Chapter IX: Part 9

The mending of a broken bone, though somewhat tedious, is by no means difficult, when the integuments are not torn. Let the limb be gently distended, and the broken ends of the bone placed in contact with each other. A piece of stiff leather, of pasteboard, or of thin shingle, wrapped in a soft rag, is then to be laid along the limb, so that it may extend an inch or two beyond the contiguous part. The splints are then to be secured by a bandage of linen an inch and a half broad. After being firmly rolled up, it should be passed spirally round the leg, taking care that every turn of the bandage overlaps about two thirds of the preceding one. When the inequality of the parts causes the margin to slack, it must be reversed or folded over; that is, its upper margin must become the lower, &c. The bandage should be moderately tight, so as to support the parts without intercepting the circulation, and should be so applied as to press equally on every part. The bandage may be occasionally wet with a mixture of equal parts of vinegar and water.

COMMON CATARRH AND EPIDEMIC INFLUENZA.

The seat of the disease is in the mucous membrane, which is a continuation of the external skin, folded into all the orifices of the body, as the mouth, eyes, nose, ears, lungs, stomach, intestines and bladder; its structure of arterial capillaries, veins, arteries, nerves, &c., is similar to the external skin; its most extensive surfaces are those of the lungs and intestines, the former of which is supposed to be greater than the whole external surface of the body.

The healthy office of this membrane is to furnish from the blood a fluid called mucus, to lubricate its own surface, and protect it from the action of materials taken into the system. The mucous membrane and the external surface of the body seem to be a counterpart of each other, and perform nearly the same offices; hence, if the action of one is suppressed, the other commences the performance of its office; thus a cold which closes the skin immediately stops the perspiration, which is now forced through the mucous membrane, producing the discharge of watery humors, pus intermixed with blood, dry cough, emaciation, &c. There are two varieties of this disease; the first is called _common catarrh_, which proceeds from cold taken in pasture that is not properly drained, also from atmospheric changes; it may also proceed from acrid or other irritating effluvia inhaled in the air, or from poisonous substances taken in the stomach in the form of food. The second variety is called _epidemic influenza_, and is produced by general causes; the attack is sometimes sudden; although of nearly the same nature as the first form, it is more obstinate, and the treatment must be more energetic. It is very difficult to lay down correct rules for the treatment of this malady, under its different forms and stages. The principal object to be kept in view is, to equalize the circulation, remove the irritating causes from the organs affected, and restore the tone of the system.

For this purpose, we make use of the following articles:--

Horehound, (herb,) 1 ounce.
Marshmallow, (root,) 1 ounce.
Powdered elecampane, (root,) half an ounce.
" licorice, " half an ounce.
Powdered cayenne, half a tea-spoonful.
Molasses, 2 table-spoonfuls.
Vinegar, 2 table-spoonfuls.

Mix, pour on the whole one quart of boiling water, set it aside for two hours, then strain through cotton cloth, and give a table-spoonful night and morning.[20] If the bowels are constipated, a dose of linseed oil should precede the mixture. No water should be allowed during the treatment.

The following injection may be used:--

Powdered bayberry bark, 1 ounce.
" gum arabic, half an ounce.
Boiling water, 1 pint.

Stir occasionally while cooling, and strain as above.

The legs and ears should be briskly rubbed with tincture of capsicum; this latter acts as a counter-irritant, equalizes the circulation, and, entering into the system, gives tone and vigor to the whole animal economy.

FOOTNOTE:

[20] This preparation undergoes a process of fermentation in the course of forty-eight hours, and should therefore only be made in sufficient quantities for present use.

CASTRATING LAMBS.

The lambs are first driven into a small enclosure. Select the ewe from the ram lambs, and let the former go. Two assistants are necessary. One catches the lambs; the other is seated on a low bench for the purpose of taking the lamb on his lap, where he holds it by the four legs. The operator, having previously supplied himself with a piece of waxed silk and the necessary implements, grasps the scrotum in his left hand. He then makes an incision over the most prominent part of the testicle, through the skin, cellular structure, &c. The testicle escapes from the scrotum. A ligature is now passed around the spermatic artery, and tied, and the cord is severed, bringing the testicle away at one stroke of the knife. As soon as the operation is completed, the animal is released. The evening is the best time for performing the operation, for then the animal remains quiet during the night, and the wound heals kindly.

NATURE OF SHEEP.

"The sheep, though in most countries under the protection and control of man, is not that stupid and contemptible animal that has been represented. Amidst those numerous flocks which range without control on extensive mountains, where they seldom depend upon the aid of man, it will be found to assume very different character. In those situations, a ram or a wether will boldly attack a single dog, and often come off victorious; but when the danger is more alarming, they have recourse to the collected strength of the whole flock. On such occasions, they draw up into a compact body, placing the young and the females in the centre, while the males take the foremost ranks; keeping close by each other. Thus an armed front is presented to all quarters, and cannot be easily attacked, without danger or destruction to the assailant. In this manner they wait with firmness the approach of the enemy; nor does their courage fail them in the moment of attack; for when the aggressor advances to within a few yards of the line, the rams dart upon him with such impetuosity, as to lay him dead at their feet, unless he save himself by flight. Against the attack of a single dog, when in this situation, they are perfectly secure."

