1848. 



GENESEE FARMER. 



49 



broad. The wool is often matted upon the neck, 

 back and thighs, and grows upon the head to the 

 eyes, and upon the legs to the very feet. The 

 grease in their fleece is almost pitchy, so as to 

 render the washing very difficult. He describes 

 the mode of washing as follows : 



" A warm, mild day, without harsh or drying wind, is 

 indispensable. A marl-pit, with a depth of from eight to 

 ten feet of clear water is a favorite washing place. The 

 sheep are thrown in from a stage in the evening, and made 

 to swim the whole length of the pond (twenty or thirty 

 yards) between rails, with boards on one side, from which 

 women or boys assist them through their bath, by placing 

 wooden rakes or crooks under their cliins, and so passing 

 them onwards. When the water has dripped from their 

 fleeces for an hour or two, the sheep are put into a house 

 for the night, as close together as possible, in order to cause 

 the greater evaporation, and the next day they are swum 

 three or four times through the pond, and they are kept in 

 the house (well supplied with clean straw) on dry food, for 

 three or four days, until the wool, by sweating as it is 

 termed, has recovered its characteristic softness. Tlie 

 fleece of this species is generally thick, closely grown, and 

 abundant. Ewes 'average two and a quarter to three 

 and a quarter pounds, by careful feeding {which, however, 

 mi/^t never approach to feeding to he fat, else the wool hecmnes 

 wiry and hard,) and rams and wethers vary from four 

 pounds to even six pounds." 



The Escurial Saxon breed have long, tapering 

 necks, small heads, with little wool upon them, 

 .round carcasses, with rather narrow, yet deep 

 chests, and when in good flesh, generally well 

 proportioned. Indeed, specimens may be se- 

 lected from the best flocks, which rival in sym- 

 metry of form any sheep in the world. Com- 

 pared with other breeds, they are small, and con- 

 sequently their fleece are proportionably light ; 

 but being comparatively free from gum, is one 

 of the prominent causes. The average weight 

 of the ewe fleeces is from one and a half to two 

 and a half pounds, and full grown wethers and 

 rams from two and a half to four pounds. The 

 finest and purest flocks yield heavier fleeces than 

 those engrafted on common stock. 



Extraordinary care is observed in washing 

 the sheep before shearing (another cause of the 

 fleeces weighing light,) which is manifested by 

 the little loss when subjected to the manufac- 

 turer's process of cleansing. 



The shearing is conducted in the most skilful 

 manner, each shearer, generally, being limited 

 as to the number of fleeces he is to clip per day, 

 in order to ensure a greater degree of care in 

 his work. Thus, the skins of the sheep are not 

 mangled as in our country, and otherwise pre 

 senting a slovenly appearance, from unevenness 

 of the clippings. 



After the shearing season is past, the wool is 

 bought of the small proprietors by agents of 

 wool merchants, and transported to Hamburg, 

 Breslau and Leipsic, where it is sorted, and re- 

 sold for exportation and home manufacture. The 

 annual wool Fairs of Leipsic are wonders in 

 their way, millions of pounds often exchanging 

 hands in a single day. The large proprietors 

 of pure flocks effect their sales by samples, sub 

 ject to sorting, which is an art nowhere better 

 understood than in Germany. The fleeces of 



the same quality are opened and spread flat 

 against each other, when packing, and each bale 

 is made to contain from four to five hundred 

 pounds. The amount of German wools (which 

 includes Prussian, Saxon and Austrian) annually 

 exported is enormous, England receiving an- 

 nually from 20 to 30,000,000 of pounds ; the 

 amount taken by France is also many million.« 

 of pounds. 



Few Americans are aware of the superiority 

 of German woollen fabrics, as, from the great 

 pains and therefore expense involved, in their 

 manufacture, few specimens comparatively reach 

 our shores. The Germans make no haste in 

 doing anything, but all their performances are 

 conducted with skill, and with an eye to dura- 

 bility ; and thus German cloths are unrivalled 

 in strength, the brilliancy and permanency of 

 their dyes. 



Winter Management op Sheep. — Sheep 

 suffer in our long winters for want of green food. 

 Give them roots of various kinds, such as pota- 

 toes, carrots, beets, parsnips, and turneps. For 

 a monsh or so before yearing, they should not 

 have roots, or only a few, as they will produce a 

 premature flow of milk, and cause it to cake 

 in the bag. At this time, they may have a very 

 few roots, to keep the bowels open, and prevent 

 their faltering for want of access to the ground. 

 Carrots are best, as they do not produce so large 

 a flow of milk as other roots, but tend in part to 

 keep up the condition. Do not feed too high 

 before the yearing season. 



Give sheep, in winter, as condiments, salt, 

 wood ashes, clay, and pure earth. Give them 

 also as salutary or medicinal food, cedar, pine, 

 spruce, hemlock, fir, and other boughs. And by 

 all means give them a good supply of pure 

 water. As they eat dry fodder they will drink 

 often and freely. They cannot satisfy their 

 thirst by eating snow, any more than a man 

 can by devouring snow, or sucking an icicle. 

 We have kept sheep and cattle about the same 

 distance from water, say seven rods, and the 

 sheep would go and drink twice as often as the 

 cattle. They would not eat more than an hour in 

 the morning, before they would all run and drink. 

 They will go a considerable distance for this 

 purpose, if kindly invited at first, by a lock of 

 hay, or something else to entice them, instead of 

 frightening them with dogs and noisy boys, in 

 the vain attempt to drive them. 



When sheep have been long from the ground, 

 they will often do as well to let them out in spring 

 as soon as the ground is bare, feeding them also 

 with the best of hay, and with roots and provender. 



Clover hay is the best for sheep ; we have 

 known flocks to do well and raise fine early lambs, 

 when their feed during winter has been nothing 

 but excellent clover hay, and pure water, to which 

 they had access in the yard. — Calebs Vetfn. 



