VOL. XLIX. NO. 2106. NEW YORK, JUNE 7, i89o. PE SP F iX K vllS TS - 
SUFFOLK DOWN SHEEP. 
Nearly four years ago, while in London, I ran out to the 
"Metropolitan Stockyards and then for the first time saw 
this breed of sheep. I had owned South Downs, and from 
boyhood had admired the dark-faced Down families. In 
my experience with South Downs, and my observation of 
some well-bred Oxford Downs belonging to my father, I 
had been more or less annoyed by one fact—there always 
seemed among them a strong tendency to breed unevenly. 
Some would have dark faces; some light: occasionally there 
would be a speckled one, and now and then a perfectly 
white lamb. No doubt this is the experience of all breeders 
of these varieties of sheep. 
The types are quite true, yet 
these variations occur more 
frequently than owners like, 
and are carefully weeded out 
and slaughtered as unworthy 
outcrops of a long past an¬ 
cestry. My particular ad¬ 
miration has always been the 
blackest-faced sheep, and 
when I first saw these Suffolk 
Downs I was captured. I was 
not so situated at that time 
that I could import, but two 
years later, at the Royal 
Show, held at Nottingham, 
England, I saw my favorites 
again, and made arrange¬ 
ments to bring a few to this 
country. The South Down, 
the Hampshire Down, the 
Shropshire Down and the Ox¬ 
fordshire Down are different 
varieties of the great Down 
family of sheep, each dis¬ 
tinctly different from the 
other, yet all bearing the 
family feature of dark faces 
and legs. These are all quite 
numerous in the United 
States, and well-known by 
sheep men. 
The Suffolk or Suffolk Down 
is still another variety and, to 
my mind, more distinct in its 
characteristics than any of 
the others. It is strange to 
me that the breed has not 
found its way to this side of 
the water in larger numbers 
long before this, for they are 
quite plentiful in the East of 
England, and are beautiful 
animals, with large, rangy 
bodies, and very quick to 
mature. One of my yearling 
ewes (one year nine months 
old), just after coming off the 
vessel weighed just 200 
pounds. My buck lamb, nine 
months old, weighed 195 
pounds. Last spring one of 
my iambs when seven weeks 
old weighed 85 pounds. The 
distinguishing feature of these sheep is their head. It is 
long and narrow, has an exceedingly clean, graceful ap¬ 
pearance, and is always as black as jet. I have yet to see a 
single variation. The newly fallen lambs are a peculiar 
sight, as they invariably come spotted or black ; but while 
the head and legs retain their inky black color, the wool 
grows out white as with the other Down breeds. There is 
rarely any wool on any part of the head, which being so 
clean and coal-black, with long, black ears, gives a strong 
individuality to the Suffolk. When I brought over these 
sheep I also brought a few Oxfords from the flock of Baron 
Rothschild. The two varieties have been on the same 
farm since the fall of 1888, and the Suffolks have proved 
themselves much the best rustlers and feeders, and are 
always the most admired by all persons who see them. 
They are wonderfully prolific. I have this spring two 
lambs for every ewe. One had a single lamb and one had 
three, which kept my average—two. They seem to be great 
milkers and very hardy. Mr. B. D. Sewell, of Frederick- 
tou, N. B., imported 20 ewes of this breed the same fall 
(1888) I did, and from them had 38 lambs, 37 of which he 
raised. My trio of lambs were large and strong from 
birth, and are growing well on their mothers’ milk alone. 
I intended to help them with a bottle, but my instructions 
to that effect were negltcted at the right time, and now it 
is rather late to teach them. My sheep were bred by 
Joseph Smith, of Hasketon, Woodbridge, Suffolk County, 
England, who now owns the Challenge Cup, won by three 
successive yearly first prizes for the best flock of the breed. 
All are registered in the English Suffolk flock book. My 
buck is by Bismarck YI. (356), a prize winner, son of BIs- 
mark Y. (31), winner first prize at Royal Show, 1886 ; first 
fs- 
AT, 
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SUFFOLK DOWN SHEEP AND HER LAMBS. Figure 115. 
prize at Royal Show, 1S87; first prize at Norfolk Show; 
first prize at Essex Show; first prize at Suffolk Show. 