THE RAM.

Mr. Lawson says, "It may be observed that the rams of different breeds of sheep vary greatly in their forms, wools, and fleeces, and other properties; but the following description, by that excellent stock-farmer, Mr. Culley, deserves the attention of the breeder and grazier. According to him, the head of the ram should be fine and small; his nostrils wide and expanded; his eyes prominent, and rather bold or daring; his ears thin; his collar fall from his breast and shoulders, but tapering gradually all the way to where the neck and head join, which should be very fine and graceful, being perfectly free from any coarse leather hanging down; the shoulders full, which must, at the same time, join so easy to the collar forward, and chine backward, as to leave not the least hollow in either place; the mutton upon his arm or fore thigh must come quite to the knee; his legs upright, with a clean fine bone, being equally clear from superfluous skin and coarse, hairy wool from the knee and hough downwards; the breast broad and well forward, which will keep his fore legs at a proper width; his girt or chest full and deep, and instead of a hollow between the shoulders, that part by some called the fore flank should be quite full; the back and loins broad, flat, and straight, from which the ribs must rise with a fine circular arch; his belly straight; the quarters long and full, with the mutton quite down to the hough, which should neither stand in nor out; his twist, or junction of the inside of the thighs, deep, wide, and full, which, with the broad breast, will keep his legs open and upright; the whole body covered with a thin pelt, and that with fine, bright, soft wool.

"It is to be observed that the nearer any breed of sheep come up to the above description, the nearer they approach towards excellence of form."

LEAPING.

"The manner of treating rams has lately received a very great improvement. Instead of turning them loose among the ewes at large, as heretofore, and agreeably to universal practice, they are kept apart, in a separate paddock, or small enclosure, with a couple of ewes only each, to make them rest quietly; having the ewes of the flock brought to them singly, and leaping each only once. By this judicious and accurate regulation, a ram is enabled to impregnate near twice the number of ewes he would do if turned loose among them, especially a young ram. In the old practice, sixty or eighty ewes were esteemed the full number for a ram. [Overtaxing the male gives rise to weak and worthless offspring.]

"The period during which the rams are to go with the ewes must be regulated by climate, and the quantity of spring food provided. It is of great importance that lambs should be dropped as early as possible, that they not only be well nursed, but have time to get stout, and able to provide for themselves before the winter sets in. It is also of good advantage to the ewes that they may get into good condition before the rutting season. The ram has been known to live to the age of fifteen years, and begins to procreate at one. When castrated, they are called _wethers_; they then grow sooner fat, and the flesh becomes finer and better flavored."

ARGYLESHIRE BREEDERS.

In Argyleshire, the principal circumstances attended to by the most intelligent sheep-farmers are these: to stock lightly, which will mend the size of the sheep, with the quantity and quality of the wool, and also render them less subject to diseases; (in all these respects it is allowed, by good judges, that five hundred sheep, kept well, will return more profit than six hundred kept indifferently;) to select the best lambs, and such as have the finest, closest, and whitest wool, for tups and breeding ewes, and to cut and spay the worst; to get a change of rams frequently, and of breeding ewes occasionally; to put the best tups to the best ewes, which is considered necessary for bringing any breed to perfection; not to top three-year-old ewes, (which, in bad seasons especially, would render the lambs produced by them of little value, as the lambs would not have a sufficiency of milk; and would also tend to lessen the size of the stock;) to keep no rams above three, or at most four years old, nor any breeding ewes above five or six; to separate the rams from the 10th of October, for a month or six weeks, to prevent the lambs from coming too early in the spring; to separate the lambs between the 15th and 25th of June; to have good grass prepared for them; and if they can, to keep them separate, and on good grass all winter, that they may be better attended to, and have the better chance of avoiding disease. A few, whose possessions allow them to do it, keep not only their lambs, but also their wethers, ewes, &c., in separate places, by which every man, having his own charge, can attend to it better than if all were in common; and each kind has its pasture that best suits it.

FATTENING SHEEP.

We are indebted to Mr. Cole, editor of the New England Farmer, for the following article, which is worthy the attention of the reader:--

"Quietude and warmth contribute greatly to the fattening process. This is a fact which has not only been developed by science, but proved by actual practice. The manner in which these agents operate is simple, and easily explained. Motion increases respiration, and the excess of oxygen, thus taken, requires an increased quantity of carbon, which would otherwise be expended in producing fat. So, likewise, _cold robs the system of animal heat_; to supply which, more oxygen and more carbon must be employed in extra combustion, to restore the diminution of temperature. Nature enforces the restoration of warmth, by causing cold to produce both hunger and a disposition for motion, supplying carbon by the gratification of the former, and oxygen by the indulgence of the latter. The above facts are illustrated by Lord Ducie:--

"One hundred sheep were placed in a shed, and ate twenty pounds of Swedish turnips each per day; whilst another hundred, in the open air, ate twenty-five pounds each; and at that rate for a certain period: the former animals weighed each thirty pounds more than the latter; plainly showing that, to a certain extent, _warmth is a substitute for food_. This was also proved, by the same nobleman, in other experiments, which also illustrated the effect of exercise.

