586 SHEEP INDUSTRY OF THE UNITED STATES 



General appearance. General appearance and character, good; carriage, head 

 well up, elastic movements, showing great symmetry of form and uniformity of 

 character throughout 10 points. 



Objections. Head dropping, low in neck, sluggish movement. 



Body. Well proportioned, medium bones, great scale and length; well finished 

 hind quarters ; thick back and loins ; twist deep and full, standing with legs well 

 placed outside ; breast wide and extending well forward 15 points. 



Objections. Too fine bones, short body, deficient in twist, legs close together, 

 light in brisket. 



Head. Head short and broad; wide between the ears and between the eyes; short 

 from top of head to tip of nose; ears short, of medium size; eyes expressive; head 

 should be well covered with wool to a point even with the eyes, without any appear- 

 ance of horns; color of face dark brown 10 points. 



Objections. Horns disqualify, white face disqualifies, head with prominent bones, 

 bare on top of head. 



Neck. Medium length, good bone and muscular development; and especially with 

 the rams heavier toward the shoulders; well set high up, and rising from that point 

 to the back of the head 5 poiuts. 



Legs and feet. Broad, short, straight, well set apart, well shaped; color, dark 

 brown, and well wooled to the knees 10 points. 



Fleece. Body, head, belly, and legs to knees well covered with fleece of even 

 length and quality; scrotum of rams well covered with wool 10 points. 



Quality of wool. Medium, such as is known in our markets as "medium delaine" 

 and "half-combing wool/' strong, fine, lustrous fiber, without tendency to mat or 

 felt together, and at one year's growth not less than 3 inches in length 5 points. 



Great numbers of tbese sheep have been imported into the United 

 States, and the importation continues. They are medium wooled and 

 good shearers. An American flock of 70 head in 1888 averaged 13J 

 pounds of wool each. They are a good mutton sheep and bring high 

 prices in the markets of our large cities. 



A cross of the Shropshire ram on a Merino ewe, or any moderate- 

 wooled sheep, is a good one. The product is smooth, round, evenly and 

 easily fattened, and of good selling weight; not too heavy, as when 

 crossed with long- wooled or very heavy-bodied sheep. The lambs of 

 such a cross run even in size and quality, and sell with the best market 

 sheep. A Cotswold breeder of twenty years' experience, who used a 

 thoroughbred Shropshire ram on Cotswold ewes, found the cross a good 

 one, improving the quality of the wool while retaining the size and 

 weight of the Cotswold. 



But the Shropshires have not the entire monopoly of the favor of the 

 farmers. There are warm advocates of the Oxfords, the Hampshires, 

 the Cotswolds, the Lincolns, and the Southdowns; and all of these are 

 well represented by fine breeding flocks, and make grand show at the 

 State fairs. By some the Oxford Down is considered the superior of 

 the Shropshire, in that it is more hardy, and on rich, high-priced lands 

 will pay better than any other breed. It makes a carcass of 220 pounds, 

 and shears 9 pounds of wool. The Hampshire Downs also have their 

 admirers. Less widely extended than either the Shropshires or the 

 Oxfords, their merits are not so well known. They are hardy, good 



