SHEEP. 329 



of manufacture, and by the fact that the finest sample of broadcloth shown at the Exposition, 

 though not for competition, was made in this country twenty-three years ago. In blankets and 

 flannels, our products are absolutely unequaled by any made abroad. In fancy cassimeres 

 and worsted coatings the great articles of consumption all over the world we equal any, 

 surpass most, made abroad, in texture, finish, and beauty of design; foreign manufacturers 

 eagerly seeking samples for imitation in their mills. Our thicker cloths for overcoatings 

 suffer nothing in comparison with those made abroad. 



In dress goods, there was little opportunity to make comparison, as Bradford, the prin 

 cipal competitor in classes of goods made by us, did not think it wise to enter the field. But 

 the command of our own market against foreign competition settles the question as to the 

 quality of our goods. In carpets of the cheaper and medium qualities, up to two and three- 

 ply ingrains, we are without competition, making the cheaper kinds so abundantly and cheap, 

 that no home, however humble, need be without this most characteristic of household com 

 forts. The extent of their use in our homes was a subject of siirprise to our foreign visitors. 

 The higher classes of tapestries and Brussels, and still higher, of Wilton and Axminster, in 

 taste of design and perfection of texture, were absolutely equal to the best foreign samples; 

 and, judging from the length and closeness of the pile, surpass them in wearing qualities. In 

 this department, we have nothing to learn abroad. 



That system of production and consumption proves itself to be most economical to the 

 people which makes consumption the most abundant. That our people are the most abundantly 

 and substantially clothed of any in the world needs no demonstration. It is shown in our 

 army, and the vast superiority of its cloths over those furnished to any foreign troops. It is 

 shown in what foreigners at Philadelphia so much admired the beauty of the uniforms of 

 our volunteer troops. It was shown in the costumes of the millions at the Exposition; and, 

 especially, in the absence of all distinction of garb in the people of the seaboard cities, and 

 the remotest interior. The personal appearance of a population indicates its social condition; 

 and thus the woolen industry performs its last part in the national economy by abolishing the 

 outward distinction of class, and cultivating the personal self-respect of the individual 

 citizen.&quot; 



Handles. The ranches or extensive farms devoted especially to stock-raising 

 in many of the far Western States and Territories, sometimes comprise hundreds of thousands 

 of acres, furnishing pasturage to thousands of sheep, which under the charge of one or two 

 ranchmen and their faithful shepherd dogs, are pastured during the day and returned to the 

 corrals or inclosures, for protection at night. The leader of the flock is often a Mexican goat. 



One of the first requisites in establishing a sheep ranch is to find a good supply of water 

 and have it centrally located in a district of good pasturage, where the ranchman proposes to 

 graze his sheep. The usual allowance of range is five acres for each animal; consequently, 

 a very large tract of land is required for keeping several thousand sheep. They are always 

 corralled at night for protection against wolves and other animals. Cattle and sheep should 

 never be kept together on the same ranch, as the sheep eat the grass down so closely that 

 nothing is left for the cattle, and they also leave an odor which is offensive to the latter. The 

 cost of managing sheep is greater than that of handling cattle, yet the returns are generally 

 quicker and larger, since a herd of young cattle begins to yield an income only at the expira 

 tion of about three years, while the sheep yield a crop of wool the first summer they are 

 driven upon a ranch, and the increase of numbers is much larger. They are also easier to 

 take care of than cattle; hence, the life of a shepherd is less laborious than that of a cattle 

 herder. 



Sheep should be herded both summer and winter in separate flocks of not more than two 

 or three hundred each. When the pasturage in one section of the ranch is closely cropped, 

 they should be driven to another, and so on to different localities in rotation, to constantly 



