264 Til K WORLDS MEAT FUTURE 



nut daring pasl years. They, however, can be easily got rid 

 of by cultivation. There is almost an entire absence of 

 trees. On the ranges, however, cedars are plentiful, and on 

 cue part in the north there is the forest of Marmora, consisting 

 of 300.000 acres of cork elms. 



Live Stock 



"There are 6,000,000 merino sheep and 1,000,000 cattle, a 

 small beast showing distinctly a Jersey type. The sheep are 

 poor specimens in type, giving about Z\ lbs. of mushy wool, 

 without character with a pre-war value of about Is. to Is. Id. 

 per fleece. The sheep indusl rv is carried out in a most primi- 

 tive May. rams and ewes mate when they like, and lambs 

 come at all times of the year. No castration is performed, and 

 the result is what practical sheep men can expect. At shearing 

 the animal is tied and the fleece removed with a crude pair 

 of scissors ; the belly wool is never removed, as the natives 

 believe it keeps the animal from catching cold. There are 

 few or no diseases in the country, a little lung worm among 

 the lambs, and a little tick and red water among the cattle, 

 but nothing of serious moment. The natives earn 3 francs a 

 day, about 2s. 4d., and are very ready to learn new methods. 

 They work well if watched, but are fond of gossip and talk 

 whenever they get a chance. I castrated a few sheep and some 

 calves for their edification ; it was wonderful how quickly 

 t Iky seized the idea and the method of doing it. 



" There is no fencing in the country ; all the stock are 

 yarded at night, but there are no wild animals to injure them. 

 The cattle kill at about 450 lbs. Large numbers alive, with 

 sheep and pigs, are shipped regularly to France. Negotiations 

 are being entered into with a firm to erect freezing works at 

 Casablanca, or some other port on the coast, and doubtless, 

 in the future, there will be a substantial export of frozen meat. 

 The pig industry is large ; pigs are to be seen everywhere. 

 They live almost entirely on truffles and snails, and the flesh 

 is delicious. A big trade could be built up at once in frozen 

 pork. There are almost unlimited possibilities for the industry. 

 " Poultry is another very large industry. Millions of eggs 



