Farmiiif) of Oxfordskirc. 
233 
The stock lambs, or those kept as stores, fall in January, 
February, and March, the time beinjj regulated by the larmer's 
means of keeping them. Early lambs are uncjuestionably best, 
and if provided with good living care not for the cold. The 
lambs born in March have frec^uently in their first days to 
contend with more wet and uncomfortable weather than the 
earlier ones. The Cotswold lambs principally fall in March. 
The ewes in the fall of the year feed on the stubbles in the 
day and are folded on some mustard, rape, or fallow ground at 
night. It is considered a bad plan to give the ewes many turnips 
before lambing. As winter apjiroaches, they go into the straw- 
yard in the morning, have some pickings on the stubbles, or 
some rough grass in the meadow, before getting a few turnips in 
the fold. Should ewes be confined to turnips they are always 
supplied with a good lot of ha}-. The quantity of hay consumed 
by sheep is very great, usually a ton to the acre ; it is mostly 
given long to ewes, but for young and fat sheep it is becoming 
very general to chaff it. The swedes which are reserved for the 
ewes and lambs are eaten whole ; the lambs having a fold set 
forward into which they run and crop off the greens ; sometimes 
troughs containing ground swedes are placed in tliis pen, and 
occasionally the lambs may be allowed a little artificial food, 
and the ewes with twins supplied with a few oats. The rye and 
vetches are consumed in a similar manner, and when the lambs 
are about 20 weeks old they are weaned. Old sainfoin, young 
vetches, rape, and fresh seeds, are good things for recently- 
weaned lambs, and it is the object of the flockmastcr to supply 
them with nutritious and palatable food which is not too succu- 
lent. It is a good plan to separate the lambs, giving the wethers 
which are to be fatted the best of the food, and making the ewe 
lambs which are intended for stock eat the inferior. The 
wethers, as the winter progresses, receive a little artificial food 
with the hay-chaff, but it is considered that half-bred tegs, with 
plenty of cut swedes and good hay, ought to be fat by May-day 
without any extra food. Swedes are mostly cut for young 
sheep ; they go much farther, are eaten much cleaner, and do 
more good. An intelligent farmer asserts that tec/s with sliced 
sicedes did better without corn than some which had corn and 
uncut swedes. Old sheep eat unground swedes well on dry 
soils ; discontented, craving, old ewes, who are never happy 
unless eating, are perhaps well employed in nibbling whole tur- 
nips and clearing up dirty morsels ; but in most instances swedes 
have been found to repay amply the trivial cost of grinding. 
The Cotswold and half-bred tegs are mostly sold fat in the 
spring. Now and then some splendid lots of Hampshire-downs 
