u> offset the loss in the East. Since 1880 the decline has been marked, 

 the number falling from 1,776,598 in 1880 to 945,002 in 1890. The 

 causes assigned were the low prices of wool as a result of the tariff 

 1882 the great expansion of sheep raising in the western states, the 

 velopment of coal lands, the ravages of dogs and infestation of 

 parasites. During this period the eastern part of the State was prac- 

 tically stripped of sheep. According to the United States Census of 

 I'.'IO, Pennsylvania had 883,074 sheep, of which 40 per cent, were in 

 Washington and Greene counties. "The Delaine wools of Ohio and 

 Pennsylvania were claimed to be the strongest wools of Merino blood 

 raised in the world/' 16 "The result of the raw wool investigation 

 establishes the fact that it costs more to grow wool in the United 

 States than in any other country; that the Merino wools required in 

 such great volume by our mills, are the most expensive of all wools 

 produced, that the highest average cost in the world is in the state 

 of Ohio and contiguous territory; and that the lowest average cost 

 on similar wool is in Australia." 17 



Types of Sheep. 



There are two general utility types of sheep one is mutton and 

 the other is wool. Many farmers in western Pennsylvania are raising 

 sheep for wool alone, and losing by it. According to investigations by 

 representatives of the Tariff Board, Greene County had 43 per cent, 

 wethers in 191 1 18 whose regular income is wool. "The total cost of 

 maintenance per head is $2.78 in case of crossbreeds and $2.44 in case 

 <>f~ Merino flocks/' 19 There were 543 flocks involved in this investi- 

 gation in this section. "For purebred Merinos the average net charge 

 1 against w r ool per pound was 19 cents, and for crossbreeds 2 cents per 

 pound of wool was returned additional to the value of the fleece/' 

 "It seems important for sheep farmers of the hill regions of Ohio, 

 Pennsylvania and West Virginia, to seek wherever possible to pro- 

 duce fat lambs as an effective means of abating their wool costs/' 20 



The results of several years of investigation at The Pennsylvania 

 State College- 1 have shown that sheep cannot, under average condi- 

 tions, be raised for wool alone or for mutton alone with greatest profit. 

 Mutton, however, is the most important consideration, and wool 



lu Vol. II, Report of Tariff Board, 1912, page 301. 

 17 Vol. I, Report of Tariff Board, 1912, page 10. 

 18 Vol. II, Report of Tariff Board, 1912, page 272. 

 19 Vol. II, Report of Tariff Board, 1912, page 373. 

 -"Vol. II, Report of Tariff Board, 1912, page 550. 



Pennsylvania State College, Annual Reports 1911-12, 1913-14, 1915-16. 



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