98 Sheep-Farming 



spring water. The small, erect ear should be sharp, 

 pointed, and not heavy or pendulous. The nose and 

 face should be a rich brown, verging towards a soft 

 black in color, and the bridge of it should be closely 

 covered with wool that does not show any inclina- 

 tion to peel about the cheeks. The neck should 

 hold the head erect and be stout and short and drop 

 evenly to the shoulder. The back should be flat, 

 firm, and well covered, the loin wide and meaty, and 

 the hindquarter above well covered and coming 

 out square. Below the region of the twist, there 

 should be plump, firm muscle, and on the outside of 

 the thigh, the covering should be thick, giving a full 

 leg of mutton. The hock should be open-angled, 

 dropping straight, and not have the point of it stick- 

 ing sharply out from the body. The leg should 

 have wool running well down on it, and the pasterns 

 should be stout and strong. In front, the chest 

 should come out full and rounded, and not narrow 

 and sharp. The shoulder on top must be compact 

 and also fit closely to the body on the side. The 

 spring of the rib should be such as to meet the 

 shoulder flush and also give the body a round, cir- 

 cular, and compact appearance that is usually the 

 leading attribute of the easy keeper. In the ewe, 

 the main diflferences are a refinement of the fea- 

 tures of the head — slimmer, longer face, and that 

 delicate expression of femininity which means a 

 high development of maternity. Such usually means 



