1880 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
505 
The Southdown Ram, “Stalwart.” 
■fhe accompanying portrait is of "Stalwart,” 
an excellent Southdown ram, bred by Henry Webb, 
Esq., of Streetley Hall, Cambridgeshire, England, 
and imported by Mr. Samuel J. Sharpless, of Phila¬ 
delphia, to lead the flock at “Lenape Farm,” Mr. 
Sharpless’ country 
seat, in Chester Coun¬ 
ty, a few miles from 
Philadelphia. This 
flock consists of forty 
breeding ewes and 
their natural increase. 
It is, we believe, pre¬ 
eminently a Webb 
flock, the progenitors 
of it having been bred 
from rams imported 
from the late Jonas 
Webb of Babraham, 
the father of the 
breeder of “Stal¬ 
wart.” They are ex¬ 
cellent sheep, of great 
substance, well wool- 
ed, and of good con¬ 
stitution. We are glad 
to learn from Mr. 
Sharpless that there 
has been an unusual 
demand for rams. Our 
readers knows our 
high opinion of the 
breed. It exhibits 
ovine proportions in 
extraord inary perfec¬ 
tion, and where qual¬ 
ity of mutton rather than simple weight is an object, 
no breed is more attractive to the general sheep- 
raiser. The animals are well-formed, economical 
feeders and mutton-producers, making excellent 
early lambs, and yielding fair fleeces of medium 
wool. The Southdowns have not black, but brown¬ 
ish gray faces and legs, which are bare to the knees 
and hocks. They are very small-boned, with little 
offal, broad in the best parts, rump, and hams, loin 
and back; low in the twist; deep in the brisket; 
square and level throughout. In fact, as blocky 
as a Shorthorn, and a 
most beautiful and 
useful breed, the mut¬ 
ton uniformly bring¬ 
ing the highest price 
in market. It is not 
a mere matter of fan¬ 
cy which leads buy¬ 
ers to prefer South- 
down mutton. It is 
juicier, higher flavor¬ 
ed, more like beef, 
and yet having a full, 
rich mutton flavor, 
free from woolliness, 
and the meat is veined 
and marbled with fat. 
There is a greater 
proportion of lean to 
fat in well-fatted ani¬ 
mals than in most 
other breeds. The 
favor in which this 
breed is held is no¬ 
ticeable from the fact 
that the gray pates 
and legs are always 
ieft upon the carcass¬ 
es when dressed for 
market and hanging 
inthebutchers’ stalls, 
so that connoisseurs may recognize their favorite 
breed. Mutton of the closely allied breeds Shrop¬ 
shire and Hampshiredowns is generally passed oil 
for Southdown in the market, but the legs and 
faces of these breeds arc of a much darker color. 
Variations In Indian Corn.—The leading 
grain crops present excellent illustrations of the 
modifying influence of climate; but none better 
than the Indian Corn. This plant has a wide geo¬ 
graphical range, and the time for reaping the crop 
varies greatly. In its extreme northern range in 
North America, but two to two and a half months 
are required for its development, while at the South 
as many as six months are required. Heller says 
the time of reaping varies from “ seven months to 
6ix weeks.” Aside from the period of growth, 
the appearance of the crop varies greatly ; only the 
small varieties are grown at the North, while in the 
warm climate of the South the stalks are large, 
tall, and “ the ears frequently higher than a man 
can reach.” One of the most interesting features 
in a collection of corn, made by Professor Miles to 
illustrate the varieties produced by climate, is the 
relative size of the cob. “ At the North, the cob, as 
a rule, is larger in proportion than in the southern 
varieties, or in apparently the same varieties grown 
in the Middle States. At the North, the flint varie¬ 
ties are exclusively grown, while at the South they 
are entirely replaced by the dent varieties. The 
smallest, well-developed ear in the collection weighs 
but half an ounce, while the largest ear turns the 
scale at one pound and eight and a half ounces.” 
This is a wide range in the size of ears of corn. 
The Eland or Impoofo. 
The colonists of the Cape of Good Hope have 
applied the name Impoofo to a large animal of the 
Antelope group of ruminants, found a native in 
that region. It is also called Eland, and is most 
commonly known by that name in the various 
countries to which 
the Orcos eanna has 
been exported. The 
Eland is the largest 
of the South African 
antelopes, an adult 
bull measuring near¬ 
ly six feet in highf at 
the shoulders, with 
a length of about 
ten feet from the 
nose to the base of 
the tail. In weight 
the Eland ranges 
from seven to ten 
hundred pounds. 
The general color 
upon the back and 
sides is a grayish yel¬ 
low, with purplish 
shades shining 
through. The lower 
parts are cream col¬ 
ored, while the face 
is brownish red with 
a white chin, and a 
slight brownish 
mane. The tail is 
brownish red, and 
the dewlap yellow¬ 
ish brown pencilled 
with brownish red. The horns are nearly three 
feet long and slope slightly back from the crown, 
thick at the base, near which they take two 
spiral turns. The female is much more delicate 
and elegant in figure than the male, and is of a pale 
sienna color. When young and not over-fed the 
Eland is not easily overtaken by the Cape horse. 
The flesh is peculiarly excellent and is highly ap¬ 
preciated in South Africa where the flesh of most 
animals is tough. The hide is much prized for 
leather. Like other antelopes the Eland seems 
to get along without 
water, frequenting 
the desert localities 
in herds of a hundred 
or more, far from 
rivers and streams, 
and live there for 
months without 
drinking. The Eland 
has been introduced 
into England, where 
it is grown to some 
extent. The first one 
killed for the table 
was in 1859—a five- 
year old, weighing 
1,176 pounds, and 
was described as 
“huge as a Short¬ 
horn, but with bones 
not half the size.” 
The texture of the 
meat resembles beef, 
with a venison flavor, 
and possesses a fine¬ 
ness and delicacy 
that places it high in 
the list of nutritious 
foods. With us the 
Eland is only a zo¬ 
ological curiosity, but 
in its native home it is a handsome wild animal 
of no small importance as a source of food. There 
is a striped variety of the Eland, but it is rare. 
The skins of these animals are considered trophies 
of cuecess among the hunters, and therefore held 
in high esteem by them. The engraving is made 
from a copyrighted, instantaneous photograph, sent 
us by Messrs. SchrCiber & Sons, of Philadelphia, 
THE ELAND OR IMPOOFO OF THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. 
