based their calcu- 

 lations on their stock of roots that were to be thus wasted. 



R 2 



