The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1865-11-28 00:00:00

BURTON BRADSTOCK.

SH6PHCBDIND : ITS Dirrlna AND DIFFICULTIES.—
On Monday. before B. P. Gundry, W. flonnsell, and
J. P. F. Gundry, Ears., Joseph SaMson summoned
Robert Gi linghem, bailiff to Hr. Homey, of Crewkerne,
for £2 Eis. 91. for wages as shepherd at Brady farm,
Burton Bradstack. Mr. Day for complainant and Mr.
Manley for defendant. Sainson was hired for • year
from 6th April, and was discharged Ootober 11th. The
case turned upon the manner in which complainant bad
discharged Ids duties.—Complainant said that he. had
been a shepherd for 40 years. nine of them in the
employ of Mr. Saunders, of Watercombe. 0 llingham's
sheep were in a very bad state when he took them in
charge—they were dying by inches, and he couldn't get
them from one fi.-Id to another, and when he left them
they were as pretty a lot of ewes as a man could wish to
see. Last season it was very difficult to keep the fly off
the sheep. He put stuff on the sheep by Gillingham's
orders, which sawed the wool to come off. His master
never complained that he neglected the sheep; he often
told him to see if there were any maggots in the sheep,
and he never told him no. He saw Gillingham take
some maggots from them. It was difficult to discover
the fly-blowings till they b‘came maggots, which re•
stilted in three hours. He was not discharged far any
offense; he was threatened time after time to be
turned out of his house into the road.—Mr. Gillingham
said that, in the second week in June, he found one of
the sheep in • field lying down nearly covered with
maggots. He told the shepherd to put the sheep into
an orchard, as he was afraid the squire would see it.
He sent for Mr. Banister on Bth September, as the
sheep continued so full of maggots, who came and saw
the sheep. He complained on the Bth August
and told Sainson he must attend to them better or he
must look out for another shepherd, and he replied
"Shepherds are scaroe." He complained again on the
4th and 9th September. He asked SaMson then if the
sheep had maggots, and be said they had not. He went
up and showed him one of the sheep which had them.
He out them out with the shears. He had previously,
In James Brown's presence, shown Sainson the same,
and, as he behaved so badly, be discharged him. It
was a very difficult year to keep maggots out of sheep
It was possible that a man looking carefully over steep
might miss seeiog fly-blewings, and these fly•blowinp
before he looked again would be turned into maggots
without fault in the man. When the shepherd took
the flock many were no poor that they could hardly
stand. He told the shepherd to pat them out of the '
way after he had been there • month or more, not for
the squire to see them, Those sheep that were bad
when be came there died, and several died before he
came. There were 70 skins hung up when he came of
sheep which had died in lambing. Tne three times he
looked over the sheep and found fly-blowings were the
only occasions he complained. He gave him notice on
9th September to leave 116 October. He never
threatened to turn him out by force. A notice signed
by Mr. Hussey, the landlord, giving comp'sinent notice
to quit his cottage 11th November was produced. He
rave the man some stuff to cure the sheep„
which did not cause the wool to come off..—
Mr. A. F.. Banister, veterinary surgeon, said he had
been in the habit of attending to Mr. Hussey's sheep.
lie went on Bth September to examine them, sad
thought they had been neglected becrothe they were
eaten through with the fly. A careful shepherd wonid
not let the maggots eat into the flesh. It was a diffieelt
year for maggots in sheep. A careful shepherd ought
to have found the flies. No other flock he had seen was
so bad as Mr. Hussey'e. Every flock had been more or
less injured last year. Previous to the shepherd's
taking the flock, many of the sheep were in is bad state.
Flies would attack sheep in a weak state quicker than,
sound owe.. In consequence of the effluvia arising from
them, there were 20 or 30 in September that were
attacked with flies. Other flocks had not so many
sheep attacked that he had seen. In answer to the
Baia, the witness said that be considered the flock had
been neglected.- —William Barter, a labourer, in Gilling-
ham's emp'oy, said he went with him to see the sheep
in the shepherd's presenee, and cut some maggots from
the sheep after the shepherd had said he had examined
them and there were no maggots there. In answer to the
Bench Hr. Banister said that be had seen the sheep
before the Bth September. There were between 20 and
30 at that date affected, about six or seven of them very
bad, which must have been through the negligence of
the shepherd. The sheep must have been neglected two
or three days to get in that state. The Bench dismissed
the ease.