608 



SHEEP INDUSTRY OF THE UNITED STATES 



sheep are good for some other purpose than producing wool. The effect of this 

 tendency, combined with recollections of past experiences, has been to divert atten- 

 tion from the sheep as a factor in meat production. And this in face of the fact that 

 a pound of mutton can be produced as economically and sold for as much money as 

 can be had for a pound of either beef or pork. Restricting estimates of profit from 

 sheep to the quantity and selling value of wool is seriously misleading, inasmuch 

 as it excludes a very important factor from the calculation. And this fact must be 

 kept in mind when laying the foundation of a ilock, as well as through all subsequent 

 manipulations. The type of sheep to start with is one with a good body as well as 

 a bountiful fleece ; and in all future breeding and feeding care must be taken to pre- 

 serve this equilibrium of merit. It is the failure to get the most possible out of car- 

 cass as well as from fleece that has encouraged the too prevalent belief that sheep 

 husbandry can not be profitably pursued on valuable agricultural lands. The mis- 

 take in such conclusion becomes apparent when we recall the fact that English 

 farmers find some profit in sheep when kept on lands valued at $100 to $300 per acre. 

 True, the price obtained for mutton is higher there than here, but there is no sucli 

 disparity in price between the two markets as to explain the variance in estimates 

 of the value of sheep in a diversified agriculture. The explanation must be sought 

 in the type of sheep and the peculiarities of management that obtain in the two 

 countries. In England, where fields have been cropped for the lifetimes of four and 

 five generations, experience has forced the farmer to have regard for the preserva- 

 tion of fertility in his lands, and hs credits something to the sheep that contributes 

 to this end. 



The raising of early lambs is now followed to some extent by many 

 farmers, and proves to be a profitable business. Fattening mutton for 

 tlie fall market is also pursued to a great advantage wliere the farmer 

 has good pasturage, particularly blue grass. The fattening of Western 

 sheep is a large business. Carload after carload comes into the Chi- 

 cago market from the country beyond the Mississippi. The sheep are 

 purchased by the farmers, sometimes for a song, runout to their farms, 

 fattened on corn and hay, if in the fall or winter, and sold at a good 

 round profit, the farmer retaining on his land that which enriches it 

 beyond the capacity of any manufactured fertilizer. 



But, notwithstanding the great advantages possessed by Illinois as a 

 sheep-raising State, the number- of sheep has long been on the decline. 

 The following table, giving the number of sheep from 1840 to 1890, 

 shows this at a glance. The iigures from 1840 to 1880 are taken from 

 the United States census ; those for 1890 from the U. S. Department of 

 Agriculture. The decline from 1870 to 1890 is remarkable. The great 

 decline from 1880 to 1890 began about 1884, when mutton and wool were 

 both low, but continued even after mutton had advanced in price. 



