tame wethers, called mansos. These wear bells, and are obedient to the voices of the shepherds, who frequently give them small pieces of bread. Some of the shepherds lead; the mansos are always near them, and this disposes the flock to follow. Every sheep is well acquainted with the situation of the dehesa to which its subdivision belongs, and will at the end of the journey go straight to it, without the guidance of the shepherds. Here the flock grazes all the day under the eyes of the attendants. When the evening comes on, the sheep are collected together, and they soon lie down to rest. The shepherds and their dogs then lie down on the ground round the flock, and sleep, as they term it, under the stars, or in huts that afford little shelter from inclement weather; and this is their custom all the year, except that each is allowed, in his turn, an absence of about a month, which he spends with his family; and it is remarkable, that the families of these shepherds reside entirely in Leon.

The shepherds who came with his majesty's flock were questioned on the subject of giving salt to their sheep. They declared that this is only done in the hottest season of the year, when the sheep are on the mountains; that in September it is left off; and that they dare not give salt to ewes forward with lambs, being of opinion that it causes abortion.

It is scarcely credible, though it appears on the best authority to be true, that under the operation of the laws of the nesta, which confide the care of the sheep to the management of their shepherds, without admitting any interference on the part of the proprietor, no profit of the flock comes to the hands of the owner, except what is derived from the wool. The carcases of the culled sheep are consumed by the shepherds, and it

The shepherds, on discovering the drift of the questions put to them on this head, said that in settling the wages of the

does not appear that any account is rendered by them to their employers, of the value of the skins, the tallow, &c. The profit derived by a proprietor from a flock, is estimated on an average at about one shilling a head, and the produce of a capital vested in a flock is said to fluctuate between five and ten per cent.

The sheep are always low kept. It is the business of each mayoral te increase his flock to as large a number as the land allotted to it can possibly maintain. When it has arrived at that pitch, all further increase is useless, as there is no sale for these sheep, unless some neighbouring flock has been reduced by mortality below its proper number. The most of the lambs are, therefore, every year killed as soon as they are yeaned, and each of those preserved is made to suck two or three ewes; the shepherds say, that the wool of a ewe that brings up her lamb without assistance is reduced in its value.

At shearing time the shepherds, shearers, washers, and a multitude of unnecessary attendants, are fed upon the flesh of the culled sheep; and it seems that the consumption occasion. ed by this season of feasting is sufficient to devour the whole of the sheep that are draughted from the flock. Mutton in Spain is not a favourite food; in truth, it is not in that country prepared for the palate as it is in this. We have our lamb-fairs, our hogfairs, our shearling-fairs, our fairs for culls, and our markets for fat sheep; where the mutton, having passed through these different stages of preparation, each under the care of men whose soil and whose skill are best suited to the part they have been taught by their interest to assign to themselves, is offered for sale; and if fat and good, it seldom fails to command a price by the pound. from five to ten per cent. dearer than that of

shearers and washers, at the esquilos, allowance is made for the mutton a which they are fed.

beef. In Spain they have no such sheep fairs calculated to subdivide the education of each animal, by making it pass through many hands, as works of art do in a manufacturing concern; and they have not any fat sheep markets that at all resemble ours. The low state of grazing in Spain ought not therefore to be wondered at, nor the poverty of the Spanish farmers. They till a soil sufficiently productive by nature; but are robbed of the reward due to the occupier, by the want of an advantageous market for their produce, and the benefit of an extensive consumption. Till the manufacturing and mercantile parts of a community become opulent enough to pay liberal prices, the agricultural part of it cannot grow rich by selling. That the sole purpose of the journeys taken annually by these sheep is to seek food in places where it can be found; and that these migrations would not be undertaken. if either in the northern or the southern provinces a sufficiency of good pasture could be obtained during the whole year, appears a matter of certainty. That change of pasture has no effect upon their wool, is clear, from all the experiments tried in other countries, and in Spain also; for Burgoyne tells us, that there are stationary flocks, both in Leon and in Estremadura, which produce wool quite as fine as that of the trashumantes.

The sheep lately presented to his majesty are of the cavana of Paular, one of the very finest in point of pile, and esteemed also above all others for the beauty of carcase. In both these opinions, M. Lasteyrie, a French writer on sheep, who lived many years in Spain, and paid diligent attention to the Merino sheep, entirely agrees. He also tells us, that the cavana of Negrete, from whence the sheep imported by his majesty in the year 1791 were selected, is not only one of the finest piles, but produces also the largest carcased sheep of all the Merinos. Mr. Burgoyne agrees with him in asserting, that the piles of

Paular, Negrete, and Escurial, have been withheld from exportation, and retained for the royal manufactory of Gaudalaxara, ever since it was first established.

