SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTS IN FEEDING. 181 



Doubtless some of the failures that have beeii made 

 and which have led the disappointed persons to feel, as it is 

 said the noted Mr. Randolph of Virginia did, when he said 

 that he would go a long way to kick a sheep have had their 

 origin in attempts made to keep sheep that have been 

 originated and. encouraged by this common assertion as to 

 the special adaptability of poor impoverished lands to the 

 .business of rearing sheep, but have failed disastrously. 



In this experiment the lambs were procured from the 

 very best sources, and while the Canadian breeders are to 

 be complimented on the fact that their flocks were chiefly 

 selected as the best sources from which to procure entirely 

 satisfactory lambs for the tests, yet it should be thought 

 by the breeders of the United States, as somewhat of a re- 

 flection on their enterprise and business test, that a sufficient 

 number of good lambs could not be procured to supply ma- 

 terial for such an important scientific experiment as this. 

 The best specimens of each breed were very carefully se- 

 lected, and as soon as the lambs arrived they were dipped, 

 and during the month of August they pastured in a large 

 meadow of timothy and blue grass, having a good after- 

 math. 



As a preliminary the lambs were treated with turpentine 

 and worm powders- in the usual manner, not so much as a 

 remedy for any existing disease, but as a preventive and to 

 insure the absence of anything that might interfere with the 

 successful issue of the experiments. It is well to know that 

 every needed preliminary precaution to insure success was 

 taken, so that the comparative results given may be received 

 with certainty. It is unnecessary to give in full detail the 

 whole of the arrangements made for the feeding of the 

 lambs, it will be sufficient to say that every precaution 

 was taken to prepare the lambs in the best manner for the 

 tests, and to carry these out with true scientific exactness. 

 The lambs were gradually led up to the full feeding with 

 every caution, during a preliminary period of two months. 

 It is to be considered in such an experiment as this, 'in 

 which the lambs were frequently weighed and subjected 

 to disturbances that must necessarily interfere with the 

 growth for no other animal is so easily disturbed in this 

 way as a sheep that there will be some allowance to be 



