Essay on Sheep. — Appendix. 177 



as far as the skin feels hard to the finger; the 

 scab is then washed with soap-suds, and rubbed 

 hard with a shoe-brush, so as to cleanse and 

 break the scab. I always keep for this use a 

 decoction of tobacco, to which I add one- 

 third by measure of the ley of wood ashes, as 

 much hog*s-lard as will be dissolved by the ley, 

 a small quantity of tar from the tar-bucket, 

 which contains grease, and about one-eight of 

 the whole by measure of spirits of turpentine. 

 This liquor is rubbed upon the part infected, 

 and spread to a little distance round it, in three 

 washings, with an interval of three days each. 

 I have never failed in this way to effect a cure 

 when the disorder was only partial. By attention 

 1 have always prevented its attaining so great 

 a degree of malignity as to sufi'er the sheep to 

 lose more than eight or nine inches square of 

 its wool; I cannot, therefore, say whether it 

 would cure a sheep infected so as to lose half 

 its fleece, in which state I have seen many 

 flocks. In such case I think recourse should 

 be had to mercurial ointment, which has been 

 strongly recommended by Sir Joseph Banks; 

 who says that it is a very safe remedy if applied 

 with care. He directs the wool to be opened, 

 and a streak to be made down the back, and 



23 



