IN-AND-IN BREEDING. 153 



Old Greasy also represents 188 parts of blood 

 in 512, and Wooster represents 138 parts in 512. 

 Sweepstakes is T \ of the " blood " of Old Greasy, 

 and |f of the " blood " of Wooster. 



It will be seen that ten lines of descent may be 

 traced from Old Greasy to Gold Drop, and fourteen 

 lines of descent may be traced from Wooster to Gold 

 Drop. 



The Rich family of merino sheep furnish another 

 example of successful close breeding. 



Mr. Randall says they " were first crossed in 

 1842. They were then preeminently hardy. No one 

 claims that they have gained either in hardiness or 

 size by the cross ; yet for thirty years preceding that 

 period they had been bred strictly in-and-in, to say 

 nothing of their previous in-and-in breeding in 

 Spain." l 



" The Messrs. Brown during fifty years have 

 never infused fresh blood into their excellent flock 

 of Leicesters. 



" Since 1810 Mr. Barford has acted on the same 

 principle with the Foscote flock. 



F He asserts that half a century of experience has 

 convinced him that when two nearly-related animals 

 are quite sound in constitution, in-and-in breeding 

 does not induce degeneracy, but he adds that he 

 1 does not pride himself on breeding from the nearest 

 affinities.' " a 



From the examples that have thus far been pre- 



1 Randall's "Practical Shepherd," p. 119. 



2 Darwin's "Animals and Plants under Domestication," vol. ii., p. 

 149. 



