862 
DEC 12 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
for mutton, then plenty of feed will often astonish t ne In 
case of such a lamb ; but, as a general rule, it won’t p*y, 
and it is better to fatten such a ewe and send her to the 
shambles and use the proceeds towards buying a better one. 
When breeding improved sheep, most assuredly. A few 
well selected ewes will give better (and more satisfactory) 
returns than a larger lot of coarse, poorly-shaped ewes. 
This is so self-evident as to need no backing. 
What type of ewe would I advise the farmer to use < 
Ah! this is the hard question and on the answer ‘hang 
all the law and the prophets (profits).” I am glad it is a 
question of type instead of breed, for now I can ignore the 
discussion of breeds, which would certainly get me into 
“hot water,” and talk about type. Well, whatever bieed 
we may select has a distinctive type, and yet all sheep have 
in common certain points which appear in the best type of 
each breed ; for instance, the best mutton is not found 
near the extremities; consf quently whatever the breed, we 
want our ewes as short-legged and compact as possible. 
The ewe should also be clean-faced, bright-eyed and have 
erect ears, unless of a breed with lop ears, showing health 
and vigor. The increased and rapidly increasing consump¬ 
tion of mutton by our population and the comparatively 
higher prices for it over other meats, and the low prices 
for wool caused by the increased production in Australia, 
New Zealand and South America (countries where land 
and labor are so much cheaper than they are in our country 
that flockmasters can grow wool profitably at prices which 
allow its importation in spite of our protective tariff)' 
should admonish our farmers that the time is at hand 
when mutton, and not wool, should be the chief factor in 
determining the type of sheep characteristic of the dif¬ 
ferent breeds, which they should make their ideal and 
select for their flocks. What the farmer most needs is a 
sheep that will mature the quickest and produce the 
largest carcass of meat on the most desirable parts, and at 
the same time the most wool of the kind 
which will bring the highest prices in the 
markets. VBntejfr' 
Again, the farmer should consider 
whether he is willing to give the care and 
feed adequate to the raising of the higher 
types of mutton sheep as developed by the 
rich pastures and daily grain feeding of 
England, or expects his flock to “ rustle ” 
for themselves during summer in some ] - 
far away, rough and rocky pasture with I 
scanty herbage and with no water but I] 
what they can get by eating the dew-laden 
grass, and in winter sheltered by a rail or ^ 
wire fence, and digging a scanty living -v | 
from under the snow in some pasture I 
gnawed to the grass roots during summer j I 
and fall by the cows, supplemented only < 
by a daily feed of Timothy hay or corn 
fodder. While none of the mutton breeds, 
sc-called, will even live tieated as 1 have 
last described, it is a fact that the common 
sheep of this country, mostly the descend- ^7=^21 
ants of the Merino and largely impreg- 
nated with Merino blood, are kept in ihat - ‘ 
way or if their treatment is not quite so M B 
bad, it is very nearly so, and yet they 
manage to survive, but give very meager 
returns to the owner, and the sooner our [____ 
farmers awaken to the fact that no animal ^ DE S 
more quickly responds to good care and 
generous feeding than the sheep, the more 
money they will make out of their flocks, and the more 
care they will be disposed to exercise in the selection of 
their ewes. 
While not caring to advise at this time, as to the selec¬ 
tion of bre'e s, I venture the assertion that for the aver¬ 
age farmer it is better to raise crossbred than pure¬ 
bred sheep. In my experience, and 1 believe it is fully cor¬ 
roborated by that of others, I have found judicious crosses 
more hardy, quicker-growing and coming to maturity 
younger than thoroughbreds, and while responding to 
liberal feeding and good care, they do not require such 
constant and careful attention. 
How to cross and how to maintain the flocks, I will make 
subjects of future articles. J. s. woodward. 
“ Half the Flock” Gets One-Tenth the Attention. 
Among the common flocks promiscuous breeding or the 
practice of turning a good ram in with a flock of ewes dif¬ 
fering in form, size and breeding, is too common. The 
results, whether good or bad, are attribute! to the ram. 
They are better with a good than with a poor ram, and the 
farmer who uses the best ram is content with a crop of 
lambs better than his neighbor gets by using a poor one. 
It is too much to expect an even, desirable lot of lambs 
from such a practice. For breeding purposes the ewes are 
at least half the flock, but they generally receive too little 
consideration. The best breeders use several sires, assign¬ 
ing to each the ewes best suited for mating with him, and 
what Is the best practice for the most successful breeder is 
best for all. Better send the poorest ewes to the shambles 
and with the proceeds purchase another ram, and mate 
carefully by dividing the ewes into flocks for each ram, 
and better profits will result among our common flocks. 
He who would found a flock from which to sell breed¬ 
ing animals should first determine upon the particular 
breed he wishes to raise, and then take the advice of older 
breeders that it is far cheaper to buy up than to grade up. 
