240 FARM ANIMALS 



great prevalence of the Merino in this region is 

 due to the fact that the main purpose of raising 

 sheep in that region is to obtain wool. Sheep men 

 have gradually realized that the greatest profits 

 from sheep under their conditions are to be ob- 

 tained from wool and not from mutton. The 

 distance of the chief sheep ranges from markets 

 is so great as to prevent the sheep men from real- 

 izing attractive prices from shipping sheep to the 

 Chicago market or other sheep markets. To be 

 sure, these sheep may be fattened on the native 

 grasses and sold in the local market, but the de- 

 mand is not sufficient to encourage a large number 

 of feeders to go into the business. 



This may be considered as the usual point of view 

 of the western sheep man. A large number of sheep 

 raisers in the West, however, have come to the 

 conclusion that profits may be made from feeding 

 sheep and shipping them to the eastern markets 

 and these men have actually made good profits 

 from feeding sheep and shipping them on this 

 basis. The majority of the western sheep raisers 

 have agreed, however, that it does not pay to 

 compete in the main markets with the sheep 

 raisers of the East and they have, therefore, settled 

 down to the business of producing wool rather 

 than a high grade of mutton and of considering 

 mutton as a secondary matter in the sheep busi- 

 ness. If this view continues to prevail there is 

 obviously little direct competition between the 

 East and the West in the matter of sheep raising, 

 for the West would thus continue to produce 

 sheep for wool and the eastern sheep raisers would 

 continue to feed their sheep on forcing rations, 

 thus, giving them the finest market finish and 

 getting them on the market at times when the 



