350 THE BREEDS OF LIVE-STOCK 
It bears traveling on foot for long distances better than 
other modern breeds, and is exceedingly hardy. The ewes 
are good, careful mothers, and highly prolific. The 
Cheviot cannot be said to be superior as a wool-producer, 
owing to the light fleece, which, however, is of good quality, 
medium length and in demand. According to Wallace, 
an average clip for ewes is four and one-half to five pounds 
of washed wool. The tendency of American breeding 
is to improve wool-production and more compact form. 
Cheviot ewes produce a good class of early maturing grade 
mutton sheep when crossed with Lincoln, Leicester or 
Oxford Down rams. These crosses have been popular in 
the native home of the breed for some years. 
421. Distribution. — In the Cheviot hills, the Cheviots 
are still the leading breed. About the year 1800, Sir 
John Sinclair tried them in Caithness shire, in the extreme 
north of Scotland, and they have spread into Sutherland- 
shire, where they are bred in large numbers. They have 
done well in many parts of the United States, but not so 
well in Canada, where the close confinement of the winters 
is against their active habits. Wherever they can have 
outdoor exercise all the year round, they are at home. 
They are specially adapted for high, grassy tablelands, 
and are most numerous in central and eastern United 
States, but have become very widely scattered throughout 
the country. 
422. Organization and records. —The Cheviot Sheep 
Society of Great Britain was organized in 1891, and has 
published a volume of its flock-book for each year, Volume I 
having been issued in 1893. The American Cheviot 
Sheep Breeders’ Association was organized in 1891, at 
Hartwick, New York, and two years later issued its first 
flock-book. In 1894, the National Cheviot Sheep Society 
