No. 4.] SHEEP TOPICS. 395 



interfere with its mutton-producing qualities. In other words, a 

 mutton-general-purposo sheep is most desirable. 



This brings u}) the question of what breed is best suited to the New 

 England States in general and Massachusetts in particular. The con- 

 siderations desired are a mutton sheep which carries a good fleece, 

 both as to staple and quality. The fleece should be made up of wool 

 which is most often called for in the market, so as to insure an easy 

 sale at a profitable price. The quality of the mutton is also a point 

 which merits attention. If a local market is sought, as is practically 

 necessary, the quality of the meat must be high, the texture fine, fat 

 well distributed, to give juiciness to chops and roasts, and the whole 

 cut tender. Young animals usually give the most tender meat, and 

 various breeds are noted for the flavor of their flesh. The prolificacy 

 of the breeds is another point meriting consideration, since the far- 

 mers of this section must adopt intensive methods in all lines. A flock 

 averaging a lamb and a half to a ewe is evidently more valuable than 

 one averaging only a lamb to a ewe. Much depends upon the com- 

 parative strength of the lambs in the two cases, but as a rule those 

 breeds which average as high as a lamb and a half per ewe bring forth 

 quite strong and well-growing young. A further requirement is that 

 the breed should be able to pick up a rough living on the hills and be 

 adapted to the climate of the region. With these points in mind a 

 description of a few of the more prominent breeds of mutton sheep 

 will be given. 



]\Iutton sheep are divided, according to the length of their wool, 

 into two classes, — the long wools and the short, or, as they are more 

 commonly known, the medium-wooled breeds. AU of our mutton 

 breeds came originally from England, noted as the greatest meat- 

 consuming nation in the world, and where the people have a particular 

 liking for mutton, even though noted as beef eaters. 



Of the long-wooled breeds the three most important are the Leicester, 

 Lincoln and Cotswold, and of the medium wools the Shropshire, South- 

 down, Hampshire Down, Oxford and Dorset are the best known and 

 most valuable. The four first named medium wools are known as the 

 "down" breeds, as they originated in the down countries of England, 

 — in Shropshire, Sussex, Oxford and other counties in south-central 

 England. 



As a general thing the long-wooled breeds are the larger, and, as is 

 true of most large animals when compared with those of the same 

 species which are smaller in size, are slow in reaching their mature form. 

 Add to this the fact that the quahty of their flesh is not of the best, 

 there being a tendency to coarseness in grain, the fibers of the red 

 meat standing out prominently, like the fibers in the shoulder steaks 

 of a beef as compared with the fibers of the loin cut of the same 

 animal. With this coarse texture there is a tendency to a too uneven 

 distribution of the fat, great soft bunches being likely to appear at the 



