483 - 



Characteristics of the Breed. But for a thread ot kemp in the 

 britch of the fleece Kerry wool would be equal to the finest Welsh 

 wool. With Shropshire wool at i$*/ 2 d. Kerry ranks at i2 x / 2 </., Clun 

 Ji'/a^ an d Radnor nd. per Ib. 



THE RADNOR SHEEP. The Radnor breed had the very ancient 

 Welsh Tan-face sheep as a foundation stock. 



THE CLUN FOREST SHEEP. The Clun Forest :breed, although 

 related to, differs from the Kerry and Radnor breeds. Its main 

 centre is the Clun district of Shropshire. The original sheep was 

 small and speckle-faced. 



THE EXMOOR HORN OR PORLOCK SHEEP. The Exmoor Horn 

 or Porlock Sheep, one of the chief descendants of the old Forest 

 breeds, has existed from time immemorial on the Exmoor and 

 Brendon Hills in West Somerset and North Devon. 



THE DARTMOOR SHEEP. The Dartmoor is the largest hill or 

 moorland sheep in this country. It is a very old hornless breed, 

 which was improved many years ago by a dash of Leicester blood. 

 The size has increased, and the quality of flesh and wool has gone 

 up in recent years by careful breeding and selection. 



THE ENGLISH LEICESTER. History of the Leicester. The English 

 Leicester was the first British breed improved by in-and-in-breeding 

 and selection. Bake well, at Dishley in Leicestershire, began the 

 system about 1755, and the success of his efforts was secured by 

 the simultaneous extension of the cultivation of the turnip as a field 

 crop. A liberal supply of winter food was made available, and the 

 old ungainly slow-maturity Leicester, which had been bred merely 

 for size and a heavy fleece, was transformed into a compact sym- 

 metrical, moderate-sized animal, possessing great aptitude to fatten, 

 and above all, a marvellous power of communicating its tendency 

 to early maturity and its refining influence to breeds with which 

 it was crossed. Bakewell aimed at producing a valuable carcass, 

 and the fleece was a secondary consideration. Marvellous [results 

 were got by his methods and his matchless instinctive (skill in 

 mating his animals. He originated the practice of letting out rams 

 for the season in place of selling them. This gave him a large 

 number of sheep to select from in pairing different types. It took 

 20 years so to convince his neighbours of the soundness of his 

 system that they were willing to pay a lo-guinea fee for the hire 

 of some of his choicest rams. Four or five years later the fee 

 rose to 100 guineas, and in 1786 he let two-thirds of the service 

 of a ram for* 200 guineas, and received in [all 1,000 guineas for 



