Moors, and where their dung is frequently raked or swept up, for spreading CHAP. 4. on the enclosed lands. The lambs are usually sent out to be wintered, in Sheep. the lower lands of Derbyshire, Yorkshire and Cheshire, which surround this district; but besides the expense of driving, great loss and inconvenience is experienced, in their being often very badly kept and treated, and taking the rot, when thus removed far from their owner's inspection, during the worst half of the year. A further extension of the enclosures on to the sides of the hills, and a greater spirit for improving them (which leases to the tenants, only can induce) and rearing the greatest possible quantities of winter provender, might enable the keeping of the lambs at home, and much better providing for the sheep also, than at present; and the flocks ought to be attended by shepherd-boys, who never leave them during the day.*

The Woodland sheep breeders in this county are numerous, and the flocks range over the moors and mountainous tracts of the High Peak and Scarsdale. The ewes of this breed bring forth their lambs about Old Lady-Day, and, on an average, one in forty produces twins. They are usually shorn during the last week in June, and five fleeces are generally estimated to weigh a stone (14 lbs.) The lambs are clipped, and yield from half to three quarters of a pound of wool, which is used by hatters. The long tails of the male sheep are separately sheared: and the wool, which is called birling or belting, is sold for carpet-making. Aged sheep of this breed, when well-fattened, furnish mutton for the tables of the luxurious. The late Sir Joseph Banks, bart. was accustomed to send a score of these sheep from Scarsdale moors, to be fattened in his park at Revesby in Lincolnshire; and would jocosely remark to his guests-"Here is Derbyshire bone and Lincolnshire mutton." They are also fed for the Sheffield, Manchester and Derby markets, in the rich valleys of this county; and many noblemen and gentlemen keep a few of them in their parks for the service of their tables. When fattened, they weigh from 16 to 20 lbs. per quarter.

There was another breed in the Peak, called the Old Derbyshire Limestone sheep. These were large, heavy, bony, polled animals, with thick skins and coarse wool, and were not easily fattened when removed to good land. They are now very rarely met with, nor are Old Leicester sheep often seen, at present, in this county, without a mixture of some other breed.

The small breed of sheep from Sherwood forest, which extends from Nottingham to Doncaster, is purchased in considerable lots, and fed by the graziers on the banks of the Trent. They are a small short-legged species, with grey faces and grey legs. Some of them have horns, but they are usually polled. The wool is fine, and they cross well with Merino rams. From thirteen to eighteen of their fleeces weigh a tod (28 lbs.) and when fat they seldom exceed 9 or 12 lbs. per quarter; although under the management of the late Earl of Chesterfield, some of this breed have produced 5 lbs. of wool each, and have been fattened to 18 lbs. per quarter. Their wool fetches half as much again in price as the New Leicester wool. The

This account is taken chiefly from Farey's second Volume, published in 1817; and we are happy to say, that during the last twelve years, much improvement has been made by the sheepowners; even by those, who, being annual tenants, have no security but their confident reliance on the justice and liberality of their noble landlord.

CHAP. 4. late Mr. Samuel Oldknow had forest ewes of a similar sort at Mellor, which Sheep. were said to have come from the Lancashire moors beyond Bolton.

The New Leicester are generally called the Bakewell or Dishley breed. They were produced and brought to a state of perfection under the care of Mr. Robert Bakewell of Dishley. This famous stock originated from crosses by choice animals selected from the Old Leicester and the Lincolnshire sheep; the latter of which was the native breed of the fens, before the large-boned and coarse-woolled sheep were introduced to that county. The New Leicesters have been subsequently crossed by the Durham breed, and have been greatly improved by selecting the best ewes from various flocks wherever they could be found. Mr. Smith of Swarkstone-Lows and Foremark, is the present occupier of the farm at Dishley, and devotes great attention to the preservation and improvement of this estimable breed. His great and particular objects have been, to maintain the quality during the growth to early maturity, and to increase the size; as well as to improve the quantity and quality of the wool. Whoever inspects the flocks on Mr. Smith's various farms, will acknowledge, that he has fully accomplished these important purposes. He has, at present, about eight hundred of the New Leicester sheep. He keeps his rams in small paddocks, of excellent construction, with an open shed in the middle of each. During a single season, a ram of his has been let for £200. On May 7, 1829, three ram hogerells, previous to being exhibited at his annual sheep show, were weighed, and were found to be respectively of the following weights, viz.: 224 lbs. 240 lbs. and 265 lbs. Not one of these was lambed before Feb. 6, 1828. Mr. Smith has frequently gained the first prize at the Derbyshire Agricultural shows; and sheep bred under his care have been slaughtered in London, weighing upwards of 60 lbs. per quarter The weight of fleece in Mr. Smith's flock, averages from 8 lbs. to 13 or 14 lbs. The following is a representation of one of Mr. Smith's favourite rams, called Carcass.

