OCR Text |
Show 8ELECTING THE BREED OP 8HEEP Wide Variety for thp Farmer to Choose From. Mutton and Wool Varieties Washington, D. C, May 11. Farmers Far-mers who contemplate the raising or sheep on their farms are urged by the U. S. Department of Agriculture to give considerable thought to the selection se-lection of a breed. In all there are thirty breeds of improved sheep that have been brought to fixed types. Of these twelve are already well established estab-lished In tho United States and others oth-ers are gaining In popularity. Each has its own points of superiority and tho farmer must bo guided in his choice by the Individual conditions bearing in mind, howover, tho fact thajt any breed is superior to no brocd Although It Is hardly to bo oxpect-ed oxpect-ed that every farmer In a neighborhood neighbor-hood will select the same breed of 1 sheop, there are several advantages to bo derived from a number doing so. For oxamplo new rams can bo purchtsed for tho common benefit whon any Individual owner might well hesitate tit the expense; and If tho lambs nro ready In largo numbers num-bers for market at tho samo tlmo, they mny bo shipped cheaply by the carload or tho buyors may find it worth their whllo to como after them. In selecting a breed It should bo remembered re-membered that no system of sheop farming Is Ukoly to be long successful success-ful which leaves out of account either wool or mutton, O110 or tho other, howover, may well bo omphaslzod according ac-cording to local conditions. Thus It pasturage Is Bparso, feod oxponslvq and marketing arrangements poor,' wool will naturally bo tho first consldJ oration. On the other hand, whore conditions aro moro favorable, U breed 1 will bo selected for its mutton qualities. qual-ities. Even then., howover, thero Is a wide latitude of choice. In order to assist tho former In this choice, tho U. S. Department of Agriculture has Just published In Farmers' Far-mers' Bulletin C76, "Breeds of Sheep for the Farm, descriptions and photographs photo-graphs of the principal breeds, to- gether with the addresses of the sec-( sec-( retakes of various breeding associations, associa-tions, from whom additional Information Informa-tion can be obtained. These breeds may be divided Into three main' groups the middle wool, the long wool, and the fine wool. All the middle wool breeds ha,Ve been developed primarily primar-ily for mutton. Tho long wool also nro bred 1 ' Vlly for mutton. They aro tho largest of -11 sheep nnd thrive best whero food can bo obtained ob-tained without much travel. Thoy di well also in regions of oxccsslvo rain fall. Tho lino wools, Including th American Morlnos hnd tho Rnmbou! ott, ha,Vo boon bred almost entirely for their wool alono, Somo of tlieso many breeds, says the bullotln, should bo selected and maintained, for It Is rarely good pol icy to cross sheop. |