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Show I JH RAISING . KARA-KULS-, SB I I " A NEW INDUSTRY FOR UNITED STATES SHEEP BREEDER? I I !fnJlUTCOmE f Tests Made with ihe nl? Herd HI iLJ of Arabi Sheep Ever Imported Proves Conctw m sively That This Country Can Excel Asia in Fur H Rai&iha. H ' E. TJ. C. YOUNG, B Bs;B&rS I author of tho fol- H IIBEjliil lowing article, lm- H EPS's3 only herd of Kar.i- H H QB'vj ul 8bcep ever H KJRS brought into the H B A 3K United States. Hi? fl B i TftflB. I who had H ' B' 'i been engaged in fur H KMHJk ' raising in Russia H HFJ .H' for twonty-llvo B W-t .-- J KS-jlM HIHt yar3 was unable B uv'mHIHB to exPort nny ui H Bbm&hBH l00d Karakul H i 'BBv? rams from Bok- H lET " hara, but Dr. H Young took up the H -work in this country in 1803, and finally, with H the assistance of Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, M brought five rams and ten ewes to Texas on M December 4, 1908. This flock has increased to M fifty-four head, and testa are in progress M throughout the country to prove that American M breeders not only can compete with Asiatic in M raising Persian lamb, Astrachan and Krimmcr M furs, but can excel foreign rivals. The Depart- M ment of Agriculture already has begun the final M experiment and Dr. Young himself is recciv- ing the nasistanco of the American Breeders' M ' Association. M I BY DR. C. C. YOUNG. H Onrrlehr. 1011. bj (h Vcw Tork nerld.Co. All rlshU rfrre(J.t M i T one time Arabi sheep were found In a wild B ' A s'ntc In the scmi-lndcpcndcnt Khanate of H ' Bokhara, Central Asia, but to-day one sees HL ' them In small numbers In the Klshlacks of B I tno Klscl-Kum and Kara-Kurn desert, which B extends for fire hundred miles north of Bokhara, In B' "Western Turkestan. H Bokharans Ray that several centuries ago the small B Arabi wa domesticated with great difficulty, and not H until the animal became seriously annoyed by hunters H did it leave the arid regions of Bokhara. Soma Uzbocl: Hi authorities on Kara-Kul breeds, however, maintain H (hat orlginallv the Arabi did not Inhabit Bokhara, but H Arabia, and hence the name Arabi. H As there Js nothing found in the animal history of H Arabia about the Arabi sheep the real origin of the H name Ai'abl Is much in dispute. In the Inst fifty v H years the nnmo Kara-Kul has been substituted for M A mlil. and means In Turkish "black lake." There Is H a town nf Knrfl-Kule. which Is on the railroad ninnlnc: H en st from Krasnowotsk, on the eastern shore of the H Caspian Soa. to Merv. atl thence to Andlshan, not M far fioro T.i5hkrnt. and many prraded Arabi broad- H talis Ijiivo hoen brought there from the interior of H Bokhiira and in Klsel-Kurn und K.ira-Kmn desert H for exportation to Afghanistan, Tcrsla, Caucasus and j of lato years Kitrnpean Itu-sia. and now the nnme 1 Kara-Kul Is used entirely to designate the Arabi sheep. l That tho Arabi Is the original broadtail from M which all broadtail breeds descend Is an Indisputable H fact and It Is a pity that this hardy, fur producing H and most lustrous and highly pigmented member H of the ovine family has been allowed to become H nearly extinct, thanks to the absence In Asia of H woven wire fences, which make It almost Impossible H to prevent the animal from becoming contaminated H with other classes of sheep. H One need but look at a genuine Arabi Iamb skin H and compare it with one contalulpg even a small j per cent of the blood of bomo other breed to realize H what the world Is about to lose and why the precious H Arabi furs often adorn the heads of the rulers of H Asia. To pee the priceless skina on the jvnlls ot the B palaces of the Shah of Persia and the Emirs of Rok- H hara, Turkestan and Afghanistan, alongside