The cavana of Paular consists of 36,000 sheep. It originally belonged to the rich Carthusian monastery of that name, near Segovia. Soon after the prince of the peace rose into pow. er, he purchased the flock from the monks, with the land belonging to it, both in Estremadura and in Leon, at a price equal to twenty French franks a head, 168. 8d. English. All the sheep lately arrived are marked with a large M. the mark of don Manuel.

The number sent from Spain to the king was 2000, equal to two subdivisions of the original cavana. To make the present the more valuable, these were selected by the shepherds from eight subdivisions, in order to choose young, well shaped, and fine woolled animals. This fact is evident, from the marks which are placed on eight different parts of the bodies of the sheep now at Kew.

The whole number embarked was 2,214. Of these, 214 were presented by the Spaniards to some of his majesty's ministers, and 427 died on the journey, either at sea or on their way from Portsmouth to Kew. His majesty was graciously pleased to take upon himself the whole of the loss, which reduced the royal flock to 1573. Several more have since died. As the time of giving the ram in Spain is July, the ewes were full of lamb when they embarked. Several of them cast their lambs when the weather was bad at sea. and are rendered so weak and infirm by abortion, that it is much to be feared more will die, notwithstanding the great care taken of them by his majesty's shepherds. A few have died of the rot. This disease must have been contracted by halting on some swampy district, in their journey from the mountains to the sea at Gijon, where they were embarked, as one sheep died rotton at Portsmouth. There is every reason,

however, to hope, that the disease will not spread, as the land on which they are now kept bas never been subject to its ravages, being of a very light and sandy texture.

It is well worthy of observation, that although the Swedes, the Saxons, the Danes, the Prussians, the Austrians, and of late the French, have, either by the foresight of their governments, or the patriotick exertions of individuals, imported Merino sheep, no nation has hitherto ventured to assert, that they possess the complete and unmixed race of any one cavana. This circumstance does not appear to have been attended to any where but in England; though, in fact, cach cavana is a separate and distinct breed of sheep, not suffered by the Spaniards to mingle with others. The difference in value of the wool of different Spanish flocks is very great. At this time, when Spanish wool is unusually dear, the prima piles are worth more than 78. a pound, and yet the inferiour ones scarce reach 58.* Even the French, attentive as that nation is to all things that concern the interest of individuals, appear to have overlooked this circumstance, and to have contented themselves with making up the numbers of their importations, without paying any regard to it. They have not, at least, stated in any of their publications, that attention was paid to the securing sheep of a prima pile, and keeping the breed of that pile pure and unmixed, after they had obtained

Fifteen more, not necessary to be enumerated. M. Lasteyrie, the French writer on sheep, ranges them not very differently. He states them as follows. But both English and French agree, that all the prima piles are nearly equal in fineness of fibre, and consequently in value to the manufacturer.

Escurial, called by us Patrimonio,
Guadalupe,
Paular,
Infantado,
Montareo,
Negrete, &c.

The Danes, he tells us, procured their sheep from the best piles. But there is no appearance of their having, since they obtained them, kept the flocks separate, nor are they at present, so remarkable for fine wool, as the Saxons, whose wool is now at least, as fine as that of Spain is, upon an average of prima and second rate piles.

The Swedes were the first people who imported the Spanish breed. This good work was undertaken and completed by the patriotick exertions of a merchant of the name of Alstroemer, in the year 1723. The next who obtained an importation of Merino sheep were the Saxons, who are indebted for the benefits they enjoy from the improvement of their wools to the prince Xavier, administrator of the electorate, during the minority of the elector, and brother-in-law to the king of Spain. The prince ob tained a flock of these valuable ani. mais in 1766, and in 1778, an addition to it of 100 rams, and 200 ewes. The Danes followed his useful example, as also did both Prussia and Austria. Every one of these countries continue at this moment, to profit largely by the improvement these sheep have occasioned in their agricultural concerns. So far from truth is the too common assertion, that their wool will not continue fine in any country but Spain, that in the year 806, when the ports of Spain were closed against us, a very large

quantity of fine wool, the produce of German Merino sheep, was imported into this country from Hamburgh, and used by our manufacturers as a substitute for Spanish wool. In truth, some of this wool was so fine, that it carried, in the British market, as high a price as the best Spanish piles were sold for, in times of peace and amity. In the year 1787, the king, guided by those patriotick motives which are ever active in his majesty's mind, gave orders for the importation of Merino sheep for his own use, and for the improvement of British wool. As it was doubtful at that time whether the king of Spain's license, without which these sheep cannot be embarked at a Spanish port, could be obtained, it was deemed advisable to make the first purchases in the parts of Estremadura, adjoining to Portugal, and to ship the sheep for England at Lisbon. The first importation of these valuable animals arrived in March, 1788, and a little flock of them was soon after completed; but as these were of various qualities, having been drafted from different cavanas, his majesty was pleased to order an application to be made to the king of Spain by lord Auckland, then his majesty's minister at that court, for permission to import some sheep drafted from one of the prima piles. This was obtained; and a little flock, consisting of 36 ewes, 4 rams, and 1 manso, arrived safe and well at Dover, in 1791. These sheep had made a part of the cavana called Negrete, one of the three piles restricted from exportation, and which is likewise remarkable for producing the largest carcased sheep that are to be found among the Merino flocks, as has been before stated.

