uura. auu men non e rorget about the good ram. I do not 
believe it will pay to breed a poor, inferior ewe, becans t 
what can a lamb amount to if the dam has no constitu¬ 
tion, and no strength to support it, or no appetite to make 
use of milk forming foods ? 
My principal object in sheep raising is the production of 
mutton lambs. At the same time, I do not lose sight of 
the wool. I believe it less profitable all around for me to 
breed from the largest coarse wools, than from smaller 
middle wools, because, although the former would usually 
produce the largest lambs, yet by using a ewe with a 
thick, firm fleece, and crossing with a coarse-wooled ram, 
I have almost as good lambs and the difference is more 
than made up in the weight and value of the fleece. The 
ewes will be shorn anyway, and it costs no more to raise 
or cut two or three additional pounds of wool per head. 
I believe the best general-purpose ewe for the farmer is 
one produced by breeding a 
_ Shropshire or Oxford ram 
‘I to a large-framed, smooth, 
v \ flne-wcoled ewe—not the 
..... small, black, wrinkly 
ewes. Let experts raise 
these. By judiciously 
A Grade Shropshire Lamb. Fig. 3 1 4. 
would strive to secure some such ideal, the result would 
be of incalculable benefit to the sheep industry of the 
the ewes as of the ram. In practice, however, very many 
farmers are not at liberty to choose just such ewes as 
country. F. M. c. 
Benton Center, N. Y. 
would rather know what were the characteristics of his 
dam than of his sire, and would place more dependence 
would give the best results, but must do the best they can 
with the stock they happen to have on hand. There are 
a great many poor ewes in the country, and we cannot all 
have ideal or even first-class ones all at once. A good 
purebred ram, however, is within the reach of every 
farmer who owns sheep, and the flockmaster who uses a 
grade or inferior ram is losing several times the price ot a 
good one, even if the grade costs him nothing. The use of 
a good thoroughbred ram is the only practical means most 
farmers have of finally getting a good, well-formed, even 
flock of breeding ewes. 
My opinion is that in former years farmers did not pay 
enough attention to the selection of rams, hence we have 
so few model ewes, and that now they decidedly do not 
give enough attention to the selection of breeding ewes. 
Those who are starting flocks should buy good ones only, 
and those who have flocks of long standing should raise 
What Shall we Breed From. 
One of the most common faults in sheep husbandry to¬ 
day, is lack of care in selecting breeding ewes. It is com¬ 
paratively easy for a farmer to secure a good stock ram, 
and few fail to see the need of so doing; discarding the 
objectionable ewes, Is quite another matter. I am fully in 
accord with the statement of the late Col Curtis that, 
“the best economy consists in making the best possible 
use of what we have.” At the same time, I do not believe 
in the common practice of using for breeders old, “ cully,” 
or small and inferior ewes, just because one has them, or 
can get some more progressive sheep breeder to give them 
to him. And yet, how many farmers will look pensively 
upon their little “ bunch ” of small, ill-shaped, cull ewes, 
and say, “ Well, it isn’t much of a flock, but I’ll get a good 
ram, and I guess they will raise some lambs, anyhow.” 
Fire them out, brother farmer, and get half as many good 
upon his ability to transmit to his offspring the good 
qualities of his dam rather than those of his sire; so it 
follows that too much care cannot be used in selecting the 
ewes of the flock, especially if the males are to be used for 
breeding purposes. 
It will be seen that when comparing a single pair, I give 
more heed to the selection of the ewe than of the ram. 
But in the whole flock, which is made up of as many pairs 
as we have ewes, with but the single ram, it must be con¬ 
ceded that the ram has nearly as much influence in im¬ 
proving the flock as all the ewes, and therefore too much 
care cannot be used In his selection. 
Does it really pay to breed a poor ewe ? 
As I have before said, it depends wholly upon circum¬ 
stances. If breeding thoroughbreds, most assuredly it 
will not pay. If working to improve a poor flock—yes, far 
better than not to breed at all. If breeding early lambs 
