| Show the paradise jofs of sheep heep farmers australia is unquestionably one of the finest countries in the world for raising raisin 0 sheep A gentleman recently from australia informs the genesee farmer that the number of sheep in that country in 1854 exceeded twenty millions among them maybe may be found many flocks remarkable for the fineness of fleece and purity of blood the average yield of clean washed wool is two pounds per head but some flocks yield more their numbers multiply very rapidly a flock of breeding ewes nearly ea aly doubling 0 every year and at one time they increased so that the supply exceeded the demand and good sheep were sold after shearing at 25 cents per head of late years the scab has made its appearance among among them and destroyed great numbers numb ers the ad advent gerit merit of the mill mining ing population has also largely increased fhe the consumption C of mutton so that in 1856 sheep fit for the butcher butge I 1 r readily brought 4 per head sheep farming in australia is quite a pastoral occupation grass grows abundantly throughout the year and the sheep require no shelter during the mild winter A shepherd rd accompanied by three or four well trained do dogs sr looks after every sheep and follows the thea them m in their wanderings folding them at night ile he generally however leaves his dogs do 0 flock and beep leep keep them together while ile lle he inore knore Snore snores sawa away y fat ast asleep under the stade shade t of some tree the dogs taking care to keep the sheep from wandering too far away from him australia may be called the paradise of sheep farmers for those who seek a salubrious climate as indispensable to their th air comfort australia perhaps offers boners as many inducements as any ot other her country on the globe we do not expect that the climate of utah will soon become more mild than it now is indeed the contrary seems to be the fact instead of be becoming comin more mild our winters appear to be annual annually y increasing irvlen in length 0 th and severity thus cal cai calliel calling lill 0 loudly upon our farmers for fo more liberal provision and more permanent fixtures for the sustenance and comfort of our animals with these we cannot doubt that the persevering per severin 9 farmer who is not wedded to a land of luxury and ease whose bower crower la is ever green whose sky Is ever clear will find even in these isolated and once sterile vales his interest enhanced as elsewhere by the tiie extensive raising of sheep there is a diversity diversity of 0 opinion as to which breeds of sheep are best some preferring the pure leicester others the merino others still I 1 the cotswold Cots wold while others with perhaps more display 0 good judgment 0 choosing 0 a judicious cross breeding there thene has from time to time been no little controversy among farmers as to what breeds of 0 sheep were most prof profitable bitable each naturally enough seeking to obtain that breed or grade from which he could realize the largest interest on the capital invested at the most moderate outlay in too many cases cages these controversies have been well founded for as every experienced farmer knows all breeds of sheep do not thrive equally well upon the bame game soil and it follow follows the kind that would be most profitable in in one locality might prove the reverse in another for example it is an established axiom among w wool wooi ool growers of the east that with a mild climate extensive range and little or no demand for mutton there are no sheep so profitable as the merino the ile various grades of the leicester breed are known from their domestic habits to thrive best on rich luxuriant summer pasture with good care proper shelter and food in winter in localities where the land is poor and the grass scanty as is the case upon the benches hills wid vid mountains around us anywhere and where there is some attention paid to the quality of mutton the cotswold Cots wold and south downs are most profitable it will be seen however that none of these breeds exactly suit this mountainous renon region and the necessities of the people inhabiting r it who though for years partially engaged in home manufacturing 1 have as yet obtained in the manufacturing of woollen fabrics a degree of perfection comparatively infantile and rude hence aenice while the fine sheep are in in many respects desirable their wool would not be found so suitable to our wants and our present facilities for manufacturing as the coarser breeds A writer in an eastern agricultural a journal on this subject says As far as my experience goes the most profitable sheep are of 0 no breed buy poor and inferior ewes of the native breed if possible cross them with the best leicester or south down rams according ing 0 to their roughness and other qualities and they will pay from 50 to per ce cent nt p per er annum or more this is simply taking advantage vanta 0 e of the maxim in breeding that the first cross is the best dou rou you kou thus obtain an increase in mutton of from 20 to 30 ibs lbs and an increase in wool of from 50 to per cent besides great improvement in the quality of both here then is indicated the true policy for us to pursue to obtain rams of the leicester southdown south down or cotswold Cots wold breeds and with them cross our native breeds the Cots wolds perhaps would be found as good as any other if not the best for this region if proved well adapted to our high altitude it would be advisable however to also import rams of the other breeds viz leicester southdown south down and perhaps french merino which being PI placed aced under the the supervision of competent practical men it would soon be ascertained which are best to cross with our native breeds I 1 which will vill be most profitable and which are most suitable as to their size quality and yield of wool flesh etc mr josiah 31 ware of og clark dark county virginia alluding to the superiority of the cots f wolds and instituting a comparison between the relative profits of hog hoo g and sheep raising says of all sheep I 1 prefer the cotswold Cots wold from ex experience p ermence eri erl ence they mature early are e large ha hardy ady and take on fat easy dr during the summer and fall that they are one year old not fed on grain no mutton can be more delicately flavored juicy and tender over two years yeara old many buttons muttons are better as they then tallow too heavily for the appetite but the butcher will then give almost any price for them and what prudent man wishes to keep muttons buttons to four years old when he can sell them at one year old at much better prices than any other sheep at four I 1 have rarely if ever sold my muttons of this breed the fall after one year old tinder under 10 each and have sold older ones much high er and never sold them at the same age under 8 dollars each without having fed grain at all and the fleece amply pays the keep can any breed of hogs show such clear profit and in so short time and they have no wool to pay cost of kee keep to meet any og objection action as to the dan danger daner er of their loss by dogs i 1 will say I 1 have hat had t this is breed some years in its purity having always im imported P arted the sheep that won the high prizes of th the e royal agricultural society of england and have neve never r lost a thorough bred by dogs does they ar are large a e heavy siu sluggish T ish sheep with great u rl to take on fat they fill themselves and lie down and ruminate like cattle and do not jump up and run when anything come comes into the fie freid field 11 ll it is to this I 1 ascribe their safety from dogs as dogs are not apt ant to seize anything that does not run from them but I 1 believe that it if common sheep were in the same pasture their running would induce Cots wolds to do so too and being bad runners from their weight and sluggishness the dogs would be most likely to kill the Co Cots tola toia wolds first it is high time that the farmers of utah had turned their careful attention to sheep raising to us one of the most profitable and important branches of industry that now presents I 1 itself before them we are gratified to know that the president and directors of the deseret agricultural and manufacturing society have made a move in this direction we trust that under their guidance there will be something done that shall place within the search of those inspired with the spirit of improvement the means for effecting what has been long iong desired |