"No. 1. Five sheep were fed in the open air, between the 21st of November and the 1st of December. They consumed ninety pounds of food per day, the temperature being 44 deg.. At the end of this time, they weighed two pounds less than when first exposed.

"No. 2. Five sheep were placed under shelter, and allowed to run at a temperature of 49 deg.. They consumed at first eighty-two pounds, then seventy pounds, and increased in weight twenty-three pounds.

"No. 3. Five sheep were placed in the same shed, but not allowed any exercise. They ate at first sixty-four pounds, then fifty-eight pounds, and increased in weight thirty pounds.

"No. 4. Five sheep were kept in the dark, quiet and covered. They ate thirty-five pounds per day, and increased in weight eight pounds.

"A similar experiment was tried by Mr. Childers, M. P. He states, that eighty Leicester sheep, in the open field, consumed fifty baskets of cut turnips per day, besides oil cake. On putting them in a shed, they were immediately able to consume only thirty baskets, and soon after but twenty-five, being only one half the quantity required before; and yet they fattened as rapidly as when eating the largest quantity.

"From these experiments, it appears that the least quantity of food, which is required for fattening, is when animals are kept closely confined in warm shelters; and the greatest quantity when running at large, exposed to all weather. But, although animals will fatten faster for a certain time without exercise than with it, if they are closely confined for any considerable time, and are at the same time full fed, they become, in some measure, feverish; the proportion of fat becomes too large, and the meat is not so palatable and healthy as when they are allowed moderate exercise, in yards or small fields.

"As to the kinds of food which may be used most advantageously in fattening, this will generally depend upon what is raised upon the farm, it being preferable, in most cases, to use the produce of the farm. Sheep prefer beans to almost any other grain; but neither beans nor peas are so fattening as some other grains, and are used most advantageously along with them. Beans, peas, oats, barley, rye, buckwheat, &c., may be used along with Indian corn, or oil cake, or succulent food, making various changes and mixtures, in order to furnish the variety of food which is so much relished by the sheep, and which should ever be attended to by the sheep fattener. This will prevent their being cloyed, and will hasten the fattening process. A variety of food, says Mr. Spooner, operates like cookery in the human subject, enabling more sustenance to be taken.

"The quantity of grain or succulent food, which it will be proper to feed, will depend upon the size, age, and condition of the sheep; and judgment must be used in ascertaining how much they can bear. Mr. Childers states that sheep (New Leicester) fed with the addition of half a pint of barley per sheep, per day, half a pound of linseed oil cake, with hay, and a constant supply of salt, became ready for the butcher in ten weeks; the gain of flesh and tallow, thirty-three pounds to forty pounds per head. (One sheep gained fifty-five pounds in twelve weeks.)

"This experiment shows what is about the largest amount of grain which it is necessary or proper to feed to New Leicester sheep, at any time while fattening. The average weight of forty New Leicester wethers, before fattening, was found by Mr. Childers to be one hundred and twenty-eight pounds each. By weighing an average lot of any other kind of sheep, which are to be fattened, and by reference to the table of comparative nutriment of the different kinds of food, a calculation may be readily made, as to the largest amount, which will be necessary for them, of any article of food whatever.

"When sheep are first put up for fattening, they should be sorted, when convenient, so as to put those of the same age, size, and condition, each by themselves, so that each may have a fair chance to obtain its proportion of food, and may be fed the proper length of time.

"They should be fed moderately at first, gradually increasing the quantity to the largest amount, and making the proper changes of food, so as not to cloy them, nor produce acute diseases of the head or intestines, and never feeding so much as to scour them.

"Sheep, when fattening, should not be fed oftener than three times a day, viz., morning, noon, and evening. In the intervals between feeding, they may fill themselves well, and will have time sufficient for rumination and digestion: these processes are interrupted by too frequent feeding. But they should be fed with regularity, both as to the quantity of food and the time when it is given. When convenient, they should have access to water at all times; otherwise a full supply of it should be furnished to them immediately after they have consumed each foddering.

"When sheep become extremely fat, whether purposely or not, it is generally expedient to slaughter them. Permitting animals to become alternately very fat and lean is injurious to all stock. Therefore, if animals are too strongly inclined to fatten at an age when wanted for breeding, their condition as to flesh should be regulated by the quantity and quality of their food or pasture."

IMPROVEMENT IN SHEEP.