СНАР. 4.

The Ryeland or Ross breed of sheep, are small with very fine wool; and as they cross well with the Merinos, they have been kept for that purpose Sheep. by many persons in Derbyshire.

The South-Down sheep have been introduced into this county from the chalk-downs of Sussex. They are a fine and valuable breed, and well merit the attention of the farmer. It is difficult to decide whether this breed, upon the red marl pastures of this county, do not generally excel the New Leicesters. They are certainly more prolific. These sheep have been successfully crossed with the Merino; and by some persons this breed is esteemed to be the best fine-woolled sheep in the county.

The Portland sheep were introduced into Derbyshire about seventy years ago, by the late Sir Henry Harpur, bart. The breed was preserved by the late Sir Henry Crewe, bart. in their original purity, who also introduced a flock of South-Downs, from Mr. Ellman of Glynd, near Lewes in Sussex. Sir George Crewe, bart. the present estimable possessor of Calke Abbey, continues to preserve the Portland breed, but has exchanged the SouthDowns for New Leicesters: and it is thought that the Portland breed would have become extinct, had they not have been preserved by this distinguished family, who have generally paid the highest attention to the agricultural interests of the county. These sheep are now in the possession of a few other Derbyshire noblemen and gentlemen. They are a small fine-woolled breed; at three or four years old they fatten to about 12 lbs. per quarter, and their mutton is considered a great delicacy.

Merino breed. These are a fine-woolled breed of sheep from Spain, and have not been attended to in this country for a much longer period than twenty-five years. These sheep, in their native country, are summered on wild and rugged mountains, whence they are driven to their winter pastures at a considerable distance. Their wool was long considered to be of indispensable importance to our manufacture of fine broad cloth, and large sums were annually sent to Spain for the purchase of Merino wool. No attempt was made to naturalize the growth of this wool in the British islands, until his late Majesty, on the advice, principally, of the celebrated Sir Joseph Banks, undertook their importation and the breeding and rearing of them in England. In this meritorious design, Lord Somerville also embarked, and the efforts of his late Majesty and of that patriotic nobleman were seconded by many enterprising breeders throughout the kingdom. The first spirited gentleman who introduced this important breed of sheep into this county was Wooton Berkenshaw Thomas, esq. of Boythorpe farm, near Chesterfield. The following passage, from the work of Mr. Farey, contains the best account of the public spirited exertions of Mr. Thomas on this occasion, and therefore we cannot do better than extract it without further comment.

"Mr. Wooton Berkenshaw Thomas, of Chesterfield, occupies farms in Boythorp, Brampton and Barlow, on all of which he has Merino sheep; the two latter farms lying adjoining to the high moors, in very exposed situations. The laudable zeal with which Mr. Thomas entered into the design of rearing a Merino flock, has been glanced at already, and cannot soon be forgotten by the agriculturists of this county. Mr. Thomas was at first forcibly struck with the same circumstances, which Lord Somer

Sheep.

CHAP. 4. ville has since mentioned in his Facts and Observations relative to sheep and wool, &c.' published in 1809, viz. that notwithstanding the great importance of short-woolled sheep to the nation, the whole attention both of farmers and breeders has, for these thirty years past, been absorbed, in size and frame, and carrying to a degree of perfection (hardly credible) the heavy long-woolled sheep, such as Lincoln, Cotswold, Romney-Marsh and New Leicester; but more particularly the last; although,' observes his Lordship, every practical man will admit, that one-half of the kingdom, at least, is by nature appropriated to the short-woolled breed :'-he might with safety admit much more than half; for it at length appears, that our climate (from the most northern parts to the most southern) can grow wool, of the finest possible quality.' The mutton of the shortwoolled sheep, being close in the grain, consequently heavy in the scale and high-flavoured as to taste; the large-woolled sheep more open and loose in the grain' of flesh.

"Mr. Thomas, acting on these persuasions, procured first, I believe, from Mr. Tollet, twenty of his Anglo-Merinos, and omitted no opportunity of increasing his flock from other quarters, particularly by the purchase of rams and ewes at the King's and Lord Somerville's sales: in July, 1810, he was presented with two fine ewes by his late Majesty.

