98 0 V 
wool were greatly admired. But the prejudices of the 
manufacturers were not fo fpeedily to be furmounted as 
the difficulties attending the naturalization of the me¬ 
rino fheep. Though the wool was admitted to be equally 
fine with the belt imported wool from Spain, they would 
not offer a proportionate price, fearing that it might not 
prove equally good when manufactured. It ought how¬ 
ever to be ftated, that the condition in which the Eng- 
lifli merino-wool was offered for fale,'either very imper¬ 
fectly waffled, or entirely in the greafe, prevented the 
manufacturer from forming a juft comparifon with the 
wools from Spain, which came to this country clean 
fcoured, and regularly forted ; nor could they appreciate 
the lofs it would fuftain in fcouring, which is not lefs 
than from 60 to 70 per cent. We are well perfuaded that 
this uncertainty refpeCting the lofs in fcouring has, more 
than, any other circumftance, retarded the fale of the 
Englifh merino-wool, from the year 1792 to the prefent 
time. Nor will our manufacturers ever greatly encou¬ 
rage the growth of this wool, until it be brought to mar¬ 
ket, either forted and fcoured like the wools from Spain, 
dr in the fame ftate of purity in the fleece as the fine Eng¬ 
lifh or Saxon wool. Many manufacturers who have pur- 
chafed it have been greatly difappointed, not in the qua¬ 
lity, which was excellent, but in the fmall quantity which 
remained after fcouring. In confequence of the manu¬ 
facturers declining to purchafe his majefty’s wool, it be¬ 
came neceflary to have it manufactured on his majefty’s 
account, to demonftrate its fitnefs for fuperfine cloths. 
This was done till the year 1796, when it was refolved to 
fell the wool at the price which was offered, that the ma¬ 
nufacturers might have a fair trial. The clip was fold 
thatyear for 2s. a-pound, and the following year for 2s. 2d. 
In the years 1797 and 1798 the wool wms forted in the 
Spanifh manner, and fcoured, after having been previoufly 
waffled on the fheep’s back. 
The prices after that time progreffively increafed with 
the price of Spanifh wool, and have been nearly equal 
to that of the belt piles from Spain. In the year 1801, 
lord Somerville took a voyage to the peninfula, for the 
purpofe of feleCting Inch fheep as united in the greateft 
degree the excellence of the fleece with a good carcafe. 
His efforts were in a confiderabie degree fuccefsful, and, 
rfs far as related to the' fleece, completely fo. Since that 
time,peace has increafed the facility of procuring merino 
fheep from the various Spanifh flocks; and the flock of 
thefe fheep in England at prefent is fnfficiently great to 
change, in a few years, the whole race of fine-woolled 
fheep in Great Britain, were fuch a change definable. 
The facility of procuring a thing generally caufes it to 
flighted. Merinos, therefore, got out of fafhion. Mr. 
Coke of Norfolk gave them up before the year 1816. But 
the peace had made them lefs neceflary to us, at the fame 
time that they were more eafily obtained. We ought to 
bear in mind the peculiar time and circumftances under 
which the merinos were firft introduced into this country. 
The French were then mailers of the whole peninfula; 
and it followed, as a natural confequence of the war, that 
fuperfine wools fliould be withheld from this country. 
Of courfe they foon role enormoufly in value, and the 
merinos flourifhed. But no man could forefee events. 
The valour of our foldiers prevailed; peace followed; 
and by it more injury was done to the merino caufe than 
by all the events of war ! As foon as peace was eftablifhed, 
a vaft importation followed of any thing and every thing 
that bore the name of a Spanifh fheep ; and fuch was the 
avidity with which thefe wretched animals were fought 
after, that immenfe fums u'ere forthwith expended ; and 
every cockney who had a patch of grafs before his houfe 
turned merino-breeder. 
It was ftated, however, at theHolkham fheep-fhear of 
July 1816, that the merino-breed was gaining ground in 
the weft of England, where they are beft known ; and 
that, in the preceding year, the Bath and Weft of Eng¬ 
land Agricultural Society had awarded their premium for 
I s. 
the beft and moll profitable breed of fheep to the merinos. 