I have been invited by the Executive Committee of the 
New fork State Agricultural Society to exhibit these 
sheep at our next State Fair and will probably do so, 
although not in the show condition which is customary in 
England, as I do not care to spoil the few breeders I have. 
Herewith I send the Rural New-Yorker a photograph (see 
Fig. 115), of one of my Suffolk ewes with her three lambs. 
Brooklyn, N. Y. M . B. s. 
THE OUTLOOK FOR SHEEP. 
The sheep men of the United States are expecting better 
things for the industry than for a number of years. They 
are not expecting this on “blind luck.” They propose to 
work and earn it. Since the diversifying of sheep hus¬ 
bandry into divisions has begun, each of itself being a dis¬ 
tinct part of the whole, the wool grower feels he is not con¬ 
tending with all the world and every sheep owner in the 
United States. The mutton raisers feel their own indepen¬ 
dence so well established, that while in no sense disregard¬ 
ing the value of fleeces, they feel that their prosperity does 
not entirely depend on the wool product, though it is a 
help to them. The mutton lamb raisers are the most self- 
reliant and best able to take care of themselves. The 
sheep feeders have had a very satisfactory period of pros¬ 
perity. and in view of the marvelous demand for fat sheep 
and the indications for the future, they will make greater 
efforts than heretofore to furnish the market with better 
finished sheep. 
The farmers are taking kindly to sheep again as a special 
business for one or other of 
the purposes for which 
thoroughbred stock are bred, 
- for feeding sheep, for mutton 
lambs, for finishing sheep that 
can be bought as “ stockers.” 
These different branches of 
the business offer splendid in¬ 
ducements and opportunities 
for keeping small flocks on 
every farm. The farmers of 
the rich grain-growing regions 
had abandoned sheep very 
generally on account of the 
low prices of wool. With the 
present prices for meat.it is 
found that mutton can be 
made cheaper than any other 
meat, and as a factor of fertil¬ 
ity on the farm, the sheep has 
the preference over all other 
domestic animals Besides 
this, it is a fact that sheep be¬ 
long to our civilization and 
people have an inherent love 
for them, as an animal so im¬ 
portant and invaluable to 
human wants and comforts. 
There must, however, be 
something more than senti¬ 
ment to insure the keeping of 
sheep, and when the flesh and 
fleece are profitable products, 
they will find a place on every 
acre of land they can subsist 
upon. When this shall be 
the case, instead of a rivalry 
between the ranch and the 
farm, between the grain fields 
and the pastures, there will 
be a mutual dependence and 
harmony, insuring prosperity 
to all. 
The miles and miles of corn 
fields in Illinois, compared 
with which the pastures are 
insignificant, impress one 
with the fact that something 
is wrong. The trains loaded 
with corn at 30 cents per 
bushel, that are daily sent to 
Chicago to be sold on a crowd¬ 
ed market, and the meager 
shipments of fat animals sent 
from the same railroad stations, confirm the opinion that 
many things are wrong in the farm economies of this 
highly favored State. The large numbers of Western sheep 
that have been successfully fed and marketed from Central 
Illinois during the last winter have opened the eyes of 
many farmers to the fact that 30 cent corn and Blue Grass 
pastures can be turned into cash at home in feeding sheep 
far better than in raising corn for a city market and com¬ 
peting with the corn of the cheaper lands of the West. 
Corn raisers have been destroying each other in the unequal 
contest just as have the wool growers. The West came 
out ahead in the wool-growing business. The farmers of 
Illinois could not hold their own and gave over the at¬ 
tempt. Lands were too high. The cattle business has 
had hard work to make money for several years. The con¬ 
tinued shrinkage in prices of beef has demoralized the in¬ 
dustry. Hogs have been profitable, and but for the uncer¬ 
tainties contingent upon hog cholera, would be the most 
profitable industry in the corn belt. They have been the 
main reliance as it is. They have been raised for the 
