ARGENTINA 



101 



" The first sheep brought to the mainland by the Falk- 

 landers were hardy Shropshires, with a strong infusion of 

 Merino, a type that was speedily modified, before the settlers 

 stretched the seemingly limitless plains. The problem given 

 bhem was to convert their grasses in the shortest possible time 

 into mutton and wool. To this end larger breeds were intro- 

 duced, principally Lincoln and Romney Marsh, and it is from 

 this last-named strain that the majority of Patagonian wools 

 are clipped to-day. 



Sheep in Patagonia 



" On these higher pampas of the tablelands the soil is worn 

 perilously thin, small patches of grass alternating with a sur- 

 face of pure gravel and useless scrub, and^Nature's warm pro- 

 vision of wool grew coarse and luxuriant in the teeth of the 

 blustering winds that swept across them. The newer breeds 

 of sheep imported by the settlers strode joyfully patch 

 to patch, picking out the softer grasses, and from one long- 

 legged generation to another they waxed fat and kicked. 



"The farmers of Southern Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego 

 are mostly hardy Scotch, practical Englishmen, or New 

 Zealanders, as, by the way, are most of their shepherds and 

 hands. The Argentine and Chilean peon have given but poor 



