384 DOMESTIC ANIMALS, DAIRYING, ETC. 



providing the tags are well washed and thoroughly dry. It is be- 

 lieved, however, that it would be more businesslike to sell the washed 

 tags separately, as the wool will never be as valuable as the rest of 

 the fleece. It is perfectly legitimate to tie up all the wool that grows 

 on the sheep in the fleece, provided that the wool is free from all 

 foreign substances which would add to the natural weight of the 

 fleece. 



There are two distinct classes of growers who put tags into the 

 fleece. The first class includes growers who put tags into the fleece 

 either through absolute carelessness or with the evident intent of 

 deceiving the buyer. For such one should have no sympathy and 

 one has reason to believe this class of men is small. The second class 

 includes growers who are progressive and business like. This state- 

 ment sounds inconsistent, but it is not. These men have cut out 

 tags and litter very carefully, it may be for two or three years, they 

 have observed that, as a rule, they get no more for their wool than 

 the men who put tags and all into their fleeces. This suggests that 

 buyers are not careful enough in recognizing careful painstaking 

 methods on the part of the progressive growers. Buyers know the 

 extra value of clean wool. Let them encourage the honest, painstak- 

 ing growers in a substantial manner by giving more per pound for 

 their wool, a thing which they can well afford to do. Let them, at 

 the same time, discriminate against wool carelessly tied, or that con- 

 tains chaff, burrs and other litter. Until buyers rigidly adhere to 

 the above policy there can be but little improvement expected among 

 wool growers. 



The second and third objections are so closely associated that it 

 is difficult to separate the two in a discussion of them. If the reader 

 has carefully read the foregoing pages he will have a very definite 

 idea in regard to the way the local dealers, commission men and 

 manufacturers consider the present methods of growers in tying up 

 their wool. (Mich. B. 178.) 



ESSENTIALS OF A GOOD FLEECE. 



The modern mutton sheep must also be a wool producer. Our 

 future wool supply must come largely from sheep grown primarily 

 for mutton. It is essential, then, that a mutton sheep have a good 

 fleece as well as a good carcass. This combination is both prac- 

 ticable and profitable ; and it is no longer regarded necessary to grow 

 one sheep for a fleece, another for a carcass, and another for a lamb. 

 The intelligent flock-master combines them all in one class. Some 

 of the best mutton sheep are producing as profitable fleeces as those 

 kept exclusively for wool, and their lambs are decidedly superior. 

 One of the first essentials in a good fleece is compactness or density. 

 This quality not only insures a better yield of wool, but it affords 

 better protection against storm and indicates a hardier animal, 

 better able to withstand exposure. A 'dose, even, dense fleece with 

 no breaks should cover all parts of the body, including the head, 

 limbs, and under parts. The tendency in improvement of the 

 wool-producing qualities of all modern breeds has been toward car- 

 rying the fleece more completely over the head, face, limbs, and 



