630 SHEEP INDUSTRY OF THE UNITED STATES 



Tliese views were generally shared by a majority of the wool-growers, 

 and at tlie meeting of the Southwestern Michigan Breeders' Associa- 

 tion in 1887 the large, smooth sheep, with long bright wool, were com- 

 mended. Sheep which sheared irom 16 to 20 pounds to the fleece, with 

 a 2J to 3-inch staple of fine, lustrous wool, seemed to be the ideal. The 

 next demand was that the sheep be of a good size, for many of the 

 flocks began to run small and lambs were difiScult to raise. The demand 

 for coarse or middle wool rams was believed to be born of the faulty 

 breeding of the Merino, which had been bred solely for wool to the 

 entire neglect of its capacity for mutton. 



The Michigan breeder of Merino sheep is strong in his conviction that 

 there exists no breed of sheep that, for wool and mutton combined, for 

 the general farmer, is so profitable as that sheep when bred and fed for 

 those purposes. He will tell you that all that is necessary is to pay 

 less attention to fleece, to discard wrinkles and oil and breed for the 

 mutton qualities, and he can point to many instances where this course 

 has been pursued with much profit. This can be done by using a large, 

 plain Merino ram, having the lambs come in March, giving good feed, 

 using the knife on ram lambs, and producing by the 1st of April in the 

 following year lambs weighing 100 pounds, selling at $6 per head. 

 '' Keeping the largest and best of the ewe lambs for breeders, it would 

 not take many years to increase the size and mutton qualities to such a 

 degree as to astonish the natives and surprise the breeders of the 

 coarse- wooled breeds." This is the language of the president of the 

 Michigan Merino Association in 1888, and he said, in addition: 



Unless some event shall occur wUcli we can not now foresee, the time, in my opin- 

 ion, is not far off when the majority of our Merino flocks, through discouragement 

 and lack of care in keeping and breeding, will cease to be worthy of the name. 

 Already a large number have dropped out of the register, which argues a want of 

 I'onfidence in the future. Neglect them for two or three years and they will, for all 

 practical purposes, be grades. Let us call a halt and change our hand a little. If 

 we can not compete witli other lands in raising wool we can in mutton; but there is 

 no need to go outside of the Merino for that change. No man can do a more foolish 

 thing than to cross with what is called the mutton breeds. Your first cross will do 

 well enough to sell as lambs, but you gain nothing even then. A large Merino lamb 

 will give as good, if not better, results with same care and less feed, while you can 

 improve your breeding stock at the same time. In the other case you raise three or 

 four crops of Iambs and sell them off, so you have nothing to breed from. 



Uniformity of breeding in certain Hues and for certain purposes is absolutely 

 necessary to secure uniform results, and therefore success. That mutton will con- 

 tinue to grow in favor with the American people is proven by the increasing demand 

 and increasing consumption of this easily-digested and most healthful of meats, 

 while the cost of production per pound is even less than that of beef or pork. 



Another reason why producing mutton will pay is that there is no other means 

 within' reach by which we can keep up and increase the fertility of our farms so 

 easily and so effectually as by keeping aU the sheep we can keep well, for the better 

 we feed them the more valuable the fertilizers produced by them. This will apply 

 to all kinds of stock as well. 



Before the action of the breeders' association there had been efforts 



