a
greater tendency to fatten; (2) permissible in-breeding versus
perpetual crossing with strange breeds. He took immense pains in
selecting the best animals to breed from, and had at Dishley a museum
of skeletons and pickled specimens for the comparison of one
generation with another, and he conducted careful post-mortem
examinations on his stock. His great production was the new Leicester
breed of sheep,[485] which in half a century spread over every part of
the United Kingdom, as well as to Europe and America, and gave England
2 lb. of meat where she had one before. Sheep at this time were
divided into two main classes: (1) short-woolled or field sheep, fed
in the open fields; (2) long-woolled or pasture sheep, fed in
enclosures. That they were not at a very high state of perfection may
be gathered from this description of the chief variety of the latter,
the 'Warwickshire' breed: 'his frame large and loose, his bones heavy,
his legs long and thick, his chine as well as his rump as sharp as a
hatchet, his skin rattling on his ribs like a skeleton covered with
parchments.' The origin of the new Leicester sheep is uncertain, but
apparently the old Lincoln breed was the basis of it, though this,
like other large breeds of English sheep, was itself an introduction
of the last half century. The new sheep was described as having a
clean head, straight broad flat back, barrel-like body, fine small
eyes, thin feet, mutton fat, fine-grained and of good flavour, wool 8
lb. to the fleece, and wethers at two years old weighed from 20 to 30
lb. a quarter.

By 1770 his rams were hired for 25 guineas a season, and soon after he
made L3,000 a year by their hire, one named 'Two-pounder' bringing him
1,200 guineas in one year.

One of his theories was that the poorer the land the more it demanded
well-made sheep, which is no doubt true to a certain extent; but it
has been proved conclusively since that the quality of the breed
gradually drops to the level of the land unless artificially assisted.
At his death he left two distinct breeds of sheep, for he improved on
his own new Leicester, so that the improved became the 'New Leicester'
and the former the 'Old Leicester.' However, at the time and,
afterwards, his sheep were generally called 'New Leicesters', and
sometimes the 'Dishley breed'. There was much prejudice among farmers
against the new breed; in the Midlands most of the farmers would have
nothing to do with them, and 'thei