160 
THE HEBRIDIAN BREED. 
fleece. Many attempts have been made to improve 
this breed. The Norfolk and Suffolk sheep are sup- 
posed to be derived from them, also the Dorset 
breeds. 
The Hebridian is also a remarkable breed of Bri- 
tish sheep. It is the smallest animal of its kind, of a 
thin lank shape, and with short straight horns. The 
face and legs are white, the tail extremely short, and 
the wool of various colours ; for, besides black and 
white, it is sometimes of a bluish-grey colour, at 
other times brown, and sometimes of a deep russet, 
and frequently an individual is blotched with two or 
three of these different colours. In some of the low 
islands, where the pasture answers, the wool of this 
small sheep is of the finest kind, and the same with 
that of Shetland. In the mountainous islands, the 
animal is found of the smallest size, with coarser 
wool, and with this very remarkable character, that 
it has often four, and sometimes even six, horns. * 
In conclusion we shall give Mr Gulley’s synoptical 
table of the British breeds, of which he enumerates 
sixteen : — 
* Dr Walker's Economical Hist, of the Hebrides, ii. 69. 
