than one-half blood quality and more than two and one-half inches 

 in- length. The term "clothing" refers to the same quality of wool as 

 "combing," but less than two and one-half inches in length. "Wash- 

 ed" refers to fleeces coming from sheep that have been washed prior 

 to shearing, while "unwashed" is a term referring to fleeces that are 

 unwashed. "Unmerchantable" refers to poorly washed, improperly 

 tied or dirty fleeces, but does not mean unsalable wool. "Fine" has 

 the same significance as X or Delaine quality. 



Fig. 29. The right manner of opening a fleece to study its characteristics. 



"Half-blood, three-eighths blood and quarter blood grades, as th< 

 terms were coined, referred to wool from sheep of half, three-eighth; 

 and quarter Merino blood, but have no such significance now. Wool; 

 grading as high as half-blood can come from sheep having no tract 

 of Merino blood ; the Southdown, for instance, produces wool thai 

 sometimes grades that high, and this breed has been kept pure froi 

 the outside for centuries. On the other hand, quarter blood woulc 

 rarely come from sheep containing Merino blood, and braid is th< 

 lowest grade of all. It usually refers to luster wool, such as mighl 

 come from Lincoln or Cotswold Sheep." 52 Most of the medium-wool 



52 U. S. Department of Agriculture Bulletin No. 206, 1915. 



60 



