5i6 SHEEP 



Delaines of this family should have a staple three inches long 

 for twelve months' growth. Rams at maturity should weigh at 

 least 150 pounds and ewes not less than 100 pounds. 



The maintenance of Delaine or C type in these families is 

 through selection or by introducing new blood, in which as a rule 

 the ram is of the B type. For example, one may visit the flocks 

 of prominent Merino breeders in which both American and 

 Delaine sheep are found. The former are mated with the latter, 

 according to circumstances, in order to regulate type and wool 

 production. If a Delaine ewe of excellent mutton type has too 

 open and light a fleece she will be bred to an American ram of 

 B type possessing high wool-producing qualities, with the expec- 

 tation of obtaining a Delaine with a better fleece. More folds 

 may exist at the neck and breast, but not enough to furnish seri- 

 ous objection on the part of the Delaine breeder. The important 

 thing is to keep up the size and mutton form without reducing 

 the amount and character of the wool below a satisfactory grade. 

 This calls for a fleece to grade XX or better and have a staple 

 of superior length, diameter, strength, and crimp. There should 

 also be plenty of free-flowing oil, essential for a high-grade 

 fleece. From a recent interesting pamphlet on the Merino,^ by 

 S. M. Cleaver, one of the greatest constructive breeders of the 

 Merino, the following abstracts are made. Breeders of the C type 

 Merino find great difficulty in uniting a satisfactory mutton form 

 and weight of fleece in the absence of any corrugations in the 

 skin. Folds are associated with density and weight of fleece. No 

 family of sheep ever attained a higher quality of oil among the 

 plain-breeding than did the Berry breeders of Pennsylvania. Very 

 early in the history of Merino breeding in this country their flocks 

 attained a great reputation for having a dark surface. There were 

 other C type flocks in the country that produced a longer staple, 

 but not a higher-class wool. The Wells and Dickinson flocks of 

 Merinos never showed the high-class dark surface that the Berry 

 breeding did, although as a rule they had a little longer staple 

 — and possibly a little more density of fleece — with somewhat 

 better covering. Originally they were as one flock from the same 

 importation. After the flock was divided each part was bred purely 

 1 Merino History and Merino Breeding. Delaware, Ohio, 1918. 



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