52 SHEEP INDUSTRY OF THE UNITED STATES 



peared, having been universally crossed, to a greater or less extent, 

 with, the foreign breeds of later introduction.* 



The Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture, in a paper of 

 1796, called attention to the great importance of improving the breed 

 of sheep, remarking that the attempts heretofore made to "mend the 

 breed" were few and evidently not well conducted. The principal 

 efforts had been to increase the size of animals, which had not always 

 been attended with increased profit. From this paper we learn that 

 the great Lincolnshire rams had been imported and were said to be ill 

 flavored, not healthy, and ill adapted to the short, sweet food of the 

 New England hills, as they originally fed on the Lincoln fens or low 

 grounds. It was suggested that the Dorsetshire breed as a smaller one 

 was more desirable 5 it was not then known in America. It was par- 

 ticularly urged upon the farmers to make improvements on the native 

 stock by judicious selection. 



The same society, in 1799, submitted several questions to the farmers 

 of the State. Among them were, What kind of beasts were kept on the 

 farms and in what numbers'? The inquiry was confined to medium 

 farms, and the answers were given in the proceedings of the society in 

 January, 1800. For convenience they are grouped : 



(1) One to 2 horses ; 1 yoke of oxen ; 5 or 6 cows ; 10 sheep. 



(2) One to 2 horses; 15 cattle; 10 sheep. 



(3) One horse ; 4 oxen ; 6 or 7 cows ; 15 or 20 sheep. 



(4) Two horses ; 2 yoke of oxen ; 15 cows ; 15 or 20 sheep. 



(5) Two horses ; 15 cows ; 15 sheep. 



This ratio held good, not only in Massachusetts, but throughout all 

 New England. The average farmer had one or two horses, from one to 

 two yoke of oxen, and from ten to twenty sheep. The sheep ran out 

 and fed on grass when they could get it, and were kept through the 

 winter on hay, corn, turnips, potatoes, carrots, and pods, straw of beans 

 and peas, and cornstalks. It was not the choice of these that they fed 

 upon, but the article that was most available for the farmer and least 

 needed by the horses and cattle. The cost of the sheep was from $1.50 

 to $2 per year, and the cost of eight sheep equaled that of one cow. 

 The ordinary weight of the sheep was 12 pounds to the quarter, worth 

 4s. The largest and best sheep ran 28 pounds per quarter and sold at 

 Qd. per pound. The fleece weighed from 2 to 3 pounds. 



The descendants of these New England sheep, known in our day as 

 " native sheep," in distinction from the breeds of known importation, 

 were of two kinds one with white faces and the other with dark faces 

 and legs. The first was preserved in the eastern part of the country 

 and on the islands, while the latter are known in the valley of the Con- 

 necticut by the name of " English smuts " or " Irish smuts." These last 

 may have been Southdowns, imported before the improvement of that 

 celebrated breed, as they bear many of their characteristics, and might, 



* "Sheep Husbandry in the South." Henry S. Randall. 





