especially when the male is larger than the female. (17/15. Lord Somerville
'Facts on Sheep and Husbandry' page 6. Mr. Spooner in 'Journal of Royal
Agricult. Soc. of England' volume 20 part 2. See also an excellent paper on
the same subject in 'Gardener's Chronicle' 1860 page 321 by Mr. Charles
Howard.)

As some of our British parks are ancient, it occurred to me that there must
have been long-continued close interbreeding with the fallow-deer (Cervus
dama) kept in them; but on inquiry I find that it is a common practice to
infuse new blood by procuring bucks from other parks. Mr. Shirley (17/16.
'Some Account of English Deer Parks' by Evelyn P. Shirley 1867.), who has
carefully studied the management of deer, admits that in some parks there has
been no admixture of foreign blood from a time beyond the memory of man. But
he concludes "that in the end the constant breeding in-and-in is sure to tell
to the disadvantage of the whole herd, though it may take a very long time to
prove it; moreover, when we find, as is very constantly the case, that the
introduction of fresh blood has been of the very greatest use to deer, both by
improving their size and appearance, and particularly by being of service in
removing the taint of 'rickback,' if not of other diseases, to which deer are
sometimes subject when the blood has not been changed, there can, I think, be
no doubt but that a judicious cross with a good stock is of the greatest
consequence, and is indeed essential, sooner or later, to the prosperity of
every well-ordered park."

Mr. Meynell's famous foxhounds have been adduced, as showing that no ill
effects follow from close interbreeding; and Sir J. Sebright ascertained from
him that he frequently bred from father and daughter, mother and son, and
sometimes even from brothers and sisters. With greyhounds also there has been
much close interbreeding, but the best breeders agree that it may be carried
too far. (17/17. Stonehenge 'The Dog' 1867 pages 175-188.) But Sir J. Sebright