2o6 A. D, 1790. 



can be be better attended to in remote diftridts than near the metropolis, 

 where the high price of the mutton engages the principal attention of 

 the firmer. The Report of their committee (publifhed this year) ftates, 

 that there appear to be two kinds of fine-wooled fheep in the Shetland 

 iflands, of which that called the kindly Jheep is aimed entirely covered 

 with wool of a mod excellent quality, and worth at lead 5/ per pound; 

 the other fpecies having the fine wool only about the neck and fome 

 other parts of the body. But fo deficient are the people, who poflefs 

 this mojl pretious wool, in the management of it, and efpecially in forting 

 it, that they work up the fined along with the roarfe wool of inferior 

 dieep ill knitting dockings, which they fell from 3c/ to 3ya-pair, (dock- 

 ings made entirely of the fined wool fell as high as two guineas) whence 

 it frequently happens that fome of thein contain as much fine wool as 

 is worth more in a raw date than the price of the manufactured dock- 

 ings *. 



The fociety drongly recommended it to the proprietors of fmall iflands 

 to pay attention to the breed of their flieep, which fuch fea-girt padures 

 can bed preferve from being debafed by mixing with flieep of inferior 

 quality ; to be careful to obtain the bed kinds for breeding from, 

 efpecially the rams ; to breed only the bed fpecies ; and to extirpate 

 the inferior kinds as foon as podible f . 



If the antient fuperiority of the Britidi wool fliall ever be recovered, 

 it is apparently from the remote iflands, that that blefling mud be 

 fpread over the kingdom ; a blefling certainly attainable, under the 

 favour of the Almighty difpofer of all events, by judicious and perfever- 

 ing efforts. The focieties who fhall fucceed in their mod meritorious 

 endeavours to render Great Britain entirely independent of foreigners 

 for the materials of fo important a manufiKlure, will furely deferve the 

 very highed praife and gratitude and the mod didinguifhed honours 

 from their country. 



The profecution of the trade in fea-otter furs on the wed coad of 

 America (of the commencement of which fome account has already 

 been given) involved us in a conted with the court of Spain. In the 

 beginning of the year 1786 fome Britifli merchants refiding in India 

 fitted out two veflels, called the Nootka and the Sea-otter, under the 

 command of Captain Meares, for the fur trade on the wed coad of 

 America. The later veflel was unfortunately lod : and the former, after 

 differing prodigious hardfhips and lofing many of the people by winter- 

 ing on the American coad, returned to China in the end of the year 



* For an experiment, the committee got fome f From the communications of the minifters of 



of the (lockings decompofed, or reduced to the (late feveral of the iflands, for Sir John Sinclair's Stat- 



of wool, which, after being carded, was put into tjlual account of Scotland, it appears that they al- 



the hands of Mr. Izett, hat-maker in Edinburgh, ready poffefs a breed of fheep producing wool of 



who found it capable of being worked into very a very (ine quality, though not equal to the beft 



good hats. Shetland wool. 



