Clafs I. ] 
ii 
0 U A D R U P E D S. 
obliged to permit the importation of foreign 
cloth in the beginning of his reign ; but foon 
after by encouraging foreign artificers to fettle 
in England\ and inftruCt the natives in their 
trade, the manufacture increafed fo greatly as 
to enable him to prohibit the wear of foreign 
cloth. Yet to fhew the uncommercial genius of 
the people, the effeCts of this prohibition were 
checked by another law, as prejudicial to trade 
as the former was falutary ; this was an aCt 
of the fame reign, againfl exporting woollen 
goods manufactured at home, under heavy 
penalties ; while the exportation of wool was 
not only allowed but encouraged. This over- 
fight was not foon rectified, for it appears that 
on the alliance that Edward the fourth made 
with the King of Arragon , he prefented the 
latter with fome ewes and rams of the Cotef- 
voold kind ; which is a proof of their excel¬ 
lency, fince they were thought acceptable to 
a monarch, whofe dominions were fo noted for 
the finefs of their fleeces. * 
In the firft year of Richard the third, and 
in the two fucceeding reigns, our woollen 
manufactures received fome improvements $ j* 
but the grand rife of all its profperity is to be 
dated from the reign of Queen Elizabeth , 
when the tyranny of the Duke of Alva in the 
Netherlands drove numbers of artificers for 
refuge into this country 5 who were the 
founders of that immenfe manufacture we 
carry on at prefent. We have ftrong induce¬ 
ments to be more particular on the modern 
Hate of our woollen manufacturesj but we 
defifl, from a fear of digreffing too far; our 
enquiries muft be limited to points that have 
a more immediate, reference to the ftudy of 
Zoology. 
No country is better fupplied with mate¬ 
rials, and thofe adapted to every fpecies of 
* JR apt n I. 605. in the note. 
•f* In that of Richard , two yard cloths were firft made. In that 
of Henry the 8th, an Italian taught us the ufe of the diftaff. Kerfies 
were alio firft made in England about that time. 
the clothing bufinefs, than Great-Britain ; 
and tho’ the fheep of thefe iflands afford 
fleeces of different degrees of goodnefs, yet 
there are not any but what may be ufed in 
fome branch of it. Herefordjhire , Devon - 
Jhire y and Cotejwold-dovons are noted for pro* 
ducing fheep with remarkably fine fleeces j 
the Lincolnjhtre and IV'arwickfhire kind, which 
are very large, exceed any for the quantity 
and goodnefs of their wool. The former 
county yields the largefl fheep in thefe iflands, 
where it is no uncommon thing to give twenty- 
five guineas for a ram. Suffolk alfo breeds a 
very valuable kind. The fleeces of the nor* 
them parts of this kingdom are inferior in 
finefs to thofe of the fouth; but ftill are of 
great value in different branches of our manu¬ 
factures* The Eorkjhire hills furnifh the 
looms of that county with large quantities of 
wool; and that which is taken from the neck 
and fhoulders, is ufed (mixed with Spanijh 
wool) in fome of their finefl cloths. 
Wales yields but a coarfe wool ; yet is of 
more extenfive ufe than the finefl Segovian 
fleeces 5 for rich and poor,, age and youth, 
health and infirmities, all confefs the univerfal 
benefit of the flannel manufacture. 
The fheep of Ireland vary like thofe of 
Great-Britain . Thofe of the fouth and eaft 
being large, and their flefh rank. Thofe of 
the north, and the mountanous parts fmall, 
and their flefh fweet. The fleeces in the 
fame manner differ in degrees of value. 
<D 
Scotland breeds a fmall kind, and their 
fleeces are coarfe. Sibbald (after Boethius) 
{peaks of a breed in the ifle of Rona , covered 
with blue wool; of another kind in the ifle 
of Hirta , larger than the biggeft he goat, 
with tails hanging almoft to the ground, and 
horns 
