838 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1809. 



i 



produce of German Merino sheep, 

 was imported into this country 

 from Hamburgh, and used by our 

 manufacturers as a substitute for 

 Spanish wool. In truth, some of 

 this wool was so fine that it car- 

 ried in the British market as high 

 a price as the best Spanish piles 

 were sold for, in times of peace and 

 amity. 



In the year 17S7, the king, guid- 

 ed by those patriotic motives which 

 are ever active in his majesty's 

 mind, gave orders for the importa- 

 tion of Merino sheep for his own 

 use, and for the improvement of 

 British wool ; as it was doubtful at 

 that time whether thekingof Spain's 

 licence, without which these sheep 

 cannot be embarked at a Spanish 

 port, could be obtained, it was deem- 

 ed advisable to make the first pur- 

 chases in the parts of Estremadura 

 adjoining to Portugal, and to ship 

 the sheep for England at Lisbon. 

 The first importation of these valu- 

 able animals arrived in March 1788, 

 and a little flock of them was soon 

 after completed ; but as these were 

 of various qualities, having been 

 draughted from different Cavafias, 

 his majesty was pleased to order an 

 application to be made to the king 

 of Spain by lord Auckland, then his 

 majesty's minister at that court, for 

 permission to import some sheep 

 draughted from one of the prima 

 piles. This was obtained, and a lit- 

 tle flock, consisting of 36 ewes, 4? 

 rams, and 1 manso, arrived safe and 

 well at Dover, in 1791. Thesesheep 

 had made a part of the Cavana 

 called Negrette, one of the three 

 piles restricted from exportation, 

 and which is likeM'ise remarkable 

 for producing the largest carcassed 

 sheep that are to be found among 



the Merino flocks, as has been be- 

 fore stated. 



On the receipt of this treasure, 

 for such it has since proved itself 

 to be, the king, with his usual pru- 

 dence and foresight, ordered the 

 whole of the sheep that had been 

 procured by the way of Portugal to 

 be disposed of, which was immedi- 

 atelydone,and directed theNegrette 

 breed to be increased as much as 

 possible, and maintained in its ut- 

 most purity. 



From that time to the present the 

 opinion of the public, sometimes 

 perhaps too unwary, and at others 

 too cautious, in appreciating the va- 

 lue and adopting the use of novel 

 kinds of sheep, has gradually inclin- 

 ed to give that preference to the 

 Merinos which isso justly theirdue. 

 At first it was impossible to find a 

 purchaser willing to give even a 

 moderate price either for the sheep 

 or for their wool ; the shape of the 

 sheep did not please the graziers, 

 and the wool staplers were utterly 

 unable to judge of the merit of the 

 wool, it being an article so many 

 times finer and more valuable tlwn 

 any thing of the kind that had ever 

 before passed through their hands. 

 The butchers, however, were less 

 timorous ; they readily offered for 

 the sheep, when fat, a fair mutton 

 price ; and there are two instances 

 in which when the fat stock agreed 

 for was exhausted, the butcher 

 who had bought them, anxiously 

 inquired for more, because he said 

 the mutton was so very much 

 approved of by his best custom- 

 ers. 



It was not, however, till the year 

 ISOi, thirteen years after their 

 first introduction, that it was deem- 

 ed practicable to sell them by auc- 

 tion 



