GRAZING INDUSTRY OF THE BLUEGRASS REGION. 11 
It will be seen from the data in Table I that the returns varied 
from $2.10 per acre for the lowest to $14.08 for the highest. The 
average net returns, after allowing a good price for the roughage 
on the farm, are $8.60 per acre of pasture. This $8.60 must pay 
the taxes, insurance, fencing, and labor of caring for the pastures 
and stock. The labor bill is small, and so are the other items; but 
after these are paid there is not much left as interest on the invest- 
ment. At the present prevailing prices of land the average blue- 
grass farmer does not make over 3 or 4 per cent on his investment. 
The average rental price per acre for pasture land in this region is 
$3 an acre for fairly good land to $5 an acre for the best. It is a 
safe, attractive business to men with considerable capital. 
Fig. 10.— One of the best producing pastures in the bluegrass region. 
VALUE OF A PASTURE WHEN GRAZED WITH SHEEP. 
Sheep grazing is next in importance to cattle grazing over most 
of the bluegrass region. While the total value of the horses and mules 
is greatly in excess of that of sheep, most of the former are kept 
for work purposes. 
The income from the sheep is derived principally from the wool 
and lambs. Ewes that are too old for breeding purposes are also 
sold for mutton. The lambs are sold at about 5 months of age, 
when they should weigh about 80 pounds each. 
The chief drawbacks to the sheep industry of the bluegrass region 
are dogs, internal parasites such as stomach worms, nodular dis- 
ease, etc. Sheep raised in the higher mountain regions of West 
Virginia and Kentucky are less infested with stomach worms than 
those in the lower altitudes. On. this account there is a considerable 
demand for breeding ewes that were raised at these higher places. 
