THE place to be seen in turn of-the-20th-century Lincolnshire was Henry Dudding’s livestock sale at Riby. He would send wagonettes to railway stations to collect potential buyers, who would be wined and dined in the manner of operagoers, while his Lincoln longwool sheep and shorthorn cattle were paraded around a raised parade ring as if they were stars at Glyndebourne.
Dudding’s Lincoln longwool sheep were world-renowned; an 1897 article in the Australasian Pastoralists’ Review described them as ‘the best flock in existence’. In 1906, a ram sold to South America for 1,405gns. Dudding was lying ill in bed and, on being informed by a nurse of the record price, exclaimed: ‘Why, dang it, lass— they’ve given it away!’
It’s fortunate, therefore, that Dudding didn’t live to see the breed’s near extinction from the 1960s and 1970s, due to the postwar collapse of the international market, the advancement of synthetic fibres and the scorning by the fashion-conscious of the woolly jumper as something Julian and Dick of the Famous Five wore or in which Colin Firth looked idiotic in Bridget Jones’s Diary.
Denne historien er fra May 06, 2020-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra May 06, 2020-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
