28 BULLETIN" 206, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
baled is because they received the benefit of a more favorable freight 
rate. 
Ordinarily the sheep owner can not know as much about the de- 
mands of the market and how the wool should be graded as does the 
wool grader, or, as he is called in Australia, the "crasser." This man 
must always work to the same standard. Attempts of various 
owners by whom he might be employed to make his work conform 
to their own ideas would render impossible that miiformity in the 
classers work which is necessary to hold the confidence of the buyer 
as to the put up of the clips. 
SKIRTING THE FLEECES. 
Skirting fleeces consists in the removal of the bell}" and the other 
less valuable parts. When wools are skirted the bell}" is separated 
/ 
Fig. 1. — Diagram showing portion of fleece ordinarily removed in skirting. 
by the shearer and skirting consists of the removal of the parts indi- 
cated in figure 1. The belly wool has already been removed from 
the fleece shown in this figure. The advantage of this lies in the fact 
that some manufacturers needing higher qualities of wool can buy 
the bodies of the fleeces alone when they would not care to incur the 
trouble and expense of separating and reselling the inferior parts, as 
is necessary when entire fleeces are purchased. 
