150 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



September to make sales, and continue until feeding time, making drafts 

 from time to time until all the salable sheep were disposed of, then slaughter 

 the remainder for their pelts and tallow. I often netted $1.50 per head. This 

 was much the best use I could make of the new stumpy land. This plan con- 

 tinued until 1859, when I purchased a flock of fair grade Merinos, with which 

 I used a Southdown ram, getting new rams every year or two. I found sale for 

 my wethers in August or September, after they were a year old, at from $4 to 

 $5 per head, usually shearing from the same wethers nearly seven pounds of 

 wool. This was entirely satisfactory, but in a few years I found my aged ewes 

 decreasing in wool, and at four or five years old not shearing over two and 

 one-half or three pounds of wool. Had I known what I now know and bred 

 my ewe lambs the first year, and fatted and sold the ewes at three years old I 

 should probably not have tried the experiment in 1867 of purchasing one ram 

 and five Cotswold ewes at a long price. I tried breeding them pure and 

 cross-bred for several years, and was not satisfied with the result. Had I 

 known enough to have sheared my long wools the last of April or first of May 

 the result would have been better. 



In 1873 I had about 600 sheep. They were selections from the flock I had, 

 and similar sheep purchased from time to time. I weeded out the long wools 

 from year to year, and bred from rams of my own raising or similar stock 

 purchased in the neigborhood, and soon had a flock of fairly even middle 

 wools which sheared from four and a half to five pounds of washed wool which 

 brought the best market price. The wethers were sold out in September at 

 two or three years of age at an average price of $4.50 per head. This on the 

 whole was quite satisfactory, and continued until 1878, when by sales I 

 reduced my flock to 200 head. The breeding was the same until 1880, when, 

 feeling that there was not difference enough made in the price of my wool 

 and the heavy fleeces of Merino, I commenced using high grade Merino rams 

 on the whole flock, which was continued for most of the flock until 1883. 



The produce of the merino rams gave me more wool, but when my first 

 crop of lambs came two years old, and I commenced looking for the fifty to 

 eighty wethers and dry ewes to sell at my usual prices, I did not find them. 

 This did not please me. After a careful study of what I thought I needed in 

 the fall of 1882, in company with my brother, we purchased two rams and 

 four ewe lambs, imported Hampshire Downs. These were sheared in April, 

 1883, and gave eight pounds of wool, each of the ewes raising a lamb. 



These lambs were entirely satisfactory. They came about March 1, 1883, 

 and with the same treatment given to my other sheep and lambs will now 

 (June, 1884) weigh 100 pounds each. I also bred one of these rams to ten 

 fine-wooled ewes, and the produce was equally satisfactory, so much so that 

 I had two hundred ewes last fall to these rams and the cross bloods. I am 

 confident that I am now on the right road to breed wool and mutton, and 

 unless it be stock rams, after next fall I hope never again to own either ewe 

 or wethers over three years old. I shall breed all my strong ewe iambs, and 

 those that are not strong feed and sell to the butcher. After breeding the 

 ewes three times, feed and sell them. 



I see by the catalogue of the Smithfield Club Show of 1883 (England), that 

 premiums are offered for fat wethers under twelve months old, and for over 

 twelve months and under twenty-four months, and for fat ewes three years 

 old or over ; two classes for wethers and one for ewes of each breed or cross- 

 breed. At this show premiums were offered for fifteen distinct breeds and 

 also for cross-bred sheep. 