"In order to excite attention to the progress and advantages of breeding Merino sheep, Mr. Thomas has, for some years past, invited a large party of agriculturists of the county to be annually present at his sheep-shearing, and to whom he has been anxious to explain fully, every circumstance that could conduce towards forming a practical and safe judgment, on the merits of this breed of sheep: and for this purpose, the live animals in all their states, their wool, their mutton, and cloth, both for ladies and gentlemen's wear, manufactured from the wool grown on his own farms, were exhibited; and it may not be improper to state, that in Mr. Thomas's family, no other habit or broad cloth, but that of his own growth is worn: and which cloths, many competent judges have declared to be equal in quality to the best that can be made from imported Spanish piles.

"Mr. Thomas's account of his flock, in March, 1813, was one hundred and eight pure Escurial, Paular and Nigrette ewes and rams, and three hundred and twenty-one Merino-crossed sheep, of various descriptions. In 1812, Mr. Thomas clipt three hundred and eighty-six fleeces, which sold for £340. 7s. (besides £22. 5s. 6d. for lamb's wool) or nearly 17s. 8d. for the wool of each sheep, through his whole flock!

"Mr. Thomas finds the pure, as well as all the crossed sheep of this breed (and he has tried most of the usual English crosses) to be perfectly hardy, not only as to keep, doing well on the high moors, where, he says, that large Lincolnshire and Leicestershire sheep could not exist, much less be kept in store order, but likewise as to bearing cold and exposure. On his two farms adjoining the high moors, Mr. Thomas had more than one hundred pure and crossed lambs, dropped in the season of 1813, that all did remarkably well: which hardiness he attributes to the closeness and quantity of their wool; and says, that not a solitary instance has occurred in his crossing, where the wool of the produce of native ewes, by pure Merino rams, has not been doubled in value per pound, and also very considerably increased in weight.

CHAP. 4.

"In the autumn of 1812, and spring of 1813, Mr. Thomas sold to the same butcher, nearly thirty of his fat Merino and crossed wethers and aged Sheep. ewes; who reports, that though the rot prevailed in a degree which he never before remembered, yet all of Mr. Thomas's sheep died sound; and, as he expresses it, turned out better than they handled while living; that on his shop-board, this mutton went off readily at the best price of the day, and that some of his customers gave it a decided preference, for its moderate size, fine grain, and age; because, the annual profit from the wool, had enabled the keeping of these sheep round, to advantage, until they were three or four shear."

The Gritstone breed is an ancient cross between the Woodland and the Swine. Old Limestone sheep. They have black or grey faces, with coarse wool.

The principal cross-breeds, most usual in this county, are between the Old Limestone and New Leicester; between the New Leicester and a breed from Northumberland; between the New Leicester and the South-Down; between the Merino and the Woodland; between the Merino and the South-Down; between the Merino and the Ryeland.-Sheep have also been occasionally introduced into this county from Cumberland and from the highlands of Scotland; the latter of which thrive well on the same pastures with our native Woodland breed.

Swine. These animals were formerly wild in this county, as appears by a grant made in the reign of king John, to which we have already alluded, in the natural history. Farey mentions a breed called Derbyshire pigs, which bear a great resemblance to the far-famed hogs of Berkshire; but at present the breeds are very various. At Bretby park there is a fine breed of the Derbyshire pigs: they are black and white, with thin curled hair; their ears are erect, their noses short, their backs are broad and their sides deep. In a store state, kept on whey and vegetables, they appear almost fit for bacon. When slaughtered at fifteen months old, they weigh about 28 score. At Brassington, bacon is cured by Mr. George Toplis on an extensive scale. His pigs are generally of the thick-backed, short-eared sort. He has killed nearly two hundred pigs annually, averaging in weight from 11 to 20 score.- -Sir George Crewe, bart. Sir G. Sitwell, bart. Mr. Greaves of Bakewell, and others, possess very valuable breeds. In January, 1828, Mr. Webster of Whitwell slaughtered a pig, which weighed 57 st. 4 lbs. (14 lbs. to the stone.) It had 6 st. of fat in it.

Horses.-Mr. Farey states, that Derbyshire has long been famous, and Horses. has ranked next after Leicestershire, for its stout, bony, clean-legged breed Mares of this kind are kept of work-horses, principally of a black colour.

by the farmers generally, and colts are reared annually. The late Mr. R. Bakewell, of Dishley, introduced a cross with the West Friesland horses, which was for many years in great repute among our Derbyshire farmers, and the successor of that enterprising breeder, Mr. Smith of SwarkstoneLows, has not been inattentive to the improvement of this valuable animal, although he has been chiefly engaged in the cultivation of the other part of his stock. A fine hunter, now in the possession of Sir George Crewe, bart. was bred by Mr. Smith, and is greatly esteemed on account of its proportions. We have been favoured by Sir George with the accompanying plate of this elegant animal.-Racing or blood horses are bred in this