OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER.

Otago Witness, Issue 2251, 22 April 1897, Page 6

OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER.

(From Our Special Corhbspoxdknt.) J Bradford, February 19. j SHEEP-BREEDING. How changed is the sheep and wool industry since Robert Bakewell iirfcfc brought forth " tho new Leicester ! '' And what a diii'erenco there is in the muttou world since Mr Ellman sent forth his much-improved Southdown ! The past 150 years has seen an ndvauce all along the line, and yet the end of tha line called " Perfection " is nob yet retched. But how came it about that these two plodding British farmers so revolutionised the sheep of that day ? It is of special interest to us ta know what was the magician's wand which transformed ill-shap°cl, ungainly animals into Fymmetrical perfect formi — sheep so profitable and so beautiful.

To aecertain the secrets of the workiug of these two men is to obtain at least a portion of the philosopher's stono, to get into th<? arcana of Naturb's workings, to pry if you like into the very heart of things. The secret of tha unbounded success ot those two most successful men was found to be contained in one simple word, " Selection " — selection of the chosen kind, rejection of the unfit. It ha-s beon proved thab Bakewell selected a moderate-sized sheep — he selected as nearly as he could to his stand.' r 1 of excellence, — then w*nt on to jierfeation. Ellmau selected the nearest to his model, and pursued that course till he gained the perfected model — his perfection. To this day tho principal agricultural societies of Great Britain exhibit thia Southdown— psrtect in form and beauty ; so attractive that thousands have wondered that animals so parfeob could be bred.

In selection, then, we find the greatest arb ot sheep-breeding— so great thab, in putting success to success and adding known facts concerning the tremeadous effect of the power of selection, we find writers theorising that this process can go on till man cau form a new species ; cay, further, that. Nature by selection forms new animalc, thab from a simple tnonad mau himself is evolved. lam of opinion that a hobby may be ridden too far. Though we must grant pjwer to selection, we find ib has its limits — it has its assistants : ft has also its co-wcrkers and anti-workers. While to-d*> we have learned thab selection is a powerful afreut in sheep-breeding, we find other things necessary for general success. The n-'xfc nioso important feature in tho breeding of ulieip is the feeding tbeieof. It has been shrewdly suspected that Bakewell and Ellman would noL have gained such world-wide .success had there not been then discovered that handmaid of selecb'ou — the improved husbandry which gave turnips to the sbeep of Britain. In other words, that the old saying was proven true, "The most of the breeding goes down the throat."

At this day I am inclined to think that the greatest part of sheep-breedirgis that of sheepfeediug. However perfectly you breeJ, however pure, however shapely youc sheep, you must have the animal properly fed to show the handsome form and to grow the mosb wool. A friend of mine once tried the same kind, of lambs. One lot he ran in the usual way — large Held, large number ; another lot he put inbo another field, givini'ijb.era the pick ol some ryegrass and clover, anoat two-tooth they weighed ICO per cent, more tbaa the first lot. Yes ; to feed is as necessary as to select. Wha^a lot of defects splendid conditiou covers. How much longer aud more wool does perfect condition give?

Having found that selection and feeding are two great secrets of success in sheep-breeding, we oan now briefly refer to climate. This is one of the imporcaui matters. There are breeds of sheep which in one climate thrive well withoub any special attention, and in another climate, even with ordinary care, they droop and drag out a miserable existence. In moist, wet, graEsy places the merino sheep is not at home — ib loves a dry, even, aud arid country. The English longwools do not love what the merino delights in ; the merino loathes what the Lincoln loves. As a rough estimate I place the home of the merino where the rainfall does not exceed 25in a year ; above that rainfall is more properly the home of the 'English breeds of shtep. These thrte things, I find, are the most important in sheep-Tj-'eeding — climat", selection, feeding. Having got our climate, we go to selection ; having selected, we go on to feeding ; then we show perfect sheep.