SHEEP. 



or sixteenth month. They then be- 

 gin to diminish in size, and are dis- 

 phiced. The two central ones are 

 first shed, and tlie permanent ones 

 supply their place, and attain their 

 full growth when the animal is two 

 years old. Between two and three, 

 the next pair are changed ; tlie third 

 at three years old ; and at four, the 

 mouth is complete. After this there 

 is no certain rule, until, two years 

 more having passed, the teeth one by 

 one become loosened and are lost. 

 At six or seven years of age the 

 mouths of the ewes should be occa- 

 sionally examined, and the loose teeth 

 removed, and then, by good pasture 

 and good nursing in the wmter, they 

 may produce lambs until they have 

 reached the ninth or tenth year, when 

 they begin rapidly to decline. Some 

 favourites have lingered on to the 

 fifteenth or sixteenth year ; but the 

 usual and the most profitable method 

 is to fatten and dispose of the ewes 

 when they are five or six years old, 

 and to supply their places by some 

 of the best shearing ewes. 



" The rings at the base of the horns 

 afford very imperfect indications of 

 the age of the sheep. 



" The history of the sheep will be 

 most naturally divided according to 

 the (juantity and quality of the wool 

 of the different breeds, the uses of 

 the skin, and the quantity and quali- 

 ty of tlie flesh. Tlie covering of the 

 original sheep consisted of a mixture 

 of hair and wool, the wool being 

 short and fine, and forming an inner 

 coat, and the hair of greater length, 

 projecting through the wool, and 

 constituting an external covering. 

 When the sheep are neglected, or 

 exposed to a considerable degree of 

 cold, this degeneracy is easily tra 

 ced On the Devonshire moors, the 

 mountains of Males, and the high- 

 lands of Scotland, the wool is deteri- 

 orated by a considerable admi.xture 

 of hair. Even among the South 

 Downs, the Leicesters, and the Rye- 

 lands, too many hemps occasionally 

 lessen the value of the fleece. It is 

 only by diligent cultivation that the 

 quantity of hair has been generally 

 692 



diminished, and that of wool increas- 

 ed in our best breeds. 



" Wool. — The filaments of wool ta- 

 ken from a healthy sheep present a 

 beautifully polished and even glitter- 

 ing appearance. That of the neglect- 

 ed or half-starved animal exhibits a 

 paler hue. This is one valuable in- 

 dication by which the wool-stapler is 

 enabled to form an accurate opinion 

 of the value of the fleece. The mi.x- 

 ture of hair in the wool can often be 

 detected, by close examination, with 

 the naked eye, but most readily by 

 the assistance of a microscope. 



•' Among the qualities which influ- 

 ence the value of the wool are_^?!c- 

 ncss, and the uniformity of that fine- 

 ness in the single fil)re and in the col- 

 lected fleece. This fineness, howev- 

 er, differs materially in different parts 

 of the fleece. It prevails on the neck, 

 the shoulders, the ribs, and the back. 

 It is less on the legs, thighs, and 

 haunch, and still coarser on the neck, 

 the breast, the belly, and the lower 

 part of the legs. Ttie fineness of the 

 wool is considerably influenced by the 

 temjierature. 



'•The fineness of the fleece is also 

 much influenced by the kind of food. 

 An abundance of nutriment will in- 

 crease both the length and the bulk 

 of the wool. This is an important 

 consideration with the sheep-breed- 

 er. Let the cold of winter come — 

 let it continue for a considerable pe- 

 riod, yet if the sheep is well kept, al- 

 though the fleece may lose a little 

 weight, this will be more than com- 

 pensated by its fineness and increase 

 of value. If the sheep, however, be 

 half starved while exposed to unu- 

 sual cold, the fibres of the wool, al- 

 though perhaps somewhat finer, will 

 be deficient in weight, and strength, 

 and usefulness. 



"That which is called imeness of 

 staple, or the fibres being of an equal 

 size, is of much importance in the 

 manufacture of wool ; for whenever 

 the wool assumes an irregular and 

 shagged, or hrcaehy appearance, there 

 is a weakness in the fibre, and will 

 be an irregularity in the manufacture, 

 especially if the fleece is submitted to 



