While the writer would by no means venture to advise as to the choice of breeds, yet he feels certain that the prospective shepherd in casting about for a type of sheep to put upon his farm will be pleased with the results from any of the larger Merinos, if he will choose those devoid of wrinkles, without too much grease in the wool, with as good mutton forms as he can find, and will breed the ewes to good sires of some suitable, mutton breed. He will not reach quite the great degree of success possible to achieve with sheep purely of the mutton grades, but on the other hand his system of management need not be quite so good, his care may relax in some slight degree, and several troubles that may overtake him in first experimenting with English breeds, he may escape.

THE ENGLISH BREEDS.

It is a curious fact that nearly all of our improved breeds of live stock, Merino sheep, Holstein cattle and certain horses excepted, come from England. Englishmen are great builders. They love to build solid, and strong and square, and their breeds of cattle and of sheep partake of the quality of their houses. Their eye for form is, to our notion, better than that of any other race, and in sheep breeding especially they have carried the perfection of form farther than any other people. The English are a race especially fitted to be good sheep breeders and shepherds, careful, studious, patient, not stingy of hand in feeding, and possess an innate love of animal life and of perfection of form. In England, too, the "higher classes" of educated people are distinguished for their interest in out of door things, and especially in animal life, so that they enthusiastically give thought and effort toward perfecting races of animals. There is a singular profusion of breeds in England. Almost every county has its well recognized local breed, and sometimes two or three minor breeds will be found within the same confines, nearly all of these breeds having their own individual points of excellence, being especially suited to their environments, and several of them have been brought to our shores with profit. Undoubtedly there are breeds in England that have never been introduced here, that would prove. profitable under our conditions, although we can get along very well under most any conditions with those that are already imported. In truth, even in England there is a steady tendency toward greater restriction of area devoted to some of the minor breeds, and a continual advancement in some of the more important ones, so that in the course of time, some of the minor breeds in England will be kept more as curiosities than as being desirable for their own sake. It is difficult to say whether natural conditions of environment or varying phases of mental make-up in the sheep breeders themselves have contributed most toward the separation of types in England, it is a very curious study, and one impossible of solution, yet it seems true that certain soils naturally produce certain types of sheep. In the south of England there is a great stretch of upland based upon chalk, having a thin but quite fertile soil, bearing short but sweet and nutricious grasses. This region is called the "Down" country. These hills are "downs," the sheep evolved upon these downs are the South Downs, Hampshire Downs, and Suffolk Downs, and from these breeds, by blending their blood with that of other breeds, the Shropshire Down and Oxford Down. These

"Down" races of sheep are well adapted to making excellent mutton from grass alone. Their lambs are among the most thrifty, earlymaturing and profitable. They are all built much alike, the model for all being the South Downs, with straight backs, well sprung ribs, short sturdy legs and broad breasts. Each breed has brown or black faces and legs, and these dark points on the lambs make them especially attractive in the market place. The "Downs" are the most popular of the English breeds in America, and except for special purposes, the most profitable. They have the advantage over the long wools (Leicester, Costwold and Lincoln) of earlier maturing, with less weight when fat (our market requiring small lambs quite fat), and being beside somewhat better adapted to our climate in summer. They have the advantage over the Merino in being much more easily fattened, and produce mutton which sells usually at a higher price; and over the Dorset Horn, when lambs are to be kept to the age of eight to twelve months. The Dorset Horn on the other hand excels the Downs in ability to drop its lambs very early in the year and fatten them at an extremely infant age while suckling their mothers.

THE SOUTHDOWN.

One of the oldest of the pure breeds of England is the Southdown. In form the Southdown is one of the most perfect sheep in existence. The beauty of the Southdown is proverbial, "As good as a Southdown" being a term applied by other breeders to a sheep. (See Fig. 2.) The Southdown is one of the smaller English breeds, although the sheep are so thick and short-legged and full-fleshed, that when put upon the scales their weight often astonishes one not acquainted with the breed. Southdowns have grey or brown faces, ears and legs (sometimes black), small erect ears, a very bright and elert appearance and quick way about them, and a very bright eye. There is no breed with more vigor or general hardiness than the Southdown. They are great rustlers after grass, and will keep fat if there is any food to be had upon the farm. They breed well, twins being quite common, although not dropping their lambs so early as some other breeds, however, the lambs grow very rapidly and soon attain to good weights. For cross breeding the Southdown sire is one of the best to be had, having great prepotency and ability to stamp his likeness upon his get. Southdowns have good feet, seldom requiring trimming and are not subject to foot rot. Their one disadvantage for our conditions would seem to be the comparatively light fleeces that they shear, being excelled in this respect by the Shropshire a sheep having many of the same characteristics without quite the same hardiness and perfection of form. writer has never known a Southdown breeder, upon suitable soil, who became dissatisfied with his choice of breed. It is known as "the gentleman's sheep." It is the favorite to put into parks, it furnishes the choicest mutton to be had and mutton selling for the highest price.

THE SHROPSHIRE.

The

While the Southdown is, so far as we know, distinctly a pure breed of unmixed ancestry, the Shropshire has the advantage of being a built-up breed, that is, it has in it a mixture of bloods, of