SECTION I. 



HISTORY OF THE BREEDS. 



The word sheep is of unknown etymology, and 

 the origin of the animal itself is veiled in obscurity 

 as great. It is supposed that domesticated sheep 

 originated from the wild forms of sheep, the 

 "Mouflon," the "Musimon," and the "Argali." 



The sheep is also one of the oldest of all do- 

 mesticated animals; the different breeds are the 

 result-s of environment, combined with man's 

 ingenuity. For detailed histories the reader is 

 referred to the various excellent texts on sheep 

 management 1 ; space permits us to give only the 

 briefest mention of the development of the sheep 

 industry in this country. 



No domesticated sheep were found in North 

 America by the early explorers, and the wild 

 Eocky Mountain sheep has never been tamed 

 nor crossed with domesticated breeds. 



For centuries, Spain controlled the fine-wool 

 sheep of the world, and no exportations were 

 allowed to other countries, until in 1765, when 

 three hundred Spanish sheep were introduced 

 into Saxony by royal favor, and became the foun- 

 dation stock of the Saxony Merinos. In 1783, the 

 French government imported Spanish sheep and 



iThose consulted were : 



Craig's "Sheep Farming." 



Wing's "Sheep Farming in America." 



Kleinheinz's "Sheep Management." 



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