88 SHEEP: BREEDS AND MANAGEMENT. 



CHAPTER X. 

 MOUNTAIN OR FOREST BREEDS (continued). 



THE CHEVIOT BREED. 



THE great Cheviot hill forms a striking object in Northum- 

 berland. It rises south of Flodden and Wooler, and overlooks 

 the fertile lands which slope southward and eastward from 

 its base. Cheviot is composed of trap rock, and is evidently 

 of volcanic origin. The soil is of better quality than that of 

 the mountain limestones and grits which form the basis of 

 the heath country, on which the Black-faced sheep find their 

 home. Cheviot is clothed with sweet, short herbage to the 

 summit. It is early and late covered with snow, and its 

 great altitude exposes it to severe storms during many 

 months of the year. Here is the home of the Cheviot sheep, 

 which have been bred there from time immemorial. The 

 contrast between them and the heath sheep is complete. 

 They are white-faced and hornless in both sexes. The body 

 is long in comparison, which has given rise to the expression 

 long and short sheep in speaking of the two rival races. The 

 wool is fine and short, instead of coarse and lashy as in the 

 heath sheep. They are, like most mountain breeds, disposed 

 to be light in the forequarter. The fact of a well-defined 

 breed occupying a limited area such as Cheviot, and bearing 

 no special resemblance to any other breed of sheep, is a 



