BLACK SHEEP.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 2225, 13 September 1889, Page 2

BLACK SHEEP.

It has always been a debatable point (says the lc Leader ") '.yhether it is possible to brei'd a flock of bin ok sheep. All sheep breeders are aware tbat, by a freak of Nature, a few black lambs ere found m their flocks eveiy year, although the sires and dams of those have been pnrc whito as far back aa their pedigrees can be traced. The latnbß come black, and no satisfactory explanation oan be 1 fliared ns to wby iht-y are bo. Following up the breeding, however, It is formd th it the theory of Lke producing libe does not hold good wrere black sheep are concerned. The progeny from a back eire and daai will, iv about seven cases out of ten, throw brick to the previous generation. Mr P. M'lParlane, of Barooga, one of the most experienced and observant sheep-breederti m Australia, Is of opinion that tho type and color of blaok sheep can be fixed, and he is now devoting attention to the carrying out of bis theory. All tho blaok lambs at Barooga are collected nnd sent to Malonga, a station m the Lachlnn d>striot. He finds that by careful selection and the rejection of all lambs having a trace of white about them, the color an, with a considerable degree of certainty, be depended on m the third generation. He intends persevering with the experiment, [Black wool of fine quality is valuable, but it must be black, not brown or grey. It is, of course, only need for special purposes.]