188 
variety in the poorest and loftiest situa- 
roe nd a comparatively large-sized and fine- 
wool subvariety in the richer and lower situa- 
tions. They have no horns; their faces and legs 
are generally white, but sometimes black ; their 
wool is’ tolerably fine and rather long; their 
neck and back, especially in the loftiest and 
bleakest pastures, are protected by a ridge of 
hair which causes the rain to shoot off; and 
their flesh is excellent, and causes the tases to 
be in great request for the Dublin shambles. 
The Kerry sheep are the most characteristic 
of a number of small mountain breeds who in- 
habit the highland districts of the west coast of 
Ireland. They are larger than the Wicklow and 
the Welsh mountain sheep; yet they feed and 
grow slowly, and are comparatively unthrifty. 
They present some general resemblance to the 
antelope races; and are hardy, active, restless, 
and roaming. Their shape is never full or ro- 
tund; their fat accumulates only in the interior ; 
their wool is coarse and hairy on the back and 
haunches, and fine and soft on the ribs; and 
their flesh, in general, is excellent. 
The long-woolled sheep of Ireland comprise 
many subvarieties; and are diffused throughout 
all the Irish plains and valleys. The aboriginal 
| breeds of them, and even those which at no 
_ remote period furnished the main supply to the 
great annual fair of Ballinasloe, were large in 
_ size, exceedingly coarse in form, and very un- 
thrifty in feeding and fattening habits. “I 
never,’ said Mr. Culley, “saw such ill-formed 
ugly sheep as these. The worst breeds we have 
in Great Britain are much superior. I know 
nothing to recommend them except their size, 
which might please some old fashioned breeders, 
who can get no kind of stock large enough. 
They are supported by long, thick, crooked, and 
grey legs; their heads long and ugly, with large 
flagging ears, grey faces, and eyes sunk, necks 
long, and set on below the shoulders; breasts 
| narrow and short, hollow before and behind the 
shoulders ; flat-sided, with high, narrow, herring 
backs; hind quarters drooping, and tail set low.” 
But these ungainly creatures, ever since about the 
time when Mr. Culley wrote, have been more or 
| less crossed with other breeds, principally the 
new Leicester; so that their successors of the 
present day, though still faulty and inferior, have 
lost all the old excessive ugliness, as well as a 
good measure of the other bad points. The long- 
woolled Irish sheep now do well for the butcher, 
but ill for the wool-merchant, and indifferently 
for the breeder. Their heads are large; their 
|| sides are flat; their breasts are narrow; their 
general form is coarse; and their fleece is harsh 
and of medium quality and weight. 
The Dartmoor. sheep are hardy, and well 
adapted to the district from which they take 
their name. They are small, wild, restless, and 
difficult to be confined ; but choven bred on the 
heath, are commonly fattened on the plains. 
SHEEP. 
They grow slowly, and attain an average weight — 
Their face and legs | 
are white ; their wool is soft ; and their flesh is || 
in much demand, not only in near but in distant | | 
of about 10 lb. per quarter. 
markets:—The Exmoor sheep are rather smaller 
than the Dartmoor, but greatly resemble them 
in general appearance, in disposition, in habits, 
and in value. Their head, neck, and bones are 
small and delicately formed ; their body is com- 
paratively narrow and flat-sided ; and the males 
have a beard under the chin somewhat like that 
of goats. 
The Norfolk sheep are a wild hardy race, and | 
were formerly diffused through the sheep-walks | 
of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire. They 
are voracious eaters, and have a restless disposi- 
tion, and cannot easily be retained in limited 
pastures. They have large spiral horns, black 
faces, and long, large-boned, dark-grey legs. The 
carcase is small, lengthened, thin, and weak, with 
a narrow chine, and weighs from 16 lb. to 20 Ib. 
per quarter. The flesh does not stiffen well in 
hot weather, and is supposed to become tainted 
sooner than most others. 
fine, and seldom weighs more than 2 lb. In 
many places, this breed have been crossed with 
the down sheep, and very greatly improved; and | 
in others, where they were at one time reckoned 
good folding sheep, they have been entirely and 
profitably superseded by the Southdowns. 
The Penistone sheep inhabit a heathy district 
of about 500 square miles in extent on the mu- 
tual borders of Yorkshire, Derbyshire, and Lan- 
cashire. Their general form, and especially their 
extremities, are very coarse ; their face and legs 
are white; their shoulders are heavy; their 
limbs are bony ; their feet are large ; their sides 
are flat; their tail is long, bony, and muscular ; 
their wool has a silky appearance, but is harsh 
and wiry ; and their flesh is much esteemed for 
its juiciness and flavour. The rams are singu- 
larly larger than the ewes and wethers; and they 
alone have horns,—which are very large, and lie 
| close to the head, and project forward. 
The old Wilesheue sheep formerly existed 
throughout most of Wiltshire, and in many other 
parts of the south of England; but they are now 
nearly extinct. They are large, coarse, and un- 
gainly, and are very slow fatteners, and abound 
in properties which enlightened modern sheep- 
farmers reckon undesirable; but they have fine 
though scanty wool, and were therefore for a 
long time tolerated and even liked. Their head 
is large and coarse; their nose is arched and 
has been called Roman ; their face and legs are 
white ; their sides are flat ; their limbs are long 
and thick; and their belly is destitute of wool. 
Both sexes are horned. 
The Dorset sheep are a very ancient breed, 
and by far the best of the old horned varieties ; 
and, though come down uncrossed from a very 
remote period, they maintain a high» or rival 
place among some of the modern improved races. 
The wool is short and | 
