Tunis Sheep.

Manawatu Herald, 1 November 1900, Page 3

Tunis Sheep.

There was landed by the Moana on Wednesday, at Auckland, a pen of Tunis sheep, consisting of six ewes and two lams. This breed of sheep is _i comparatively unknown, and these new arrivals are the first of the kind ever landed in this colony. Originally the native sheep of the country, the Bey of Tunis many years ago presented a select number of the breed to the United States Minister, who shipped them to his country, where they have been ever since carefully handled and the breed kept absolutely pure. The recently imported sheep are the descendants of these. It is claimed for them that they possess some very valuable merits. In the first place they are regarded as the most hardy and disease-resisting breed of sheep in existence. Their mutton is said to possess a peculiarly sweet flavour, and American butchers who have handled it, pay more for a Tunis carcase than for any other mutton. Their wool is of good character, being fine, but of strong fibre though a shade light. They are good mothers and perennial breeders, and their prepotency is so great that they transmit this and their other characteristics with remarkable certainty. They are moderate ma« —just suitable for freezers. Their docility is so marked that they frequently follow their shepherd about like sheep dogs. This shipment was made by Messrs William Cooper and Nephew, of Berkhamstead, England, to their *ew Zealand agent, Mr Harrowell, of Manurcwa, Auckland, and are intended for experimental purposes.