276 BREEDL\G AND CRO^SLNG. 



coarseness yet about the rump, belly, thighs, &c. ; and per- 

 haps the fleeces will not be compact enough; others there 

 will be, although qualities generally good, whose fleeces will 

 be too dry, not being sufficiently imbued with yolk. 



Let the breeder pursue an undeviating track in selection, 

 for he will discover individuals even after the seventh and 

 eighth crosses comparatively indifferent, and if his motto is 

 " onward," he will not breed from these. But what, perhaps, 

 will surprise him greatly at this stage, notwithstanding a 

 particular ewe may be almost as perfect in her fleece as 

 either of the rams employed, yet she will bring forth an 

 off'spring occasionally, which will represent the defects in a 

 marked degree of some of those of the first and second cross ! 

 but were he an " old stager" this would not astonish him, as 

 it is an ordinary occurrence for even ten or fifteen years after 

 the commencement of improvement in instances where the 

 blood on one side was of the ordinary stamp, and which 

 would have been still more frequent, if the rams used had 

 not been iclwlly pure. This is an item showing the great 

 value to be attached to blood. 



After the seventh or eighth cross, will it be proper to em- 

 ploy any males produced in the flock ? As a general rule, 

 no; it is safer to procure them from another family higher 

 bred. Hitherto it has too frequently been the case that, after 

 a flock has been pushed far on to perfection, the breeder has 

 resorted to his own rams, by which improvement has ceased, 

 arising from the propensity of even high-grade animals to 

 transmit some of the defects of the stock on one side from 

 which they sprang, to their progeny. This rule, however, 

 may sometimes be violated with impunity. For instance, 

 after the third or fourth cross, some of the ewes may pro- 

 duce offspring uniformly alike, and very perfect, and such 

 instances show that they have been very thoroughly infused 

 with the pure blood of their sires ; therefore in such cases it 

 may be safe to employ their off'spring as tups. But the 

 breeder should be very sure of the circumstance stated, which 

 can only be arrived at with certainty by attention in marking 

 the lambs for several successive years. 



In breeding for the fleece, other points must not be neg- 

 lected, such as form, and indications of sound constitution. 

 The remarks which have appeared in reference to breeding 

 the mutton sheej) will apply in some measure to Merinos 

 and Saxons. Small bone, and a compact square frame, but 