The latter takes too long, involves greater expenses for 
rams, and often results in grading down instead of up. If 
the breeder does succeed in grading up, by the time he has 
sheep to sell for breeding purposes, a neighbor has gone to 
the best breeders, bought the best ewes he could find and 
has gained a reputation for good sheep from tte start, and 
has better sales and surer profits. When a breeder receives 
an inquiry from a noted breeder of any kind of stock he 
knows that if he buys he will buy only the best. Experi¬ 
ence has taught this. Who that contemplates breeding 
trotting horses tc-day would follow the practices of twenty 
years ago and buy common mares with a view to raising 
2:20 trotters by the method of grading up. The experi¬ 
enced breeder would begin by purchasing mares as good 
as the stallion he contemplates usiDg and thus take the 
shorter cut to success. 
First, the breeder should take every means within his 
reach to make himself acquainted with his favorite breed 
of sheep. For this purpose he should vlsfl, first, the auction 
sales of the best breeders. There he will see some of the 
best of the breed and learn from the bids what other breed¬ 
ers are buying and the prices they are paying for them. 
Second, he should visit the best fairs and stock shows at a 
small expense of time and money. Once inside the gates he 
shouldn’t spend an hour in seelDg a horse trot in 
2.30 until he has visited the sheep pens and made him¬ 
self familiar with every sheep. A good breeder can tell, 
months afterwards, the name, the owner, and the general 
appearance of every sheep exhibited. Let him watch the 
judge in making the awards and learn from him in his 
examinations, the points he considers the most valuable 
and the class of sheep that win the prizes. I have often 
remarked how easy-going and pleasure-loving our Ameri¬ 
can farmers seem when attending the fairs, as compared 
with the English farmers who have become successful 
stock breeders by loDg experience, and are ever on the 
alert for information. Third, let him visit the flocks of 
the best breeders. This I consider most valuable. Let him 
try to fix in his mind each breeder’s type, and try to make 
up in his own mind the ideal to which to breed. He must 
know, first, what he wants or he will never attain it. He 
should study these breeders’ methods of breeding and 
feeding if he is fortunate enough to so far gain their 
coi fidence as to get them to reveal them to him. He 
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A DESERTED MASSACHUSETTS SCHOOL HOUSE. Fig. 315. 
should look carefully over what the breeder offers to 
sell and then ask him to show him (as a favor) the breed¬ 
ing flock which he has placed carefully in the back field 
out of sight. There he will see the results of the breeder’s 
best endeavors. If possible, let him buy a few out of that 
flock even at a greater expense. He is indeed a poor student 
who cannot, with these advantages well improved, learn 
what is the very best type of his favorite breed. 
East of the Mississippi River it no longer pay s to raise 
sheep for the wool alone, except it may be on some cheap 
lands that are good for nothing else. General purpose 
sheep or those combining mutton and wool qualities alone 
promise a profit, and for these we must look to the various 
kinds of large Merinos and the medium-wooled mutton 
breeds. Ewes under 120 pounds and over 200 pounds and 
those that will not mature and fatten readily before two 
years old, cannot be bred profitably. Look, first of all, to 
their health and thrift, indicated by the bright eye, pink 
skin, elastic step and absolute freedom from all kinds of 
disease. Second, seek constitution, indicated by broad, deep 
chest, ribs well sprung, short backs and long quarters. 
Third, reek vigor, found with large bone, broad shoulders 
and a straight back and heavy neck. Such a sheep will 
produce well and feed well, whatever the breed. Quality 
is of as great importance as size. If the breeder wishes to 
establish a reputation for good breeding sheep, the best are 
none too good. Suppose, for example, he has $300 to invest 
in breeding ewes of one of the great English mutton 
breeds, and he can buy 10 ewes at $30 each, or six at $50 
each, which shall he buy ? From the cheaper ewes experi¬ 
ence teaches us that we can raise at least 10 lambs worth 
$20 each, or $200. From the higher priced ones we can raise 
six lambs worth $40 each, or $240 for the first crop of lambs. 
The difference is $40 in favor of the better ones in the first 
year. Allowing five lambs from each ewe during her life, 
the difference is $200 in favor of the better ewes. You may 
say I have not kept the proportion of price the same as to 
ewes and lambs Experience teaches that I am correct. 
From the best animals the progeny is often disappointing. 
But it is less frequently so as we approach perfection in both 
sire and dam. The wool will just about pay the cost of 
keeping in either case. In the higher priced ewes we 
usually find the better pedigrees, and this is always im. 
portant. If the farmer were to invest in $3 and $5 eyyes, 
the ratio of profit would be found to hold good. 
Who buys the cheaper ones ? Certainly not the experi¬ 
enced breeder. They are purchased by the men who have 
determined to buy a certain number of sheep for a given 
amount, or by those who do not appreciate the difference 
between the;two kinds. Assisted by the experience of others 
and our splendid agricultural press, he is indeed a poor 
student who cannot fix upon a type of ewes and a method 
of handling them that will make sheep breeding the most 
pleasant and profitable specialty connected with agri 
culture. GKO. H. BRHCK. 
