430 
SHEEP SHEAKING. 
By A Practical Farmer. 
The season for sheep shearing having come round, a few 
remarks and suggestions upon its best practice may not be 
inappropriate. It is very important to every flockmaster 
that his ^^pile of wooP'’ shall be got up in the best way, and 
in the most cleanly and attractive manner. The sale of his 
year’s wool is to every sheep-grazier one of the most anxious 
and watchful items of his business. It brings in annually a 
good round sum. It is made up in one bargain; is weighed 
up in a few hours, and the carriage, and the little trouble 
associated with the packing and delivery of the sheets make 
it one of the most pleasant and interesting days of a farmer’s 
business. To secure agood pile of wool” requires great 
care and attention throughout the year on the part of the 
sheep-owner. In the early spring every sheep must be care¬ 
fully “ dagged,” i. e. the parts about the tail and breech, &c., 
to be clipped short, and all dirt and wool removed, so that 
the sheep can void its dung, &c., without further injury to 
the wool; and this cleanliness should be promptly attended 
to by the shepherd, till clip day arrives. The effectual wash¬ 
ing of the sheep is another very important item in flock 
management. By far too little attention is paid to this de¬ 
partment of the wool management. It is indispensable in 
securing a good pile of wool that it be well waslied—not 
that the sheep is just passed through the sheep-dike,” but 
that every sheep be well soaked in the vat compartment of 
the ‘‘ sheep-dike,” and also be thoroughly scrubbed by hand, 
and sheep-poy,” and the wool repeatedly squeezed and 
twisted and twirled about upon the sheep before he is allowed 
to take his final swim to the landing place. It has latterly 
become the practice in many districts to wash the flock in 
large oblong tubs or vats. The vats are constructed to hold 
about two sheep at a time. They are sufficiently filled wdth 
clean water continually supplied as required to enable the 
sheep to swim freely about, so as to get well soaked. Two 
men, one on either side, take the sheep in order as they are 
put into the vat, scrub them well, and squeeze the wool, 
turn them over and over, and then pass them individually on 
to two other men, who stand by the landing-board or ladder; 
they squeeze out much of the water and pass them out. For 
