Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1892-08-23

>~ " 's "" ~. q.
=. j. II.
Titusville, y. J.
Reply by Mr.. James wesi.l
The above Inquiry can best b. answer
81 by giving q brief account of the
origin of these breeds aud description
of their chAracteristics.
In the eastsrn-southern countie. of
England there are ranges of high, dry
hills running east and west, aud com
poscd of chalk covered With light. com
parati,ely poor soil. These ranges
have long been called the "DoNns. ''
Their eastern portions, hcing south of
London. have hcen called "South-
Downs" The hills have given their
name. To the sheep that grsyed upon
them. Great numbers of sheep hs,.
becn pasturcd tbcr. from very remote
period, being mentioned In account.
written In the time Of the Norman con-
quest.
All animals are Influenced by the
character of their food aud surround
ings, aud the active life of these she.p.
with the sparse but SWEET and nutritious
Iastuage, molded them Into compact
forms With fln. bone and ne.h of the
highest excellence. Their leg. aud face.
vsrc originally black, bat modern hrrc'i-
srs have fsnciei gray, aud this u nov
the universal color. Many of their
fsc-s ar. -o light AZ to form scarcsly
any contrast with their hc~ccs. The
sOol l. 20 medium length aud fnene..,
~ that these sheep belong io the ''mid
dlc-wool" class.
- ta
hill. extend into Hampshire and Wilt
.hirr, aud tbc sheep l,asiurcd upon them
have been called "iismp-hlrr-Down.,
as those east ~ them were called ">ouih-
Dosns." The -oll sIon these western
hills L. dc.Icr and richer than that of
the ~outh-Dowu. aud produced better
pastursgp. Originally these shccp dit.
tered from the South.Downs Ia being
much larger aud coarser, with longer
wool aud fie-h oi less excellence. They
also had horns. When u was found de-
.irabl. Ia Improve the breed, south
Down blood va. us-i for the purpose.
The object aimei st sas to preserve the
hardy constitution aud .srly develop
msnt for which the brc~i Mas famous,
aud to unite With these the more com.
pact form sud high quality of ne-h oi
the South-powns. In this the brcoiers
~src very succcssful. Nov the br-~i
has no horns, aud Will. much Ike
~ouib-Down.. they are readily distln-
guish.d from th.m by their greater slse,
larger bone. blackcr face. aud legs, and
NOR, vigorous character. ANY person
having an ordinary acquaintance With
IA. brcc,is can rcCogniyc either at a
glsnsv.
Ihe ONiord.DoNn. are n recent brvcd,
having been known under this name
In Oxforishirr WHERE there are Do
down. or similar ranges 10 hills. They
~, their name from their mother breed,
the ilamp.hlrc-Downs. Cotswold rams
wer, extensively used upon Hampshire
ewes b.causc the cruss WAS found to
possess great ylgor With Nany desirable
qualities. After time these crosses
werr br,Si together, and az length the
hrrei was established. Any one familiar
With Cotswolds aud liAmpshires can
readily unierstand the Oxforis. They
arr tall and rsngy sheep, With long wool,
loose In the fc-Cr. They have thc ~
culiaT Cot.~old forrtop, and their head.
aud f.ccs have the totswold typr.
fsccs and leg. are gray la color. When
In fi0. condition these arr remarkably
handsome sheep.
Thcre l. another so-called "NoNn
breed IL Which our correspondent makes
no inqulfy-the >hOpshire.. They are
not properly called Downs, because they
did not ori ginate upon down lands. They
had their origin upon the extensive
commons In stafiorishlrr and shtop-
.hir,, known a. the ,annock Chase.
These sheep we're called "Iongmyuds."
Leicester aud South-Dovn blooi ~-rr
u..d In their Improvement. They ARE
na~ intermediate IN sly- aud appearance
t-ts-~u the ~outh-powns aud lismp-
.hir-., With longer wool than the latter.
We brlisVe u u not true that the Va
riou. Down brceds "arr getting Ia d.
badly mixed up" Their breeder. arr
very careful Ia keep them pure. bach
bfr,i has it, official registry, and this
~ IN keep the best blood from mixture 81
any sort. Of course some farmer. mlN
everything they have that will brc'd to-
g,tiIcr. ,ountry Gentleman.