228 Western Live-stock Management 



yarns the process of combing is omitted and the wool is 

 so treated that the fibers are intermingled and interlaced 

 as much as possible. The resulting yarns are, of course, 

 very different. The worsted yarns are hard, firm, and 

 strong, while the woolen are softer, more loose, and not 

 as strong. The worsted yarns are adapted to make 

 smooth-faced light fabrics, while the woolen are better 

 suited for the soft, heavy-fulled goods. The manu- 

 facturer of the worsted yarns, therefore, requires a longer 

 and stronger fiber than is necessary for the carded or 

 woolen yarns. In the early days of the woolen business, 

 only the longest and strongest fibers could be combed 

 and therefore the only wools known on the market as 

 combing wools were those of a very long, strong nature, 

 such as would be obtained from pure-bred or high-grade 

 Cotswold or Lincoln sheep. The shorter wools, such as 

 those coming from the Shropshire or Merino breeds, were 

 in those days not considered long enough to comb. Recent 

 improvements, however, in the process of manufacture 

 have made it possible to comb much shorter wool than 

 was formerly the case. There is no hard and fast dividing 

 line between combing and clothing wools, but generally 

 speaking, the finest grades of wool should be at least two 

 inches long in order to be classed as combing. With the 

 coarser wools, a greater length is required and with the 

 very coarse wool, such as would be obtained from pure- 

 bred Cotswold or Lincoln sheep, only those longer than 

 four-and-one-half inches would be considered as combing 

 wools. At the present time, the wool from Cotswolds 

 and Lincolns, as well as from most Merinos, would class 

 as combing wool. The better grades of fleeces from the 

 Down or mutton breeds would also come in this class, 

 although the proportion of clothing wool from these 