No country in the world is better calculated for raising sheep than the United States. The diversity of climate, together with the abundance and variety of the products of the soil, united with the industry and perseverance of the agriculturist, renders this country highly favorable for breeding, maturing, and improving the different kinds of sheep. The American people, taken as a whole, are intellectually stronger than any other nation with the like amount of population, on the face of the globe; consequently they are all-powerful, "for the mind is mightier than the sword." All that we aim at, in these pages, is to turn the current of the American mind to the important subject of improvement in the animal kingdom; to show them the great benefits they will derive from practical experience in the management of all classes of live stock; and, lastly, to show them the value and importance of the veterinary profession, when flourishing under the genial influence of a liberal community. If we can only succeed in arresting the attention of American stock raisers, and they, on the other hand, direct their whole attention to the matter, then, in a few years, America will outshine her more favored European rivals, and feel proud of her improved stock. What the American people have done during the last half century in the improvement of the soil, manufactures, arts, and sciences, is an earnest of what they can do in ameliorating the condition of all classes of live stock, provided they take hold of the subject in good earnest. Let any one who is acquainted with the subject of degeneration, its causes and fatal results, not only in reference to the stock itself, but as regards the pocket of the breeder, and the health of the whole community,--let such a one go into our slaughter-houses and markets, and if he does not see a wide field for improvement, then we will agree to let the subject sink into oblivion. In order to show what a whole community can accomplish when their efforts are directed to one object, let us look on what a single individual, by his own industry and perseverance, has accomplished simply in improving the breed of sheep. The person referred to is Mr. Bakewell. His breeding animals were, in the first place, selected from different breeds. These he crossed with the best to be had. After the cross had been carried to the desired point, he confined his selections to his own herds or flocks. He formed in his mind a standard of perfection for each kind of animals, and to this he constantly endeavored to bring them. That he was eminently successful in the attainment of his object, cannot be denied. He began his farming operations about 1750. In 1760, his rams did not sell for more than two or three guineas per head. From this time he gradually advanced in terms, and in 1770 he let some for twenty-five guineas a head for the season. Marshall states that, in 1786, Bakewell let two thirds of a ram (reserving a third for himself) to two breeders, for a hundred guineas each, the entire services of the ram being rated at three hundred guineas the season. It is also stated that he made that year, by letting rams, more than one thousand pounds.

"In 1789, he made twelve hundred guineas by three '_ram brothers_,' and two thousand guineas from seven, and, from his whole letting, full three thousand guineas. Six or seven other breeders made from five hundred to a thousand guineas each by the same operation. The whole amount of ram-letting of Bakewell's breed is said to have been not less, that year, than ten thousand pounds, [forty-eight thousand dollars.]

"It is true that still more extraordinary prices were obtained for the use of rams of this breed after Mr. Bakewell's death. Pitt, in his 'Survey of Leicestershire,' mentions that, in 1795, Mr. Astley gave three hundred guineas for the use of a ram of this breed, engaging, at the same time, that he should serve _gratis_ twenty ewes owned by the man of whom the ram was hired; making for the entire use of the ram, that season, four hundred and twenty guineas. In 1796, Mr. Astley gave for the use of the same ram three hundred guineas, and took forty ewes to be served gratis. At the price charged for the service of the ram to each ewe, the whole value for the season was five hundred guineas. He served one hundred ewes. In 1797, the same ram was let to another person at three hundred guineas, and twenty ewes sent with him; the serving of which was reckoned at a hundred guineas, and the ram was restricted to sixty more, which brought his value for the season to four hundred guineas. Thus the ram made, in three seasons, the enormous sum of _thirteen hundred guineas_.

"We have nothing to do, at present, with the question whether the value of these animals was not exaggerated. The actual superiority of the breed over the stock of the country must have been obvious, and this point we wish kept in mind.

"This breed of sheep is continued to the present day, and it has been remarked by a respected writer, that they will 'remain a lasting monument of Bakewell's skill.' As to their origin, the testimony shows them to have been of _mixed blood_; though no breed is more distinct in its characters, or transmits its qualities with more certainty; and if we were without any other example of successful crossing, the advocates of the system might still point triumphantly to the Leicester or Bakewell sheep.

"But what are the opinions of our best modern breeders in regard to the practicability of producing distinct breeds by crossing? Robert Smith, of Burley, Rutlandshire, an eminent sheep-breeder, in an essay on the 'Breeding and Management of Sheep,' for which he received a prize from the Royal Agricultural Society, (1847,) makes the following remarks: 'The crossing of pure breeds has been a subject of great interest amongst every class of breeders. While all agree that the first cross may be attended with good results, there exists a diversity of opinion upon the future movements, or putting the crosses together. Having tried experiments (and I am now pursuing them for confirmation) in every way possible, I do not hesitate to express my opinion, that, by proper and judicious crossing through several generations, a most valuable breed of sheep may be raised and established; in support of which I may mention the career of the celebrated Bakewell, who raised a _new_ variety from other long-wooled breeds by dint of perseverance and propagation, and which have subsequently corrected all other long-wooled breeds.'"

We have alluded to the low price of some of the mutton brought to the Boston market. We do not wish the reader to infer that there is none other to be had: on the contrary, we have occasionally seen as good mutton there as in any European market. There are a number of practical and worthy men engaged in improving the different kinds of live stock, and preventing the degeneracy to which we refer. They have taken much interest in that class of stock, and they have been abundantly rewarded for their labor. But the great mass want more light on this subject, and for this reason we endeavor to show the causes of degeneracy, to enable them to avoid the errors of their forefathers.