The Society of Arts in the Adelphi, London, beftowed 
their gold-medal premium, in 1817, on J. G. Hall, efq. 
of Mexbury, near Buckingham, for communicating his 
method of winter-prote&ion and fhelter to 1160 pure 
merino-fheep. We have already fpoken of the advantage 
of covered (heep-folds under the article Husbandry, 
vol. x. p. 584. and we therefore refer to that article ; and 
alfo to the Tranf. of the Soc. of Arts, 1817, for the par¬ 
ticular management of Mr. Hall, which is well deferving 
of attention. 
We conclude this fe&ion with the lateft intelligence ; 
namely, an account of the Merino Society’s annual fhow 
of fheep, wool, and cloth, May 12, 1819. “ Like laft year’s, 
the prefent fliow was thinly attended, and the number 
of fheep exhibited not many above two fcore. The fize 
of the wedders was fully fufficient, granting them pure 
merinos, as they were deferibed, weighing upwards of n 
Hone per carcafe, and one of them yielding i7lbs. of tal¬ 
low. One whole flock averaged 8lbs. of wool each. It 
was remarked that, in form, they ftrongly refembled the 
South-Downs, and that one ram approximated to that of 
the New-Leicefters. The prize-fleece weighed nibs. 140Z. 
The prize-cloth combined extraordinary filkinefs with 
fubftance. It has been faid that Anglo-merino fuperfine 
cloth poffeffes too great durability to pleafe the London 
tailors. The funds of the fociety were re-eftabliflied by 
the munificent liberality of individual members, the ex¬ 
ample of which was fet by Mr. Ghrime, draper, of Lon¬ 
don, who made an offer of 25I. C. C. Weftern, efq. on 
receiving two prizes of iol. 10s. each, delivered his con¬ 
viction on experience, that the merinos were an impro¬ 
ving and profitable breed of fheep; at the fame time, on 
account of the difficulties under which the fociety la¬ 
boured, making a tender of two premiums equal in value 
to thofe which lie had received, towards the next year’s 
diftribution. This example was feconded by the prefi- 
dent, lord Dundas, who tendered two premiums; alfo 
by C. T. Tower, John Tharp, and John Fane, efqrs. one 
premium each, making the gratuitous premiums equal 
in number to thofe heretofore given by the fociety.” In 
this great fheep-breeding and manufacturing country, it 
will be ftrange to rejeCl a breed, which of all others pro¬ 
duces the finelt and heavieft fleece, covering alfo a good 
carcafe of mutton ; and more efpecially as our conti¬ 
nental neighbours ufe the fame breed with the utmoft 
fuccefs, fupplying us with their wool, and boafting their 
fuperior knowledge as fhepherds. Should not fome com¬ 
parative experiment be immediately inftituted, between 
pure merinos and various other Englifh fine-woolled 
fheep, and the refults publifhed at the annual merino- 
fhows ? 
So ferious is the depreffion in the price of wool in ge¬ 
neral, that the farmers who fold that article this time laft 
year for 2s. a-pound, can obtain only is. id. this year. 
Briftol Paper, May 21, 1820. 
O. polycerata, the many-horned fheep: horns more 
than two. Of this there are many fub-varieties ; but 
they occur in the northern parts of Europe, rather than 
elfewhere. 
In the IcelandJlieep, the horns are either three, four, or 
five, in number; fometimes placed with the greateft re¬ 
gularity, and fometimes differing in proportion and fitua- 
tion. See the head of one, at fig. 5. 
A four-horned variety is very common in Siberia, and 
among the Tartarian flocks about the river Jenifei. In 
the ram of this breed, the two largeft horns are ftraight, 
and nearly upright on the top of the head ; while the 
fmaller pair are leated on each fide of the head, and turn 
downwards. The body is covered with wool, the fore¬ 
part of the neck with yellowifh hair about fourteen inches 
long. They are very mifehievous and quarrelfome. See 
the Plate, at fig. 6. 
s. O. Africanus, the African fheep : lhort hair, inftead 
of wool. 
f. ©. 
