46 



long and coarse, like the Linconshii'e ; short and hairy, like those of Madagascar ; 

 soft and furry, like the Angola, or fine and spiral like the silken Saxon. His 

 color either pure or fancifully mixed, varies from the white or black of our own 

 country to every shade of brown, dun, butf, blue and gray, like the spotted flocks 

 of the Cape of (iood Hope, and other parts of Africa." 



The first sheep imported into the CJnited Stales, were brought from England, 

 to Jamestown, Virginia, in KiOy by the London Company, In 162r> and 1630 

 others were brought fi-om Holland into New Netherland, and in 1783 the first 

 mention is made of sheep being kept in Massachusetts. At this early time they 

 had to be protected from the ravages of the Indians and wolves as well as the 

 dogs, and biit httle progress was made in sheep husbandry. 



Merino sheep were first impoi'ted into this countr}'. from Spain, by Mr. Wil- 

 ham Foster of Boston in 17V.)3, who smuggled on ship-board two ewes and a ram. 

 When about to leave this couutry for France, he presented them to Mr. Andrew 

 Creigie of Cambridge, who not knowing their value simply ate them, and a few 

 years afterwards paid one thousand dollars for a Merino ram. Nine years later 

 Col. David Humphreys, American Minister at Spain, brought home a flock of 

 Spanish sheep, and in 180;) and 1810 WiUiam Jarvis shipped three thousand eight 

 hundi'ed and fifty to the United States. Twenty-five hundred of which were 

 consigned to New York and Boston, and the balance to more southern ports. 

 Previous to this, for centuries, Spain had been famous for her fine-wooled sheep, 

 and made laws confining them to her own territory ; — but the French invasion at 

 this period caused her to confiscate fifty thousand sheep with other property be- 

 longing to four grandees, — twenty thousand five hundred being sold and the 

 balance consumed by the Spanish army. Subsequently many importations were 

 made from Spain to this country, and from these flocks, originated the sheep 

 which were principally kept by our fathers in such large numbers forty years 

 ago and which roamed over our mountain pastures, destroying the weeds and 

 bushes, and causing them to yield four times the herbage which they now pro- 

 duce. Then there was but one object sought for in keeping sheep, to obtain 

 their wool, — and the finer, the better price, — to supply the demand for the style 

 of goods then manufactured and worn. 



But no man in these times can atford to keep sheep in New England for their 

 wool alone as our fathers did. The market now demands chiefly different style 

 of wool, which must be produced by another breed, which will not thrive 

 so weU on our mountain pastures, bat require greater attention and care. Now, 

 too, we have to compete in wool raising with the great sheep walks of our west and 

 southwest, which have been taken possession of, and upon which hundreds of 

 thousands are kept at a trifling expense compared to our own. We cannot afford 

 to winter them, or build fences about our pastures simply for their wool, which, 

 at present prices, whl not give us more than .$1.50 per head as the yearly income 

 from a sheep. 



We may combine the two products, however, of wool and mutton, so as to 

 make it profitable for us to keep more sheep than we now do. There are few 

 countries where good mutton is appreciated as it should be. Perhaps this may 

 be accounted for partly by the fact that many of the old breeds of sheep were of 

 such form that ver^^ little of choice meat could be fouud upon their carcases. 

 Compared to the English mutton breeds of to-day, they were no more ahke than 

 wild iiogs are like our Berkshires and Suttolks. Even the South Down, now the 

 model of perfection, for mutton sheep, it is said was formerly of smaU size, and 

 far from possessing a good shape, but by intelligent and careful breeding 

 within the past century, such men as Kobert Bakewefl and Johh Ellman, have 

 wrought a most wonderful change in their shape, until now the English prize 

 very highly their mutton chops and legs of boiled mutton, and we mu.st either 

 overcome the prejudice of our people to this kind of meat or give up trying to 

 keep very many sheep in our New England States. This want of a demand, I 

 think, is a greater obstacle in the way of advancing our sheep husbandry, than 

 even the dog nuisance. 



The varieties which seem best adapted to our present wants, are the Cotswold 

 and South Down, and their crosses with our native sheep, which have more or 

 less of Merino blood in them, and have become suited to our climate. All animals 