Mr. Roberts, of Pennsylvania, says, "Early in my experience, I witnessed the renovation of a flock of what we call country sheep, that had been too long propagated in the same blood. This was about the year 1798. An imported ram from England, with heavy horns, very much resembling the most vigorous Spanish Merinos, was obtained. The progeny were improved in the quality of fleece, and in the vigor of constitution. On running this stock in the same blood for some twelve years, a great deterioration became apparent. A male was then obtained of the large coarse-wooled Spanish stock: improvement in the vigor of the progeny was again most obvious. A Tunis mountain ram was then obtained, with a result equally favorable. In this process, fineness of fleece or weight was less the object than the carcass. In 1810, a male of not quite pure Merino blood was placed with the same stock of ewes; and a change of the male from year to year, for some time, produced a superior Merino stock. Wool of a marketable quality for fine cloths was now the object; and it was not an unprofitable husbandry, when it would sell in the fleece, unwashed, from eighty-six cents to one dollar. The Saxon stock then became the rage, and the introduction of a tup of that country diminished greatly the weight of the fleece, without adequately improving its fineness. A male of the Spanish stock would give sometimes nine pounds; and the marsh graziers say that they went as high as fifteen pounds. Saxon males scarcely exceed five pounds, and the ewes two and a half pounds. By running in the same blood, and poor keeping, the fleece may be made finer, but it will be lightened in proportion, and of a weak and infirm texture. There are few stock-keepers who have mixed the Spanish with the Saxon breeds but what either do or will have cause to regret it. In this part of the country, a real Spanish Merino is not to be obtained. Sheep-raising has ceased to be a business of any profit nearer to the maritime coast than our extensive mountain ranges, whether for carcass or fleece. I sold, the last season, water-washed wool, of very fine quality, for thirty cents per pound. At such a price for wool, land near our seaports can be turned to better account, even in these dull times, than wool-growing. Stock sheep do best in stony and elevated locations, where they have to use diligence to pick the scanty blade. Sheep on the sea-board region should be kept more for carcass than fleece; and feeding, more than breeding, ought to be the object for some one hundred miles from tide water. It is now a well-ascertained fact, that health and vigor can only be perpetuated by not running too long on the same blood. The evils I have witnessed were due to a want of care on this head more than to any endemical quality in our climate. Sheep kept on smooth land and soft pasture are liable to the foot rot. The hoofs of the Merino require paring occasionally, for want of a stony mountain side to ascend. It is no longer a problem that this is to be a great wool-growing country, as well as a wool-consuming one. There is, in our wool-growing country, land in abundance, held at a price that will enable the wool-grower to produce the finest qualities at thirty cents per pound, the cloths to be manufactured in proportion, and the market to be steady. I have seen Merino wool, since 1810, range from one dollar per pound to eighteen and three fourths cents, though I do not recollect selling below twenty-two cents. The best variety of sheep stock I have seen, putting fineness of fleece aside, was the mixed Bakewell and South Down, imported by Mr. Smith, of New Jersey. The flesh of the Merino has been pronounced of inferior flavor. This, however, does not agree with my experience, as I have found the lambs command a readier sale than any other, from being preferred by consumers."

DESCRIPTION OF THE DIFFERENT BREEDS OF SHEEP.

Mr. Lawson tells us that "the variety in sheep is so great, that scarcely any two countries produce sheep of the same kind. There is found a manifest difference in all, either in the size, the covering, the shape, or the horns."

TEESWATER BREED.

"This is a breed of sheep said to be the largest in England. It is at present the most prevalent in the rich, fine, fertile, enclosed lands on the banks of the Tees, in Yorkshire. In this breed, which is supposed to be from the same stock as those of the Lincolns, greater attention seems to have been paid to size than wool. It is, however, a breed only calculated for warm, rich pastures, where they are kept in small lots, in small enclosures, and well supported with food in severe winter seasons. The legs are longer, finer boned, and support a thicker and more firm and heavy carcass than the Lincolnshires; the sheep are much wider on the backs and sides, and afford a fatter and finer-grained mutton.

LINCOLN SHIRE BREED.

"This is a breed of sheep which is characterized by their having no horns; white faces; long, thin, weak carcasses thick, rough, white legs; bones large; pelts thick; slow feeding; mutton coarse grained; the wool from ten to eighteen inches in length; and it is chiefly prevalent in the district which gives the name, and other rich grazing ones. The new, or improved Lincolns, have now finer bone, with broader loins and trussed carcasses, are among the best, if not actually the best, long-wooled stock we have.

THE DISHLEY BREED.

"This is an improved breed of sheep, which is readily distinguished from the other long-wooled sorts; having a fulness of form and substantial width of carcass, with peculiar plainness and meekness of countenance; the head long, thin, and leaning backward; the nose projecting forward; the ears somewhat long, and standing backward; great fulness of the fore quarters; legs of moderate length, and the finest bone; tail small; fleece well covering the body, of the shortest and finest of the combing wools, the length of staple six or seven inches.

COTSWOLD BREED.

"This is a breed of sheep answering the following description: long, coarse head, with a particularly blunt, wide nose; a top-knot of wool on the forehead, running under the ears; rather long neck; great length and breadth of back and loin; full thigh, with more substance in the hinder than fore quarters; bone somewhat fine; legs not long; fleece soft, like that of the Dishley, but in closeness and darkness of color bearing more resemblance to short or carding wool. Although very fat, they have all the appearance of sheep that are full of solid flesh, which would come heavy to the scale. At two years and a half old, they have given from eleven to fourteen pounds of wool each sheep; and, being fat, they are indisputably among the larger breeds.

