578 SHEEP 



years old, and her last lamb was Oliver Twist. This ewe had no udder for the 

 last four years of her life, and Oliver Twist was given to another ewe. This 

 ram was first in his class at Leeds and Battersea. 



Humphrey died in 1868, when his flock, one of very superior 

 merit, was dispersed. Mr. James Rawlence of Bulbridge bred 

 rather differently, beginning with the Sussex breed, crossing the 

 larger and more robust ewes with the West Country Down or 

 Hampshire Down rams. He frequently used rams of Mr. Hum- 

 phrey's breeding, and later bought Hampshire Down ewes to 

 which he bred rams of his own stock. By using new blood grad- 

 ually and practicing careful selection, Mr. Rawlence developed a 

 flock "of the highest merit," a distinct improvement over the type 

 bred by Humphrey. Wrightson, himself a Hampshire Down 

 breeder, states that Mr. Rawlence " is regarded by many as the 

 father of the breed " and further notes that " we may look on 

 the Bulbridge flock as fairly representing the Hampshire Down 

 as we see him at the present time" (1895). 



The introduction of Hampshire Down sheep to America is said 

 to have occurred in 1855, when Thomas Messenger of Clarence 

 Hall, Great Neck, Long Island, New York, imported a ram and 

 five ewes bred by Francis Budd of Hampshire. These were ex- 

 hibited in the United States and won prizes at various shows, 

 and Henry S. Randall states 1 that they found a rapid sale in 

 the South prior to the Civil War. But little was done, however, 

 prior to 1880, to introduce more Hampshires. In 1881 Henry 

 Metcalf of Canandaigua, New York, imported the ram Shepherd's 

 Pride 2d. In May, 1887, E. F. Bowditch of Framingham, Massa- 

 chusetts, made an importation from Thomas Chick of Stratton, 

 Dorsetshire, England, and by 1892 Mr. Bowditch had a flock of 

 seven hundred head, the largest number of sheep owned by one 

 man in the state. About 1883 the breed found its way into Mich- 

 igan, and in 1885 became known in Ohio, Wisconsin, and else- 

 where. In recent years the Hampshire Downs have grown much 

 in popularity, and many sheep have been imported to America. 



Characteristics of the Hampshire Down. The head is very dark 

 brown or almost black in color, is rather large, and frequently has 



1 The Practical Shepherd (1868), p. 61. 