Van Buren Co., Mich. 
ORCHARD NOTES. 
E. P. POWELL. 
I sent my oldest boy to pick some Onondaga Pears. 
He had been taught to handle fruit carefully ; but he made 
two blunders: 1, he left some leaves on and among them. 
The weather was hot and the leaves created a ferment; 
and when, a few days later, I went to the cellar I found 
serious decay set in ; 2, he rolled the pears just enough to 
prick a dezm with the sharp stems of others, and the re¬ 
sult was more decay. Don’t forget that all the profit from 
fruit culture depends on neatness and exceeding care in 
handling. 
The best all-round summer apples, so far as I have been 
able to judge, are Summer Sweet Bough and Red Astra- 
chan for very early ; Summer Strawberry and Gravenstein 
to succeed, with Early Rose strictly for table use. For fall 
the Porter and Twenty Ounce Pippin, with the Autumn 
Strawberry cover all demands ; while Detroit Red remains 
a favorite with many. I had Summer Strawberries as late 
as November, although the trees begin to give ripe fruit 
early in August. Gravenstein has the same habit of turn¬ 
ing off a long succession of ripe apples. Indeed the whole 
list that I have selected has this peculiarity. There is no 
advantage in a large list of summer and autumn apples. 
There is no profit in growing them. The 
average price for fruit of good quality this 
summer has not been above 30 cents a 
bushel. 
We must turn over a new leaf in our at¬ 
tention to apple orchards. After all that 
has of late been written on the subject, 
fruit growing is characterized by shift 
lessness. No farm crop gets so little atten¬ 
tion as the orchard. I can hardly find one 
orchard In 20 where the suckers are care¬ 
fully removed. The same is true of the 
sucker shoots on the limbs. The owners 
-2^. do not have an intelligent conception of 
Si T /iVy ■ the growth of a fruit tree or of the office 
IPof the limbs and foliage; nor are most 
Ur, : mr. W'"’ orchards ever fed. 
S| ; There aie two remarkably fine apples so 
jfjfcfe far as quality is concerned, that every 
' orchard should hold. For borne use noch- 
ing surpasses them for wintering I refer 
to Fameuse or Snow Apple and Wagener. 
To these for my own use I add Jonathan 
Igp i&scr" " and Rhode Island Greening. The first is 
' much in appearance like the Fameuse; 
but is a very late keeper, being in fine use 
— until April. 
Not enough is understood of the differ- 
_ ence in quality of apples of the same sort 
grown in close and those grown in open 
Ig. 315. orchards. Some varieties are utterly 
worthless if grown in a sunless way. The 
Pound Sweet is all gold in color and honey in sweetness if 
the tree stands open to the sun ; but it is unfit for even 
cider if grown in close rows. Try a Greening from a lawn 
tree and you will never wish for any other sort. 
There is also great distinction between fruit grown on 
young and that grown on old trees. A Porter is never so 
good as when gathered from an old, half dead tree. I be¬ 
lieve it is the other way with a Spitzenburgb. 
There is a renewed call for some of the old-fashioned 
, apples, such as Black Gilliflower, Detroit Red and Seek-no- 
i Further; while the sale of Pound Sweet is enormously on 
, the increase, Talman Sweet has gone out of demand. 
Greenings for a while did not command the highest price, 
but have regained their rank. Ladies’ Sweet has little but 
[ the name in its favor. 
, A good list of sweet apples would be Harvest Bough, 
, Pound Sweet and Belle Bonne. The last is a delicious, 
late-keeping apple, and a noble bearer. I wonder that it 
[ fails to win general approval. It is an old Connecticut 
> fruit of unequaled quality. It is also a clean apple, not 
infested with worms. It is equally good for dessert and 
j baking. Scattered about the country are some superior 
l sorts of sweet apples with only a local reputation. These 
should be collected by some enterprising nurseryman. 
> It would be a matter of wisdom as well as beneficence to 
) the world if we had a fruit club with the special object of 
l securing and developing all choice wildings. Mr. Down- 
i ing remarked that we were constantly losing choice fruits; 
) probably as good pears as the Seckel or Sheldon ; and as 
good apples as the Jonathan, which is a chance seedling of 
i the Spitzenburgh. 
3 Id occasionally occurs that two seeds of an apple or pear 
will produce results so nearly identical as to be indisting- 
t uishable. The Sheldon Pear Is an instance. Mrs. Sheldon 
gave away several trees, all of which pass for Sheldon- 
y and the progeny of these are all merged. I own the origi- 
> nal Kirkland Apple tree and a neighbor owns a tree planted 
at the same time (1791), both from a little nursery of 
Dominie Kirkland and you cannot distinguish the fruit 
i when mixed. Both trees are natural engrafted stock, of 
f the Bellefleur blood. 
e I suppose most intelligent students of horticulture 
have now assented to the fact that grafts of the same 
,* apple od different stocks vary. But this is more percepti 
ble in some kinds than in others. I have seen a large or 
