EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. 301 



ney, and in 1859 another addition was made of the flock of Thomas 

 Slayton, who had a pure Stickney flock. After the purchase of the 

 Slayton flock, rams bred within the joint flocks were used until 1863, 

 when John W. Eich purchased two rams, one of T. Stickney, the other 

 of David Cutting. These rams were used a number of years, or until 

 they died, when rams sired by them were used. John W. Eich died in 

 1872, but jfrevious to his death he purchased the interest of Charles 

 Eich, except 10 ewes, a division of the best 20. With the exception of 

 these 10 ewes the flock, in 1872, came into the possession of the present 

 owner, John T. Eich, of Elba, Mich. 



A ram raised by John T. & V. Eich, which made a great improve- 

 ment in the flock, was Mountaineer, bred in 1865, who weighed in full 

 fleece 150 pounds, and was a strong-boned, well-formed, round-carcassed 

 sheep. He had a well-shaped head, nose short and broad, and well 

 wrinkled. He was well wooled to the hoof all around. He had a dense 

 fleece throughout, and his head and belly were well covered. He had 

 a mellow, pink skin. 



About the year 1835 Eben E. Murray, Augustus Munger, and a man 

 named Bundy, purchased a flock of about 150 Merino sheep of breeders 

 living at Newport, E. I., mainly, if not all, from the flock of Joseph I. 

 Bailey, and took them to Whiting, Vt., where a portion of them went 

 into the hands of S. T. Baker, from his into those of James M. Orms- 

 bee, and from his to David and German Cutting, where and when the 

 foundation of the Cutting flock was laid. The evidence seems con- 

 clusive that these sheep were pure descendants from the importation 

 of Capt. Paul Cufi'e into Newport, September, 1810, and known to have 

 been purchased of William Jarvis at Lisbon. The Cuttings made their 

 purchase of James M. Ormsbee — about 80 ewes — in 1841. Two rams of 

 the same blood, of the first purchase of ewes, were purchased with them 

 and were used at first, but in 1846 Atwood blood was introduced and for 

 several years subsequently nearly or quite all the rams used in the flock 

 were of this blood. The Atwood blood was also introduced by way of 

 ewes purchased, until finally the flock became by this, and more by the 

 rams used, largely composed of this blood, but no special efforts are 

 known to have been made to keep this blood pure or distinct from the 

 other. Cutting blood, then, stands for a combination of the Atwood 

 and Ehode Island flocks.* 



Soon after this flock was commenced it was divided by the brothers 

 David and German Cutting, but the blood and breeding of the two 

 flocks were substantially the same. After the decease »f David Cut- 

 ting his flock came into the possession of his nephews, G. A. Cutting and 

 H. M. Perry, and the other part of the flock belonging to German Cut- 

 ting, since his death has descended to his heirs. Both flocks are still 



kept up. 

 The Eich branch of the Cock sheep, crossed to a ram bred by Wil- 



' Register of tlie Vermont Merino Sheep Breeders' Association, Vol. i. 