ROMNEY MARSH BREED.

"This is a kind which is described, by Mr. Young, as being a breed of sheep without horns; white faces and legs; rather long in the legs; good size; body rather long, but well barrel-shaped; bones rather large. In respect to the wool, it is fine, long, and of a delicate white color, when in its perfect state.

DEVONSHIRE BREED.

"This is a breed or sort of sheep which is chiefly distinguished by having no horns; white faces and legs; thick necks; backs narrow, and back-bones high; sides good; legs short, and bones large; and probably without any material objection, being a variety of the common hornless sort. Length of wool much the same as in the Romney Marsh breed. It is a breed found to be prevalent in the district from which it has derived its name, and is supposed to have received considerable improvement by being crossed with the new Leicester, or Dishley.

THE DORSETSHIRE BREED.

"This breed is known by having the face, nose, and legs white, head rather long, but broad, and the forehead woolly, as in the Spanish sort; the horn round and bold, middle-sized, and standing from the head; the shoulders broad at top, but lower than the hind quarters; the back tolerably straight; carcass deep, and loins broad; legs not long, nor very fine in the bone; the wool is fine and short. It is a breed which has the peculiar property of producing lambs at any period of the season, even so early as September and October, so as to suit the purposes of the lamb-suckler.

THE WILTSHIRE BREED.

"This is a sort which has sometimes the title of _horned crocks_. The writer on live stock distinguishes the breed as having a large head and eyes; Roman nose; wide nostrils; horns bending down the cheeks; color all white; wide bosom; deep, greyhound breast; back rather straight; carcass substantial; legs short; bone coarse; fine middle wool, very thin on the belly, which is sometimes bare. He supposes, with Culley, that the basis of this breed is doubtless the Dorsets, enlarged by some long-wooled cross; but how the horns came to take a direction so contrary, is not easy, he thinks, to conjecture; he has sometimes imagined it must be the result of some foreign, probably Tartarian cross.

THE SOUTH DOWN BREED.

"This is a valuable sort of sheep, which Culley has distinguished by having no horns; gray faces and legs; fine bones; long, small necks; and by being rather low before, high on the shoulder, and light in the fore quarter; sides good; loin tolerably broad; back-bone rather high; thigh full; twist good; mutton fine in grain and well flavored; wool short, very close and fine; in the length of the staple from two to three inches. It is a breed which prevails on the dry, chalky downs in Sussex, as well as the hills of Surrey and Kent, and which has lately been much improved, both in carcass and wool, being much enlarged forward, carrying a good fore flank; and for the short, less fertile, hilly pastures is an excellent sort, as feeding close. The sheep are hardy, and disposed to fatten quickly; and where the ewes are full kept, they frequently produce twin lambs, nearly in proportion of one third of the whole, which are, when dropped, well wooled.

THE HERDWICK BREED.

"This is a breed which is characterized by Mr. Culley as having no horns, and the face and legs being speckled; the larger portion of white, with fewer black spots, the purer the breed; legs fine, small, clean; the lambs well covered when dropped; the wool, short, thick, and matted in the fleece. It is a breed peculiar to the elevated, mountainous tract of country at the head of the River Esk, and Duddon in Cumberland, where they are let in herds, at an annual sum; whence the name. At present, they are said to possess the property of being extremely hardy in constitution, and capable of supporting themselves on the rocky, bare mountains, with the trifling support of a little hay in the winter season.

THE CHEVIOT BREED.

"This breed of sheep is known by the want of horns; by the face and legs being mostly white; little depth in the breast; narrow there and on the chine; clean, fine, small-boned legs, and thin pelts; the wool partly fine and partly coarse. It is a valuable breed of mountain sheep, where the herbage is chiefly of the natural grass kind, which is the case in the situations where these are found the most prevalent, and from which they have obtained their name. It is a breed which has undergone much improvement, within these few years, in respect to its form and other qualities, and has been lately introduced into the most northern districts; and from its hardiness, its affording a portion of fine wool, and being quick in fattening, it is likely to answer well in such situations.

THE MERINO BREED

"In this breed of sheep, the males have horns, but the females are without them. They have white faces and legs; the body not very perfect in shape; rather long in the legs; fine in the bone; a production of loose, pendulous skin under the neck; and the pelt fine and clear; the wool very fine. It is a breed that is asserted by some to be tolerably hardy, and to possess a disposition to fatten readily.

THE WELSH SHEEP.

"These, which are the most general breed in the hill districts, are small horned, and all over of a white color. They are neat, compact sheep. There is likewise a polled, short-wooled sort of sheep in these parts of the country, which are esteemed by some. The genuine Welsh mutton, from its smallness and delicate flavor, is commonly well known, highly esteemed, and sold at a high price."

Bred and fed by Willm. Fisher Hobbs, Esq. of Marks Hall, Coggleshall, Essex for which a Prize of L10 was awarded at the Meeting of the R.A.S of E. at Derby 1843.]

SWINE.

PRELIMINARY REMARKS.