On the receipt of this treasure (for such it has since proved itself to be) the king, with his usual prudence and foresight, ordered the whole of the sheep that had been procured by the way of Portugal to be disposed of, (which was immediately done) and directed the Negrete breed to be in

creased as much as possible, and maintained in its utmost purity.

From that time to the present the opinion of the publick, sometimes perhaps too unwary, and at others too cautious, in appreciating the value and adopting the use of novel kinds of sheep, has gradually inclined to give that preference to the Merinos which is so justly their due. At first, it was impossible to find a purchaser willing to give even a moderate price either for the sheep or for their wool. The shape of the sheep did not please the graziers, and the wool-staplers were utterly unable to judge of the merit of the wool, it being an article so many times finer and more valuable than any thing of the kind that had ever before passed through their hands. The butchers, however, were less timorous. They readily offered for the sheep, when fat, a fair mutton price; and there are two instances in which, when the fat stock agreed for was exhausted, the butcher who had bought them anxiously inquired for more, because he said the mutton was so very much approved of by his best customers.

It was not, however, till the year 1804, thirteen years after their first introduction, that it was deemed practicable to sell them by auction, the only certain means of placing animals in the hands of those persons who set the highest value upon them, and are, consequently, the most likely to take proper care of them. The attempt, however, succeeded; and the prices given demonstrated, that some at least, of his majesty's subjects, had, at that time, learned to put a due value, on the benefit his royal patriotism offered to them. One of the rams sold at the first sale, for 42 guineas, and two of the ewes for 11 guineas each; the average price at which the rams sold, was 19. 43. ard that of the ewes 87. 158. 6d. each.

This most useful mode of distri bution, has, since that time, been annually continued, and the sales have taken place in the beginning of Au

gust. The last sale was held on the 17th of August, 1808, when the highest price given for a ram was 74/. 11. for a ewe 381. 17s. The average price of rams was 337. 10s Id. of ewes, 23. 128. 5d. a most decisive proof, not only, that the flock had risen very materially in publick esimation, but also, that the sheep have not, in any way, degenerated from their original excellence.

were

The wool, was at first, found to be quite as difficult of sale, as the sheep themselves. Manufacturers therefore employed to make a considerable quantity of it into cloth, which, when finished, was allowed by both woollen-drapers and tailors, to be quite as good as cloth made of wool imported from Spain. But even this proof would not satisfy the scruples of the wool buyers, or induce them to offer a price at all adequate to the real value of the article. It was found necessary, therefore, to have the wool scoured, and to sell it in that state as Spanish wool, which, though grown in England, it really was. Thus managed, the sales were easily effected for some years, at a price equal to that demanded for the prima piles of imported Spanish wool, at the times when the bargains were made.

Time and patience, have, at last, superseded all difficulties; and his majesty's wool has now, for some years, been sold as clipped from the sheep s backs, the sheep having been washed, and the whole management of them carried on exactly in the English manner, at a price not lower than 4s. 6d. a pound, which, allowing for the loss of weight in the scouring, costs the buyer at least 58. 6d. a pound, a tolerable price for Spanish wool, when plenty of it could be produced, though not possibly so high a one as ought to have been given, or as will be obtained for the AngloNegrete pile, when the value of the article is fully understood.

The race of another capital cavana has now been added to the riches of this country, the Paular, and the draught from it is larger than on any other occasion, has been suffered to leave Spain. The animals have been selected with skill and attention. The pile they belong to stands at the very top of our English list, and the sheep have been most fortunately placed at the disposal of our most gracious king, whose shepherds have demonstrated to the publick, in an experience of seventeen years of their management of these interesting animals, that they can not only continue the breed in its original purity, but can also preclude all danger of degeneration in the article of wool. What more can be wished for on this head?

That spirit of patriotism, which induced our sovereign to declare himself the protector of the purity of the Negrete race, will also, it is most earnestly to be hoped, induce his majesty to extend the same protection to the newly arrived Paulars. By this measure, and by this alone, the publick will be effectually guarded against all danger of the admission of impure blood, which the avarice of ill judging individuals, seeking after a premature improvement of the carcase, has too often, it is feared, introduced into our English flocks. Thus protected, the twofold treasure obtained for the advantage of his subjects by his majesty's wisdom and foresight, will become a perennial fountain of true Merino blood, to which those agriculturists who are wise enough to adopt the breed, may, from time to time, resort, to correct their errours, if they fall into bad practices, to carry on their crosses, if any such are found to be advantageous, to the highest degree of perfection, and to restore the originality of their stock, if, in consequence of any unsuccessful experiment, it should have suffered deterioration.