404 



SHEEP 



The introduction of the Hampshire Down of the modern type 

 to America probably first occurred in 1855, when Thomas Mes- 

 senger of Great Neck, Long Island, New York, imported a small 

 flock. But little, however, was done to introduce more Hamp- 

 shires prior to 1880. In 188 1 Henry Metcalf of Canandaigua, 



New York, imported 

 the ram Shepherd's 

 Pride 2d. About 1883 

 the breed was intro- 

 duced into Michigan, 

 and in 1885 found its 

 way into Ohio, Wiscon- 

 sin, and elsewhere. 



Characteristics of the 

 Hampshire. The head 

 is very dark brown or 

 almost black in color, 

 is rather large, and 

 frequently has a pro- 

 nounced Roman nose. 

 The lips and nostrils 

 are black. The ears are 

 large, of a dark mouse 

 color behind, and are more pointed than with Shropshire or 

 Southdown. In the best types the ears lean outward slightly. 

 The neck tends to be a bit long, lacking the compactness of the 

 Southdown ; yet Wrightson, the best British authority on this 

 breed, states that it is thick and muscular and is considered to be 

 a point of special excellence and importance. He further states 

 that the shoulder tops are wide, and that the girth behind the 

 shoulders and of the entire fore end must be well marked to 

 secure any attention either in the prize or sale ring. This breed 

 has been criticised by Wallace, who states that a conspicuous 

 defect in ordinary specimens is a falling away behind the shoulder. 

 The type of body and general carcass is common with accepted 

 standards for other mutton breeds. The legs are dark brown in 

 color, like the face ; in fact the color is so deep a brown that 

 it may almost be regarded as black. In further reference to 



Fig. 186. A yearling Hampshire Down ewe, first- 

 prize winner wherever shown, and first in a pen 

 of three at the Royal Agricultural Society of 

 England Show, 1904. Imported and exhibited 

 by Chilmark Farms, New York. Photograph 

 from Charles V. Phelps, Superintendent 



