49 



its origin from the crossing of the old Wiltshire Horned sheep and 

 the old Berkshire Knot with the Southdowns which were introduced 

 into Wiltshire and Hampshire early in the iQth century." It was 

 Humfrey, of Oak Ash and Chaddleworth, near Newbury, who, se- 

 lecting his Southdown rams from the celebrated flock of Jonas 

 Webb, took the lead in developing the modern Hampshire, the 

 breed which now occupies large areas of Berks, Hants, and Wilts, 

 " Many pure flocks also exist in Gloucestershire, Somerset, Surrey, 

 Sussex, Kent, Herts, Cambridge, Essex, Norfolk, Bedford, and the 

 Midlands generally. A strong point in the breed is that it is adapted 

 for the high-lying and barren uplands of the chalk, where holdings 

 are large, and flocks number from i ooo upwards." 



Value for Fattening. The Hampshire is a larger, lower-set, more 

 substantial, stronger-boned and coarser-looking sheep than the 

 Shropshire, and when young it is not easily fed fat to the touch, 

 although often forced to great weights by heavy feeding until the 

 lambs begin to eat. Ewes on the better classes of farm are often 

 allowed i Ib. each per day of a mixture of equal parts of linseed 

 cake and peas or cracked Egyptian beans until the lambs have 

 learned how to eat, when it is gradually taken from the ewe and 

 given to the lamb. A ram lamb weighing 19 Ib. at birth in January 

 may, with liberal feeding on green forage produced on the farm, 

 weigh 150 Ib. live weight on August ist. Early lambs can be got, 

 because the ewes' periods of oestrum begin earlier in the season than 

 in the case of most other sheep, a signal advantage to the breed 

 in competition with others at fat stock shows. Ewes are usually 

 culled from the flock in early autumn, after the weaning of the third 

 lamb, at the age of four and a-half years. A well-bred fattening 

 lamb on good and liberal feeding will increase at the rate of 3 /4 lb- 

 per day from birth and weigh 113 Ib. at the end of May. Of this 

 68 Ib., or 60 per cent., will be dressed carcase, weighing 17 Ib. 

 per quarter. The mutton is of good quality, not so fat as longwool 

 mutton, and firmer to the touch. 



The average weight of fleece is 4 1 /, to 5 Ib. for ewes ; the wool 

 should be free from black patches and grow close up to and round 

 the ears, dense and fine over the body, white when shed. 



THE SUFFOLK SHEEP. The Suffolk breed was formed over 100 

 years ago by crossing ewes of the Blackface Norfolk Horned Mountain 

 breed with Southdown rams. They were first known as Southdown 

 Norfolks and as Blackfaces. In 1859, when classes were opened 

 lor them at the Suffolk Agricultural Association Shows, they were 



