THE COTSWOLD.
THE COTSWOLD.
The Cotswolds, until improved by modern crosses, were a very large, coarse, long-legged, flat-ribbed variety, light in the fore-quarter, and shearing a long, heavy, coarse fleece of wool. They were formerly bred only on the hills, and fatted in the valleys, of the Severn and the Thames; but with the enclosures of the Cotswold hills, and the improvement of their cultivation, they have been reared and fatted in the same district. They were hardy, prolific breeders, and capital nurses; deficient in early maturity, and not possessing feeding properties equalling those of the South-Down or New Leicester.
They have been extensively crossed with the Leicester sheep—producing thus the modern or improved Cotswold—by which their size and fleece have been somewhat diminished, but their carcasses have been materially improved, and their maturity rendered earlier. The wethers are sometimes fattened at fourteen months old, when they weigh from fifteen to twenty-four pounds to a quarter; and at two years old, increase to twenty or thirty pounds.
The wool is strong, mellow, and of good color, though rather coarse, six to eight inches in length, and from seven to eight pounds per fleece. The superior hardihood of the improved Cotswold over the Leicester, and their adaptation to common treatment, together with the prolific nature of the ewes, and their abundance of milk, have rendered them in many places rivals of the New Leicester, and have obtained for them, of late years, more attention to their selection and general treatment, under which management still farther improvement has been made. They have also been used in crossing other breeds, and have been mixed with the Hampshire Downs. Indeed, the improved Cotswold, under the name of new, or improved Oxfordshire sheep, have frequently been the successful candidates for prizes offered for the best long-woolled sheep at some of the principal agricultural meetings or shows in England. The quality of their mutton is considered superior to that of the Leicester; the tallow being less abundant, with a larger development of muscle or flesh.
The degree to which the cross between the Cotswold and Leicester may be carried, must depend upon the nature of the old stock, and on the situation and character of the farm. In exposed situations, and somewhat scanty pasture, the old blood should decidedly prevail. On a more sheltered soil, and on land that will bear closer stocking, a greater use may be made of the Leicester. Another circumstance that should guide the farmer is the object which he has principally in view. If he expects to derive his chief profits from the wool, he will look to the primitive Cotswolds; if he expects to gain more as a grazier, he will use the Leicester ram more freely.
Sheep of this breed, now of established reputation, have been imported into the United States by Messrs. Corning and Gotham, of Albany, and bred by the latter.