WOOL growers' association. 391 



ifr. Aikman. I would rather handle a Shorthorn bull than a sheep. There ia 

 no money in them for me at present, owing to the low price of wool. My faiher 

 and I were in partnership in the sheep busine■^s. He retired from the farm, and I 

 could not attend to all. I preferred hogs and cattle to sheep. If we take the right 

 kind of care of them, and the price of wool is ample, there is some money in 

 them. 



Mr. Harkness. I breed Cotswold sheep, and am better pleased this year than I 

 ever was. I make it a rule to take good care of my sheep. A year ago a manu- 

 facturer gave me a little information on the subject of wool. I was not aware that 

 wool exposed to the weather was of better qualiiy than " stable " wool. I had a 

 different opinion, but he said he would rather buy wool that had been expo^-ed to 

 the weather. This winter I am not taking so good care of them, and the wool is 

 cleaner and nicer than when keeping them in the stable. I do not keep many 

 sheep — say thirty to fifty breeding ewes. My choice is Cotswold. They produce 

 more wool and mutton than any other sheep. I sold my wool last spring at 

 Knightstown, for 23 cents per pound. My breeding ewes averaged from eleven to 

 twelve pounds of wool. I made 60 cents a month per sheep, or $6.00 a year. Sheep 

 will pay better with wool at 20 cents a pound and the increase than any stock I 

 handle, besides keeping down weeds and briars. 



Mr. Beeler. What reason did they assign for the wool not being so good when 

 housed ? 



Mr. Harkness. The fiber was not considered so good. 



Mr. Mitchell. The sheep are being sent to market from our part of the State. 

 The farmers are discouraged. When we got 25 and 30 cents a pound for wool, it 

 would do very well. I sold last year at 18 cents a pound. I think the best cross 

 Mr. Nelson could get would be a Shropshire buck to put with his flock. They are 

 a good wool and mutton sheep. There seems to be a pernicious fashion of painting 

 sheep up with yellow ochie for fairs. Go where you may, you will find the sheep 

 " doctored " up in this way. It is all wrong. I move that a committee be 

 appointed to draft resolutions regarding the tariff". 



Mr. Hinvland. I am opposed to such a committee. My opinion is, we can pro- 

 duce wool as cheap as anybody else. The present price of wool may seem cheap 

 to what it was twenty years ago. During the war it was as high as 40, 50, and even 

 60 cents a pound. We can produce wool as cheap as any other country. Our 

 pastures are ample, and we need not fear England or Germany, or any of those 

 countries of the Old World. I shall vote against the motion. 



Mr. Darnell. I am in favor of Mr. Mitchell's motion, and shall support it. 



Mr. Nelscm. I am a tariff" man. We can not rdiy-e sheep and wool under the 

 present tariff". I shall support Mr. Mitchell's motion. I should like to see the 

 tariff" restored as it was. 



Mr. Mitchell. I am astonished that those gentlemen will say we can raise wool 

 as cheap as in Australia— in that country where land and labor are so cheap. The 

 United States Congressmen are our servants, and we should try to have them 

 adjust this tariff" question satisfactorily to us. 1 am decidedly in favor of giving 

 expression on that question, so our law-makers may know the wishes of the wool 

 growers of Indiana, 



