FARM ANIMALS 



353 



FIG. 190. Merino. 



the Oxford, the Dorset, and the Cheviot ; (3) long- 

 wool producers, the Cotswold, the Leicester, and the 

 Lincoln. 



The Merinos, native of Spain, are noted for their fine 

 wool. In Spain they are very small, but sheep-breeders 

 in this country have 

 produced a larger 

 type, numerous in 

 the southwestern 

 part of the United 

 States. This type 

 can be developed 

 to furnish good 

 mutton as well as 

 good wool. The 

 Delaine and Ram- 

 bouillet (French 

 Merinos) are descended from the Merino, the second 

 producing good mutton. The medium-grade and long- 

 wool producers are natives of England, most of them 

 taking the name of the county where they predominate. 

 The Southdown and Shropshire are famous for their 

 mutton rather than for their wool. They are quite nu- 

 merous in the east and the Mississippi Valley. The 

 long-wooled sheep are not common in this country, the 

 Cotswold being the only one much known. 



Notes. The Merinos are distinguished by the large wrinkles on 

 their necks and bodies. The rams have horns, but the ewes are horn- 

 less. The mutton is not of very good quality and the lambs are late 

 in development. The breed has been greatly improved in the United 

 States and is here called the American Merino. Its chief value is in 

 its fine wool. It produces as high as 2 5 per cent of its weight in wool, 

 not being excelled by any other breed in this particular. 

 M. & H. AG. 2.3 



