70 
Shropshire Sheep. 
Shropshires are not only very prolific, but they are capital 
nurses, and I have frequently seen one of a triplet take a leading 
position at the annual exhibitions and ultimately prove a good 
sire, whilst the other two in due time formed part of the 
breeder’s own flock. This shows that triplets from Shropshire 
ewes can be reared successfully. 
In November, 1862, Mr. F. J. Fox issued the following 
report from the Parlington Tenant Farmers’ Club 
The Members of this Club having brought to a close their 
second experiment in summer grazing the following different 
breeds of shearling sheep — Shropshire, Leicester, Lincoln and 
North sheep — for the purpose of ascertaining with an equal or 
given quantity of food the class most profitably adapted to 
their locality, comply with the wishes of their friends in again 
publishing the result. 
The lambs were wintered together and alike until May 20, 
clipped and brought to pasture, twelve of each class and upon 
about 2^ acres of seeds equally alike and without cake and the 
tabular statement speaks for itself : — 
Class of sheep 
Weight of twelve 
sheep on May 20, 
1862, when 
brought to test 
Total increase 
October 20, 1862 
Total weight 
October 20, 1862 
st. 
lb. 
st. 
lb. 
st. lb. 
Shropshire 
108 
2 
49 
9 
157 9 
Leicester . 
99 
10 
42 
3 
141 13 
Lincoln 
119 
6 
38 
10 
158 2 
North Sheep 
109 
9 
34 
8 
144 3 
Mr. Fox adds that should reference be made to the first 
experiment, it will appear that the second trial verifies the first 
in showing the leading propensities of the Shropshire to gain 
weight. 
Nowhere do Shropshires thrive better than in the humid 
climate of the Emerald Isle ; even in the Highlands of Scotland 
the Shropshire has been bred for a lengthened period with 
signal success and the Shropshire cross for fat lambs have for 
several years secured a large proportion of the prizes at the 
Highland and the Agricultural Society’s annual shows. 
The hardihood and longevity of the breed is testified to in 
Saddle and Sirloin (Mr. Dixon, p. 449), where he states that 
Mr. Samuel Meire’s Magnum Bonum (first Royal Show at 
Salisbury, 1857) was used for eleven seasons and that his dam 
lived till she was twenty. 
Again in 1896, the present writer saw a Shropshire ewe 
nineteen years old, hale and hearty, having reared thirty-three 
