Chap. XV. CROSSING AS MODIFYING RACES. 73 



On the Modification of old Races and the Formation of new 

 Races by Crossing. — We have hitherto chiefly considered the 

 effects of crossing in giving uniformity of character ; we 

 must now look to an opposite result. There can be no doubt 

 that crossing, with the aid of rigorous selection during 

 several generations, has been a potent means in modifying 

 old races, and in forming new ones. Lord Orford crossed his 

 famous stud of greyhounds once with the bulldog, in order to 

 give them courage and perseverance. Certain pointers have 

 been crossed, as I hear from the Eev. W. D. Fox, with the 

 foxhound, to give them dash arid speed. Certain strains of 

 Dorking fowls have had a slight infusion of Game blood ; 

 and I have known a great fancier who on a single occasion 

 crossed his turbit-pigeons with barbs, for the sake of gaining 

 greater breadth of beak. 



In the foregoing cases breeds have been crossed once, for 

 the sake of modifying some particular character ; but with 

 most of the improved races of the pig, which now breed true, 

 there have been repeated crosses, — for instance, the improved 

 Essex owes its excellence to repeated crosses with the Neapo- 

 litan, together probably with some infusion of Chinese blood. 22 

 So with our British sheep : almost all the races, except the 

 Southdown, have been largely crossed ; " this, in fact, has 

 been the history of our principal breeds." 23 To give an 

 example, the " Oxfordshire Downs " now rank as an estab- 

 lished breed. 24 They were produced about the year 1830 by 

 crossing " Hampshire and in some instances Southdown ewes 

 with Cotswold rams : " now the Hampshire ram was itself 

 produced by repeated crosses between the native Hampshire 

 sheep and Southdowns ; and the long-woolled Cotswold were 

 improved by crosses with the Leicester, which latter again is 

 believed to have been a cross between several long-woolled 

 sheep. Mr. Spooner, after considering the various cases 



22 Richardson, ' Pigs,' 1847, pp. 37, part ii. : see also an equally good 

 42 ; S. Sidney's edition of ' Youatt on article by Mr. Ch. Howard, in ' Gar- 

 the Pig,' 1860, p. 3. dener's Chronicle,' 1860, p. 320. 



23 See Mr. W. C. Spooner's excel- 24 ' Gardener's Chronicle,' 1857, pp. 

 lent paper on Cross-Breeding, ' Jour- 649, 652. 



nal Royal Agricult. Soc. ' vol. xx.. 