the cost- H licst rugs and oil paintings. Is a treat that those of H us who have been permitted to view them will not H 60on forget H Three-Quarter Bred Kara-Kul Lonc. Thre-Quarter H woot Black Skin Knowrf as Pertian Shropihlrej Can't B Lamb, Worth Thirteen Dallara, Pf. 4 Peralaa axthe I Hj duied In Texas. Lamb WcteSBon m There are not many people that can afford to wear H full blood Arabi fur, but millions wear fur that owes H Its beauty to the Kara-Kul Htraln It contains. In some B cases only as Hoile as twelve and one-half per cent H will produce a magulflcent fur, as is the case with H the gray Krimmcr produced by the Tartars of B Crimea when crossing half breed KaraKu1 rams HBV with common white Itusslan long woof sheep. The H black Astrachan fur. named alter the Russian prov- H incc Astrachan. Is produced in a similar manner, but H It takes more of the Kara-Kul blood than Is the case H with the Krimmcr. as the color sought must be-blnck. H The loof1 and open curls of the Astrachan lamb skin H are due to the particular white 'long wool blood which H enters into its formation. H .We attain similar result In this country br cros- H Ing a Kara-Kul ram with a black laced Highland ewe. H The Persian lambskin produced in Bokhuru, Turkcs- K fUn and Afghanistan does not differ from the Astra- H jcbAn, except that the curls arc tight and should be H closed, demanding a different kind of white long- xsjTrg Kara-Kul Lambs, Whose Fur, in Five or fzZs I53S1M3SIW TOSff3 Six IVIonths'w,1 Bc L'&ht Gray, the Natural &f K r &&ii5$& HSKy HpE Color of thc Malurcd Kara-Kul. feV ' -P WmM mWmWm wMmmM Bred BJnck Kara-Kut One-Quarter Bred Kara-Kul Lon. wool Half Bred Kara-Kul Merino Lamb' Unborn Half Bred Po4bly Call It Known as Krlmmer, a Gray Fur, Will 6Uln. Black Fur. Known In Sooth Shropshire Prematur Parents and Also thc 4 Bring Five Dollars a Sljn. Would Brinx i Russia as Peasant Fur, Produced In J Black Velvet Fibred 1 a la West Texas. Ten Dollars U the Lustre Were More West Texa. Does Not Posses Sufc- derlul Lustre. Which 1 Pronounced. cient Lustre. Is Therefore an Interior Absent If Skin Is Obt Class of Fur. Would Not Brine Over Three Do'lars a Skin In 1008 we succeeded, thanks to President RoobC-elt. RoobC-elt. in briuglng, at a ruinous price, fifteen Kara-Kute to this country, and to-day we have tlfrj-slx of thatu. We have enough full blood bucks to cover five hundred hun-dred ewes, and before many years our sheep breeders breed-ers will be enabled to buy graded Kara-Kul bucks which will make It possible for them tq raise such commercial Kara-Kul furs as Per-slan lamb. Astra-khan. Astra-khan. Krlmmer. Afghanistan, A.r. Several eminent breeders have made tests for us. not only In Te,xa$ but al&o In the North, and the results were ulost convincing con-vincing and gratifying. At present the Department of Agriculture is tnak. Ing final tests, and this fall bulletins vrjll probably be l&suod. showing the many advantages derived trpm crossing native American sheep with Kara-Kuls. There is no doubt that in a few years our millions mill-ions spent annually for Kara-Kul furs la Asia will remain among onr sheep breeders In the United States. Before n)utIonlng the other advantages gained by ctosslng our native blleep with 'the Arabi we will fli'st gie a desciiptlon of the original wild Arabi known also as the Fmall Arabi, and here we quote the Russian naturalist, Slnltzln: "Head small and narrow, with cuned headline, ears small, feet thin and long, closely resembling those . 