CHAPTER IV 



BRITISH BREEDS OF SHEEP 



It was the Northern European stock that gave rise 

 to the mutton breeds and that was segregated into 

 so many breeds, particularly in England. The con- 

 nection of this stock with the Eastern types can- 

 not be traced nearly so clearly as is possible in the 

 case of the Spanish sheep. As the forests of Northern 

 Europe were cleared, there were maintained flocks of 

 sheep descended from the stock that accompanied 

 the migrations from the East. Such stock did not 

 receive the impress of the African blood that contrib- 

 uted to the Merino. For a great length of time, 

 there was no serious effort toward improvement, 

 and what interest they received seems to have been 

 mainly on account of their flesh-bearing qualities. 

 Though domesticated, their breeding would be mainly 

 along natural lines, and the result was the develop- 

 ment of a number of so-called "forest breeds" dis- 

 tinguished from each other by such characteristics 

 as the peculiarities of the various sections effected 

 through natural selection. Though restricted in 

 area, England embraces a wide variety of conditions 

 due to inequalities of altitude and temperature and 

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