Swine have generally been considered "unclean," creatures of gross habits, &c.; but these epithets are unjust: they are not, in their nature, the unclean, gross, insensible brutes that mankind suppose them. If they are unclean, they got their first lessons from the lords of creation, by being confined in narrow, filthy sties--often deprived of light, and pure air, by being shut up in dark, underground cellars, to wallow in their own excrement; at other times, confined beneath stables, dragging out their existence in a perfect hotbed of corruption--respiring the emanations from the dung and urine of other animals; and often compelled to satisfy the cravings of hunger by partaking of whatever comes in their way. All manner of filth, including decaying and putrid vegetable and animal substances, are considered good enough for the hogs. And as long as they get such kind of trash, and no other, they must eat it; the cravings of hunger must be satisfied. The Almighty has endowed them with powerful organs of digestion; and as long as there is any thing before them that the gastric fluids are capable of assimilating, although it be disgusting to their very natures, rather than suffer of hunger, they will partake of it. Much of the indigestible food given to swine deranges the stomach, and destroys the powers of assimilation, or, in other words, leaves it in morbid state. There is then a constant sensation of hunger, a longing for any and every thing within their reach. Does the reader wonder, then, at their morbid tastes? What will man do under the same circumstances? Suppose him to be the victim of dyspepsia or indigestion. In the early stages, he is constantly catering to the appetite. At one time, he longs for acids; at another, alkalies; now, he wants stimulants; then, refrigerants, &c. Again: what will not a man do to satisfy the cravings of hunger? Will he not eat his fellow, and drink of his blood? And all to satisfy the craving of an empty stomach.

We know from experience that, if young pigs are daily washed, and kept on clean cooked food, they will not eat the common city "swill;" they eat it only when compelled by hunger. When free from the control of man, they show as much sagacity in the selection of their food as any other animals; and, indeed, more than some, for they seldom get poisoned, like the ox, in mistaking noxious for wholesome food. The Jews, as well as our modern physiologists, consider the flesh of swine unfit for food. No doubt some of it is, especially that reared under the unfavorable circumstances alluded to above. But good home-fed pork, kept on good country produce, and not too fat, is just as good food for man as the flesh of oxen or sheep, notwithstanding the opinion of our medical brethren to the contrary. Their flesh has long been considered as one of the principal causes of scrofula, and other diseases too numerous to mention: without doubt this is the case. But that good, healthy pork should produce such results we are unwilling to admit. We force them to load their stomachs with the rotten offal of large cities, and thus derange their whole systems; they become loaded with fat; their systems abound in morbific fluids; their lungs become tuberculous; their livers enlarge; calcerous deposits or glandular disorganization sets in. Take into consideration their inactive habits; not voluntary, for instinct teaches them, when at liberty, to run, jump, and gambol, by which the excess of carbon is thrown off. Depriving them of exercise may be profitable to the breeder, but it induces a state of plethora. The cellular structures of such an animal are distended to their utmost capacity, preventing the full and free play of the vital machinery, obstructing the natural outlets (excrementitious vessels) on the external surface, and retaining in the system morbid materials that are positively injurious. At the present time, there is on exhibition in Boston a woman, styled the "fat girl;" she weighs four hundred and ninety-five pounds. A casual observer could detect nothing in her external appearance that denoted disease; yet she is liable to die at any moment from congestion of the brain, lungs, or liver. Any one possessing a knowledge of physiology would immediately pronounce her to be in a pathological state. Hence, the laws of the animal economy being uniform, we cannot arrive at any other conclusion in reference to the same plethoric state in animals of an inferior order.

Professor Liebig tells us that excess of carbon, in the form of food, cannot be employed to make a part of any organ; it must be deposited in the cellular tissue in the form of tallow or oil. This is the whole secret of fattening.

At every period of animal life, when there occurs a disproportion between the carbon of the food and the inspired oxygen, the latter being deficient,--which must happen beneath stables and in ill-constructed hog-sties,--fat must be formed.

Experience teaches us that in poultry the maximum of fat is obtained by preventing them from taking exercise, and by a medium temperature. These animals, in such circumstances, may be compared to a plant possessing in the highest degree the power of converting all food into parts of its own structure. The excess of the constituents of blood forms flesh and other organized tissues, while that of starch, sugar, &c., is converted into fat. When animals are fed on food destitute of nitrogen, only certain parts of their structure increase in size. Thus, in a goose fattened in the manner alluded to, the liver becomes three or four times larger than in the same animal when well fed, with free motion; while we cannot say that the organized structure of the liver is thereby increased. The liver of a goose fed in the ordinary way is firm and elastic; that of the imprisoned animal is soft and spongy. The difference consists in a greater or less expansion of its cells, which are filled with fat. Hence, when fat accumulates and free motion is prevented, the animal is in a diseased state. Now, many tons of pork are eaten in this diseased state, and it communicates disease to the human family: they blame the pork, when, in fact, the pork raisers are often more to blame. The reader is probably aware that some properties of food pass into the living organism being assimilated by the digestive organs, and produce an abnormal state. For example, the faculty of New York have, time and again, testified to the destructive tendency of milk drawn from cows fed in cities, without due exercise and ordinary care in their management, giving it as their opinion that most of the diseases of children are brought about by its use. If proof were necessary to establish our position, we could cite it in abundance. A single case, which happened in our own family, will suffice. A liver, taken from an apparently healthy sow, (yet abounding in fat, and weighing about two hundred pounds,) was prepared in the usual manner for dinner. We observed, however, previous to its being cooked, that it was unusually large; yet there was no appearance of disease about it; it was quite firm. Each one partook of it freely. Towards night, and before partaking of any other kind of food, we were all seized with violent pains in the head, sickness at the stomach, and delirium: this continued for several hours, when a diarrhoea set in, through which process the offending matter was liberated, and each one rapidly recovered; pretty well convinced, however, that we had had a narrow escape, and that the liver was the sole cause of our misfortune.

