

EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. 335 



and the Merino, about 1842, produced a useful and serviceable sheep, 

 better adapted to the farmer who sheared and wove his own fleece, than 

 the pure Merino, and it became very popular. Washington County at 

 one time had some fine flocks mixed Spanish and Saxon Merino, but by 

 1850 wool-growing for profit was practically abandoned. The farmers 

 kept about as many sheep as sufficed the family wants, and those of a 

 mixed kind, giving a 3-pound fleece. Waldo County went through 

 the same experience and where, formerly, large numbers of Spanish 

 Merinos and Saxonies were kept, by 1850 coarser wooled sheep had 

 supplanted them. Somerset County was formerly the greatest fine-wool 

 growing county in the State. W. E. Flint began a Spanish Merino 

 flock in 1820, and after an experience of more than thirty years was 

 convinced that the Merino would grow more wool from the same weight 

 of carcass, would eat a greater variety of food, and would produce wool 

 as cheap per pound as any of the coarser breeds. They required more 

 attention through the five months of winter than the coarser native, 

 but the compensation for the extra care was more than obtained by 

 the less amount of food consumed by them in producing the same 

 quantity of wool. The flocks of the county, young and old together, 

 averaged 3J pounds of wool per head, and instances of shearing 8 or 10 

 pounds from a sheep were not uncommon. A ton of hay would winter 

 sheep enough for a clip of 17 pounds. Wool-growing was considered 

 profitable when the wool could be sold at 33 to 35 cents, but the 

 fluctuations in price rendered the business a precarious one and de- 

 terred many from pursuing it, who preferred the less hazardous and less 

 expensive system of raising coarse wool and mutton and lambs for 

 market. And this was better adapted to a careless system of hus- 

 bandry which, unfortunately, was too common everywhere. When fine 

 wool ceased to pay many farmers bred their Merino ewes to long- 

 pooled rams, principally Leicester, and from crosses of these on the 

 common sheep some good mutton sheep were produced. A flock of 

 considerable note and profit was built up in this manner. From a half- 

 blood Leicester and Merino ewe and a polled half-blood ram, of moder- 

 ate size and neat form, a breeder produced a ram which was then used 

 on his whole flock. This brought the produce to one-eighth Leicester 

 and seven-eighths Merino. On this basis the sheep were bred for several 

 years and a great uniformity was attained, and they were a pretty and 

 useful sheep in reference to the kind of wool wanted, with considerable 

 more fattening tendency than the pure Merinos. Crosses of this kind 

 both with the Saxony and Spanish Merino, and also crosses of the 

 Merinos on the native sheep, produced a middling- sized sheep and a 

 good grade wool. 



Aroostook County had no pure breeds, but considerable attention 

 was paid to raising sheep both for wool and mutton. The wool was 

 used largely in domestic manufacture, the surplus commanding good 

 prices in the manufacturing towns, while fat sheep and lambs from 



