XV 
SHEEP 
149 
could have been no appreciable difference in profit, 
and for the man with cheap land and limited capital 
the native ewe may still prove the best friend. 
Now supposing that our settler has decided on 
grading up the native sheep, the next question to be 
settled is the type to be acquired. At present the 
Masai ewe has proved herself the most adaptable; she 
has a strong constitution, and though flat-sided is of 
considerable size. Three parts of the trading stock in 
circulation in the Protectorate came from the Masai 
and at prices of from six to eight shillings breeders 
will not go far wrong with them. A type the true 
value of which is hardly yet appreciated is the 
Samburu, a breed of Persian sheep, on the small side, 
but well shaped, with fine bone, and excellent mothers. 
The cross-bred lambs from this type show a better 
staple and less kemp in the wool than any others. 
Unfortunately, they are drawn from a low, dry 
country, and the percentage lost in acclimatisation is 
considerable, though this is discounted to a great 
extent by the lower cost, approximately one-third 
below that of Masai ewes. Karamojo and Turkhana 
sheep, which also show Persian breeding, suffer from 
the same disadvantages and are in addition materially 
smaller, while sheep from the Suk valley, though 
larger, appear almost impossible to acclimatise. 
In most cases the settler will purchase his breeding 
stock at auction or from trading Somalis, but he may 
economise to some extent by taking trading stock and 
proceeding into the native Reserve himself, in which 
case he will do well to take also with him some 
trustworthy Somali or Swahili, if such there be, as the 
necessary bartering is a slow business and apt to tax 
the patience of the European. 
