384 
OBSERVATIONS ON BREEDING. 
defect in the parent or parents, and nothing more. I often 
think that it must be to misapprehension on this point that 
much of the unmitigated hostility to in-and-in breeding is to 
be attributed. People, by some means or other, get hold of 
the idea that the advocates of the system mean universal 
and indiscriminate in-and-in breeding, than which nothing 
can be more absurd. 
But, let us see where Mr. Lance’s favourite system will 
lead him when carried into practice. As the end and aim of 
all crossing is of course improvement, all breeders may hope 
to (nay if the theory be correct, they must, at some period or 
other) reach a point, beyond which there is no improvement 
to be made, by crossing, that is, they will produce a perfect 
animal, or at least, one more perfect than anybody’s else. 
Now, sir, allow me to propound this question to Mr. Lance — 
When a man has arrived at this point — when he has ex- 
hausted every source of .improvement which the kingdom, 
nay, which the world affords — what is he to do? It is evident 
he must adopt one or other of the following courses : — 
Either he must feed off and consign to the butcher both his 
males and females, without any more ado ; or he may allow T 
them to live through an unprofitable maturity, and a useless 
old age, and die at last a natural death ; or, he may call in 
Mr. Stafford, and disperse to the four quarters of the globe the 
fruits of perhaps a life-time of care, trouble, and anxiety, 
besides enormous expense, and begin again de novo ; or, he 
may knowingly, and with his eyes open, by crossing them 
with animals inferior to themselves, retrograde, step by step, 
to the mediocrity and inferiority wfith which he set out in the 
first instance ; or, his last resource, he may, by in-and-in 
breeding, attempt to propagate them perfected as they are, 
and thus retain for his country and himself, the benefits which 
such a race of animals must necessarily confer. But such is 
the amount of obstinate prejudice now 7 entertained against 
this system that we might expect to see many gentlemen, 
perhaps Mr. Lance himself, adopt any of the above courses 
rather than the last. This is a supposititious case, but sub- 
stantially it may be said to have occurred in the instance of 
Mr. Barford’s flock, as the following rough sketch of its 
history will show. About the year 1786 the late Mr. V. 
Barford commenced sheep-breeding. He hired rams of 
Mr. Robinson, of Wellingborough, w 7 ho was a disciple of 
Bakewell, of Dishley, and bred from his stock. Mr. Barford 
continued to do so until about the year 1810, when the 
present Mr. Barford, considering his ow r n sheep as good as 
Mr. Robinson’s, and not being able to find any that he 