Hence the proper management of swine becomes a subject of great importance; for, if more attention were paid to it, there would be less disease in the human family. When we charge these animals with being "unclean creatures of gross habits," let us consider whether we have not, in some measure, contributed to make them what they are.

Again: the hog has been termed "insensible," destitute of all those finer feelings that characterize brutes of a higher order. Yet we have "learned pigs," &c.--a proof that they can be taught something. A celebrated writer tells us that no animal has a greater sympathy for those of his own kind than the hog. The moment one of them gives a signal, all within hearing rush to his assistance. They have been known to gather round a dog that teased them and kill him on the spot; and if a male and female be enclosed in a sty when young, and be afterwards separated, the female will decline from the instant her companion is removed, and will probably die--perhaps of what would be termed, in the human family, a broken heart!

In the Island of Minorca, hogs are converted into beasts of draught; a cow, a sow, and two young horses, have been seen yoked together, and of the four the sow drew the best.

A gamekeeper of Sir H. Mildmay actually broke a sow to find game, and to back and stand.

Swine are frequently troubled with cutaneous diseases, which produce an itching sensation; hence their desire to wallow and roll in the mire and dirt. The lying down in wet, damp places relieves the irritation of the external surface, and cools their bodies. This mud and filth, however, in which they are often compelled to wallow, is by no means good or wholesome for them.

NATURAL HISTORY OF THE HOG.

"The hog," says Professor Low, "is subject to remarkable changes of form and characters, according to the situations in which he is placed. When these characters assume a certain degree of permanence, a breed or variety is formed; and there is none of the domestic animals which more easily receives the characters we desire to impress upon it. This arises from its rapid powers of increase, and the constancy with which the characters of the parents are reproduced in the progeny. _There is no kind of live stock that can be so easily improved by the breeder, and so quickly rendered suitable for the purposes required._

"The body is large in proportion to the limbs, or, in other words, the limbs are short in proportion to the body; the extremities are free from coarseness; the chest is broad, and the trunk round. Possessing these characters, the hog never fails to arrive at early maturity, and with a smaller consumption of food than when he possesses a different conformation.

"The wild boar, which was undoubtedly the progenitor of all the European varieties, and of the Chinese breed, was formerly a native of the British Islands, and very common in the forests until the time of the civil wars in that country."

We are told, that the wild hog "is now spread over the temperate and warmer parts of the old continent and its adjacent islands. His color varies with age and climate, but is generally a dusky brown, with black spots and streaks. His skin is covered with coarse hairs and bristles, intersected with soft wool, and with coarser and longer bristles upon the neck and spine, which he erects when in anger. He is a very bold and powerful creature, and becomes more fierce and indocile with age. From the form of his teeth, he is chiefly herbivorous in his habits, and delights in roots, which his acute sense of smell and touch enables him to discover beneath the surface. He also feeds on animal substances, such as worms and larvae, which he grubs up from the earth, the eggs of birds, small reptiles, the young of animals, and occasionally carrion; he even attacks venomous snakes with impunity. In the natural state, the female produces a litter but once a year;[21] and in much smaller numbers than when domesticated. She usually carries her young about four months.

"In the wild state, the hog has been known to live more than thirty years; but when domesticated, he is usually slaughtered before he is two years old. When the wild hog is tamed, it undergoes the following amongst other changes in its conformation: the ears become less movable, not being required to collect distant sounds; the formidable tusks of the male diminish, not being necessary for self-defence; the muscles of the neck become less developed, from not being so much exercised as in the natural state; the head becomes more inclined, the back and loins are lengthened, the body rendered more capacious, the limbs shorter and less muscular; and anatomy proves that the stomach and intestinal canals have also become proportionately extended along with the form of the body. The habits and instincts of the animal change; it becomes diurnal in its habits, not choosing the night for its search of food; is more insatiate in its appetite, and the tendency to obesity increases.

"The male, forsaking its solitary habits, becomes gregarious, and the female produces her young more frequently, and in larger numbers. With its diminished strength, and its want of active motion, the animal loses its desire for liberty.

"The true hog does not appear to be indigenous to America, but was taken over by the early voyagers from the old world, and it is now spread and multiplied throughout the continent.

"The first settlers of North America and the United States carried with them the swine of the parent country, and a few of the breeds still retain traces of the old English character. From its nature and habits, the hog was the most profitable and useful of all the animals bred by the early settlers in the distant clearings. It was his surest resource during the first years of toil and hardship."