1 ; Full Blood Kara-Kul Yearling Ewe, Xcnid wooled sheep from that which Is Indigenous to Astrachan. As-trachan. Per&in never did ro'iicc nuch of the so-called so-called Persian iamb, but ,ts .'ivaitins oave for ynars bought up the tight em led olacK uins n vfghanlstun and marketed them the trade Mump Peislan l.iuib" will no doubt continue. Excellent tight cm led black skins arc pioduced In Tcvas by crossing Kara-Kul rams witli our Ameiltan Lincolns and Cotswolds, and It Is safe to piedict that the Leicester and Welsleydales will give fully as good fur If not better. A tlnee-quarter bied Texas Kar.i-Ktil Kar.i-Ktil Shropshire skin recently produced In Texas was priced at .slO by furriers In Chicago, and half bleed Kara-Kuls, Lincoln and Cottswoid lambskins will bring even more, which Is due to the dlffcienee in lustre between the Shropshhe and the silk wool Lin-colns, Lin-colns, Cotswolds, Lelcesters and Welsle.v dales. In fact, Asia cannot possibly cvpect to compete with us In lustre unless Its sheep fur pioduceia will first breed their native white sheep to Ungllsh long-wools long-wools and lraprovo them In Iuitie before crossing them with graded broadtail Arabia, such as the Shlrazl. England and the United States should ralsp the best commercial Kara-Kul fur In the world, and .vet Ihey never produced a ikln until vciy recently. il :m y$1'. of the American mountain sheep; trl&ngulnr, broad tail: average weight not oter ten jwundb, -making mnnlpular coupling unnecessary; always horned, whitish spot on the forebyad. tall, feet and sides; wpol long and hard, with an absence of soft undcr-wftol, undcr-wftol, grayish in the adult, except the wool on hoad, ears and all four leg3. which is Jet brilliant black, the same color as the new bom lambs. After about two week-s th young lambs lose their beautiful tight cnrls and lustre, which makes It necessary to kill tbr:n quite young if tho skins are wanted for fur. "When a few months old they often turn brownish, hut In one year become graylMu. Tho mutton I absolutely abso-lutely void of the musk Uavor which gives common hpep. especially the Merlin fomlly. the chimcterLstlc auTl. to many people, disagreeable Sheepy taste,' and it is the mo3t delicious meat known. Average weight about one hundred and fifty pound." To rtnd a dozen Arabia that will anawcr thlo description de-scription requires months of camel travelling, with a bodyguard of Cossacka thc more thc better as the natives resent the Intrusion of foreigners, who fall an easy prey to the thlevNh nomads, who have a sacred regard for the full blooded Arabi. and a trip through the "Ii unEPi-stcre" has cost many an adventurous Caucasian hN life, especially when encountering Turk-omen. Turk-omen. Tadjlck? and l'7becks, whose rello permits them to rob travellers. It requires thousand of dol- lars ro make the caravan trip, as the Klshlacks are far apart, and Mill more to get po,esslou of the full blooded blood-ed sheep, and to effect snfe delivery at the nearest railway rail-way stations, ofteifhundreds of miles away from tho Interior, is no easy task. The Arabi is capable of storing. In a short time, great quantities of fat in Its tall and buttocks, upon which It draws for sustenance when necessary. ThU Is transmitted on any heep receiving a Kara-Kul strain, making possible much quicker fattening and a great Increase in weight. When a common sheep rorclvos us much as twenty-fhe per edit of Arabi Injection It deelops a most appetizing mutton, with the "shcepy taste" completely eliminated. Tests made on American Merinos proved this, nnd fair results were obtained with as little as twelve per cent of Kara-Kul blood. In Northern Michigan Is raised ,a so called Perslrnno, which Is a quarter breed Kara-Kul Sldopshlrc resulting from crossing a Persian broadtail the best of them are ouly half bred Kara-Kul longwoolb to a Shropshire ewe, and yet oen this small amount of Arabi blood gave home