38 Sheep-Farming 



land and west are covered, has been mainly attrib- 

 uted to the differences in climate. The superior 

 purity of the Australian wools, their softness, light- 

 ness, and lustre are attributed to the climatic con- 

 ditions of that country. It is accounted that small 

 hairy sheep were sent from Bengal to Botany Bay 

 to supply the penal settlement of convicts with 

 mutton and wool in 1788. These, though not by 

 any means a thrifty race, improved to such a marked 

 degree as to make it evident that the soil and climate 

 of the country was peculiarly fitted for sheep-farm- 

 ing. Spanish Merinos were introduced, and it soon 

 became noticeable that the wool from the Australian 

 flocks was of a finer quality than that grown upon 

 the sheep fed upon the pastures of Spain. Dr. 

 Bowman considers that an even temperature and 

 a certain amount of moisture are necessary for the 

 retention of lustre, and he cites New Zealand wool 

 as illustrative of this relationship. 



Influence of food on wool. — Altitude, climate, soil, 

 and food are closely connected, and the relationship 

 is very apparent when the fleeces of the different 

 breeds are considered in this connection. It will 

 be found that the large lowland breeds produce 

 coarse grades of wool. The variations extend from 

 the Lincoln, with heavy and comparatively coarse 

 fleeces, to the light and exceptionally fine-fibered wool 

 of the Shetland. The latter has been world-famed 

 since 1790 for the wool entering into the composition 



