THE WOOL INDUSTRY. 81 



lime and sulphur preparation. It is a fact that the majority of 

 the wool clip from the "Western States, namely, Colorado, 'New 

 Mexico, Arizona, "Wyoming and Utah, is seriously depreciated 

 in value from the fleece containing this defect, and it has been 

 argued more particularly at Farmers' Society meetings in the 

 East by certain local authorities that it was due to the alkali dust 

 robbing the fleece of its natural yolk. This idea is erroneous, 

 however, a properly topped fleece containing the normal amoimt 

 •of yolk will not permit the entry of foreign substances, whether 

 it be dirt, sand or alkali dust ; but the mere fact of dipping sheep 

 in the sohition above mentioned, which robs it of its power of 

 self-protection, is almost wholly responsible for this defect in 

 Western fleeces. This is easily shown. Sheepmen who use 

 standard preparations which contain mineral or vegetable oils 

 and which do not exert caustic properties on the wool fibres, do 

 not experience this diflUculty in the fleece. 



Mr. H. W. Smart of Ogden, "Utah, who runs between 

 50,000 and 55,000 sheep on the range annually, in talking to the 

 writer on the subject of dips made this statement: ""We have 

 had to fight the scab year after year, and have used lime and sul- 

 phur because it was cheap. There is no doubt that it is in- 

 jurious to the sheep, causing break in the wool, besides exerting 

 a cauterising effect of the skin, and we are continually experi- 

 menting with and are on the lookout for something to take its 

 place which will not be too expensive." If Mr. Smart was to 

 take into consideration the amount of money which he loses an- 

 nually from this defect in his wool clip from the use of the above 

 named solution, he could well afford to use some preparations 

 which are known to be effective, and which do not cause this de- 

 fect in the fleece, even though it cost him five cents per head to 

 dip his sheep. 



While the production of wool in the United States has stead- 

 ily increased from year to year, the supply has never been suffi- 



