Vol. LXIX. No. 4052 
NEW YORK, JUNE 25, 1910. 
WEEKLY, $1.00 PER YEAR. 
OXFORD DOWN SHEEP. 
Why I Breed Them. 
The fact that the Oxford Down sheep is a result of 
crossing the Cotswold and Hampshire Down types is, 
I believe, not generally known. This 
cross-breeding was begun by John Tal- 
madge Twynam, of Winchester, Eng¬ 
land, in 1829. Others of equal note in 
founding this breed were Samuel Druce, 
of Eynsham; John Gillett, of Brize Nor¬ 
ton; William Gillett, of Southleigh, and 
Nathaniel Blake, of Stanton Harcourt. 
These men in turn were joined by others 
and, through their united efforts, after 
having bred this cross for over 20 years 
without the infusion of any fresh blood, 
a distinct breed of sheep was evolved. 
The superiority of the present Oxford 
Downs, then known as Down-Cotswolds, 
consists in their retaining the excellence 
of the breeds crossed without their de¬ 
fects. Thus they combine the early 
maturity, heavy carcass, and ample fleece 
of the Cotswold with the fine wpol and 
mutton of the Hampshire Down. The 
fleece is the longest of any of the Down 
breeds. The Oxford is a large and 
handsome sheep; very alert and active 
on its feet for its size. Taken as a 
whole they are a most prolific breed. 
An Oxford sire is as good as can be 
found for cross breeding, and a fine 
mutton type. The ewes are very hardy, 
very prolific, are fine mothers aiid sel¬ 
dom ever have any trouble in lambing 
season. They are very quiet and gentle 
with their lambs; have an immense 
amount of milk and, in my experience 
I have never yet had an Oxford ewe 
refuse to own her lamb. They are good 
feeders and mine have never been 
troubled with stomach worms or any 
other parasitical disease. The lambs 
are sturdy fellows with great vitality 
and strength. They grow rapidly, read¬ 
ily attaining GO pounds at 60 days of 
age; and will eat grain when two weeks 
old. The fleece is of good weight, aver¬ 
aging from 10 to 12 pounds, and fine 
quality, commanding a good price. In¬ 
stances are on record where an Oxford 
ram sheared 19 pounds, and even 20 is 
reported. To cite an instance, the two- 
year-old ram which won champion at 
seven State fairs in 1908, and eight in 
1909, also 1908-9 Internationals, shears a 
fleece of 19 pounds a year. 
Within the last few years the Oxford 
Down breed has made steady progress 
and is in ever-increasing demand. Con¬ 
sidering that the first Oxfords were 
brought to this country in 184G, by 
Clayton Reybold, of Delaware, the breed 
has made exceptional progress. We find 
in 1881 the American Oxford Down As¬ 
sociation was established with W. A. 
Shafor as secretary, and in January, 
1910, we find in its records 46,500 head 
of purebred Oxford Downs. This breed 
needs little recommendation to practical farmers. The 
rams at two years of age often weigh 300 pounds. As 
a result we find that the Oxford as a producer of 
good market lambs is unequalled. The hardiness and 
good feeding qualities are other secrets of the Ox¬ 
ford’s popularity. It was an Oxford grade that won 
the championship in the wether class at the St. Louis 
World’s Fair. 
I am asked why I think the Oxford Down sheep 
more desirable than any other. My answer is because 
it is a large sheep with a strong constitution, very 
AN OXFORD RAM AS HE SHOULD BE. Fig. 280. 
A GOOD OXFORD DOWN EWE. Fig. 281 
prolific, with good feeding qualities, a -heavy compact 
fleece, and last, but not least, because-*it' is always in 
demand. It is a sheep of quality as well as quantity. 
In regard to sheep on the farm, long experience in 
maintaining fertility and in creating it has taught 
farmers that without the “flock” they cannot continue 
profitable agriculture. Sheep fit in well with an in¬ 
tensive system of agriculture such as farmers pursue 
in the present day. They are docile, easily kept within 
bonds, not fastidious in their appetites but quite will¬ 
ing to devour most weeds, and* browse in the under¬ 
growth along with the good forage. 
They leave behind them a wake of fruit¬ 
ful soil where once was undergrowth, 
rank weeds and waste. As a side issue, 
a flock of purebred sheep, properly cared 
for, will be a source of pleasure and 
profit. I know of nothing else which 
can be kept on a farm, at so little cost 
and labor, that will increase the revenue 
to such an extent as a flock of sheep. 
So I argue for sheep on the farm, first 
because of the increased fertility of the 
soil gained by keeping them; second be¬ 
cause they keep down the weeds; third 
because of the pleasure they bring me; 
and last, and most important, because 
of the profit which I cannot afford to 
overlook. j. s. pratt. 
Orleans Co., N. Y. 
SOME EXPERIENCE WITH 
ALFALFA. 
It is well pictured in my mind yet how 
our hired man, out in the old fatherland, 
used to drive toward evenings to the 
Alfalfa patch to cut and bring home 
enough green fodder to last till the next 
evening. It was only a patch, but we did 
depend upon it from Spring till late Fall 
to supply plenty of roughage for two 
horses and several cows, because in our 
section the land was very valuable and 
we had no pasture. I do not recollect 
that we eVer cored Alfalfa hay, but it 
was almost our only green feed. Since 
I have been farming here it has im¬ 
pressed me strongly that we are miss¬ 
ing one of the cheapest and best feeds 
in not taking up the culture of Alfalfa, 
and I eagerly read anything I could get 
hold of to throw- light upon the possibil¬ 
ity of raising. Alfalfa here. 
Three years ago I determined to try 
my hand at it, and selected a piece of 
ground, almost a clear building sand, 
high and- dry, which was cropped to 
death by former occupants and then left 
idle. The field, about 1J4 acres, was then 
used as a sort of lumber yard, and in its 
empty spaces goldenrod and running 
blackberries formed the only vegetation. 
We applied a generous coat of horse 
manure, which was plowed under about 
September 1, and the field was seeded to 
rye. The following Fall we had a fair 
crop of rye. As soon as the rye was 
removed the field was plowed again and 
seeded to Crimson clover, about 30 
pounds of seed used. The clover came 
up fine, wintered well and was plowed 
under the following May when in full 
bloom. From then on we kept the field 
harrowed almost once a week till latter 
part of August, not very deep—just a 
fining of the upper three inches, to con¬ 
serve moisture, and keep weeds down. Our next move 
was the application of nearly two tons of freshly 
slaked lime, which was harrowed in. 
On the lower portion of the farm I detected scat¬ 
tered here and there some 40 or 50 Alfalfa plants. 
How it happened to be there I could not tell. I pre- 