satisfaction. Needless to saj jtbat a quarter breed Kara-Kul-LIncoln would have given better results, as any of tho American lonpwools excel thc Shropshlres In quality of mutton, and aLso weight, and do not lessen les-sen thc natural lustre of the Kara-Kul, thus assuring K From Left to Right .Kara-Kul Rams, Lowden.Fasact and Teddy, - I K the breeder of a salable lustrous skin (gray Krlmmer) that will bring from $ to $S. Tho Michigan tents also proed conclusUely that Merinos that received a slight strain of Kara-Kul were vcrj hardy nud abie to withstand the greatest cold, and seemed to prefer to remain outdoors In the snow, which i remarkable, as thc Merino Is not fond of severe cold weather. Bokhara Is noted for its severe cold winters and extremely hot summers, and this. eplnlns why the Arabi. being Inured to such a climate, Is abie to with- Texa Kara-Kul" Half Bred Kara-Kul Cottswoid; eiy Obtained. A Macnificent Black Fur, Would Pass Fur with a Won- 4 Under the Trade Naroc of Attraction, s Almost Entirely Will B;lng Eicht Dollais a Skin. Dined Alter Birth. 8tud any amount of cold or heat,, and St Is doubtful I' there Is a hurdli.- animal In tho world. This animal Ii uble. to go for v 'eks without water, and possc-Jes a wonderful powcr of resistance. The Hinall herd , high o brought to this country w a jear and a hajif in transit and half of that time was pent In qunrantinc.. . Quarantined in Darkness. For more than four months they were held In quarantine quar-antine at Athenlu, N. J., where they were confined con-fined to a doik barn, and rhe only holographs that were laken during that time were flashlights. This rigid quarantine is necessary in order to am.ertaln rhr presence! of MUrru, which cannot be detected unJciw the animal Uiider In'ie-'tlor Is kept nwny from sunlight; Jorwithstandlng this and the tedious trip acros-s Jhe desert, detention In quarantine Jn Bus- ' sin and tho long trip acrosw tho ocmu, wc did not suffer tho loss of a single hd. j It Is-an easy matteT to cruss the Arabi with any I BBHPi0(ii domesticated sheep known, and we believe tnat znH M Could Tc douo with thc Bocky Mountain sheep. Tho ! Kara-Kul lu lLs habits is no doubt nearer to the goat ' B than to tho heep family, and quite recently wo b"c- B cocded In crossing a half breed Kara-Kul Shropshire H ram "to an Angora goat As the Arabi seems to pows B the property of neutralizing tho strong musk flavor ' H of the Merino. It will most probably do so with tho !l goat family and thus assure us of a better meat. r"WM On account of thc wonderful natural lustre jf the H Angora goat, It can easily bo een that a magnificent H commercial Kara-Kul-Angora fur will bo obtained ' from this cross. We have tho best proof of this In I a black Ksira-Kul-Sbropshlre-AJigora kid which was born a few days ago and possesses great lustre, not- i withstanding the fact that it only contains twenty- IWk five per cent of Kara-Kul blood, and Its lustro was l naturally greatly reduced by the Shropshire Ptraln. H The large Arabi has a mnsslvc head, short face, nB noso line greatly bent, ears large and pendulous, some- fB times absent, foot thick, Hhort and very strong. The B tall Is Immense nnd triangular shaped, with a twist , B on thc end, often weighing thirty-five pounds and f B coming clear to tho ground, and has to bo supported V Wt In soiiH' cases by a two wheeled cart, to which thc j B animal Is hitched to prevent dragging on the ground, I making nnnlpular coupling absolutely Imperative. B This class of Arabi contains some foreign strain of I the common Asiatic longwool sheep family. The lit- v B tie lnmbs are not always born black nnd occasionally i I one Is born auburn, another proof of some foreign M strain. i; The