FINE WOOL SHEEP HUSBANDBY. 121 



pounds. They and their descendants were bred 

 steadily to heavy but fine fleeced American Merino 

 rams. In the year 1860 the flock was 284, and yield- 

 ed an average of five pounds of thoroughly washed 

 wool (with an excess of 11 pounds on the whole 

 flock) ; and such was its condition on the sorter's table, 

 that it lost but 5-J- pounds out of 1,431 pounds, inclu- 

 ding strings and every thing else rejected. It sorted 

 as follows : No. 1, 71 Ibs. ; No. 2, 331 Ibs. ; No. 3, 

 493 Ibs. ; No. 4, 195 Ibs. ; fribs, 189 Ibs. ; No. 5, 102 

 Ibs. ; No. 6, 29 Ibs. ; No. 7, 12 Ibs. ; No. 8, 3 Ibs. 

 The wool of this flock, from its beautiful quality, style 

 and condition, has sold for 50 cents a pound for five 

 years past within half a cent of the average price 

 of the best wool during that period in the Boston 

 market. It thus gives on the average $2.50 net to 

 the fleece. How many un pampered flocks of Ameri- 

 can Merinos will equal this? This is the fruit of a 

 true cross. These sheep belong to James Geddes, 

 Esq., of Fairmount, Onondaga Co., N. Y.* 



In attempting thus to change the character of a 

 flock, violent crosses are to be avoided so far as ma- 

 terials will allow. First, the inferior variety should 

 approach the characteristics of the superior as far as 

 practicable ; second, even the superior variety should 

 avoid the greatest extremes in certain particulars, and 

 unquestionably so in size. In breeding up a Saxon 

 flock to the American Merino standard, that cross 

 should not be commenced with an overgrown ram of 

 the latter. How far this rule applies in respect to 



* There are other excellent flocks of a similar cross, and a number 

 of excellent American Merino flocks in the same county, but I am in 

 possession of no definite statistics in relation to them. 

 6 