w'ool Is gray, long nnd coarse, with occasionally j "r feyt undorwool, which Indicates thc presence of fJM tfghtwool blood, and Is not wanted, except ou thc front MM head and lower extremities, where It la black, very ' B& lustioiis and curly. The young lambs are black und !' E? curly and. like thc lambs of the small clnsw of Arab), i, BjE possess a wonderful lustre, but do not have the rich i B velvet apiieamncc of thc original wild Arabi. I K? This Is thc heaviest flheep In tho world and excels j -' In weight the Llncolns nnd Cotswolds. In our oplu- P fcl Ion the large Arabi will become the most popular In lf thc United States, as the fur obtained by crossing It f R with our silky long wooled sheep Is sufficiently lus- J Inm trous to make pretty nnd salable fur that will aver- i iSS age 10 a lambskin, besides giving us wonderful mut- 1 1 ton that will enable the Merino breeders to convert . ll tholr (locks Into the best of mutton sheep und give ! them nn Increase of about twenty per cent In weight ' wtft and create a much hardier animal. Thc American long wooled sheep, which are hard to herd when In range on account of their scattering Bill ?0 much, lose their tendencies when crossed with the 1 I! Arabi, as all Kara-Kul breeds, on nccoutit of their 'II wild nature, flock cloc together. til There is an Intermediate class of Kara-Kuls re- II suiting from crossing thc smnll with the large Arabi. i' II which has, however, no particular advnntngo over the X Lt other two classes. This country Is predestined to ByS? develop the largest broadtnll known by crossing the J? lijt Kara-Kul with the Lincoln, and we have already Ho ample proof to mnko IIiIh ussertlon. In days to come ' BE? Asia will view the American broadtail with as much . R wonder and curiosity as nu exhibit to-day when Ife talking of the large Kura-Kul with Itrf "terrible" tall. ' 1 In order to uold all dan (ton resulting from In- mjPh breeding, another Impoitntlon should bo made and Ps we huo already received the er ncsary conces- $2 slou to bring another fiotk of fifty head to this ioun- . jj& try. nnd have reasons to believe thm ou our second t gj trlp-'through thc desert of Central Asia wo nball be i 5li accompanied by certain gcntlcmou uow connected ) sfl nith the Department of Agriculture, as there 1 very 3 fSrh muit left. Indeed, to Icim about this wonderful I Hi breed, which, in the near future, when wild fur pro- J jjy duclng nnhnuls will have becotnu extinct, will have 5y to be utilized 'for the protection of. our people against J U sc'ro cold weather. ,; KN 1 The non-broudtailed sheep of Asia that do not con- -. R5b tain Kara-Kul strain nre certainly ery much Inferior fet'i to our sheep, and yet our best mutton wbeep cannot 5T Cdmpaie in quality of mutton with such graded Kara- ItSV Kuls us the. Persian broadtails. Ai,truchau broad- ' W tails, Krlmmer broudtalLs, Shlrazl, Doozbov, Zlgal J ? and Afrlcau ."broadtails, all of which owe their hardl- 5ii, ness, great weight and quality of mutton entirely to iK tho KuniKu struln they contnhi. i ISTa. ' In conclusion, wo will say that those Kara-Kuls - IjN' Which wen born on our ranch, near Wichita Pulls, Mi, Teaas, jiosheite all thc true cbaracierli.tle of the best , ? Of Arable which we have fleeu In Bokhani. and were lgf in' no way affected by the difference m tho climate, '. is! arid we can ny the same thing of the Iut crop pf : 1P uihbs which were born In Coahulht, Mex., nhero thc , Hr,l pntlru fifH-k was grazing for a perlotl of six month, Ik aild on account of the cheap landu and practically free -B9t range we would hn e left them there purumnntly JUmL hil we not become dltuutlsned with certain coudl-. 4Ef' tlons due to local political Influence. IlE |