The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1881-07-14
ANNOUNCEu ENT.
TIE CITY GF w AGO,
SHEEP.

AsTexas las, year produced over Ia 0OO, 600
mounds of wool and this year will go largely
in excess of that, is IS evident that the sheep
interests of the state are immense. Say that
the wool nets the growers twenty cents per
Mound. we see tn t from this source alone
more than two million and half, say In
round numbers So 900 900. was brought into
the state. Every year the wool product Is
increasing, not only in quantity, but in quail
itv because the fl jcks are increasing In nuns
bers and the grade ofsheep being improved
by crossing the coarser kinds and their
progeny with full blood Merinoes, Before
the war there were but very few
Merino sheep in the state. year
or two before the war began, here and there
in western Texas you would find sheep
herder who was introducing Merino bucks
and putting them wi b his aocks of Mexican
sheep and here and there you would lad
few Cotswods and Sou,hdowns. The war
coming on the sheep interest was to some
extent neglected-st least sheep breeders
were unable to import the fner bucks and
ewes for the improvement OF their tocks.
AS soon as the war was over, however, this
interes. began to revive, and as rapidly as
thew were able to buy them, the sheepmen
would supply themselves with full-blooded
Merino bucks and ewes, and they have gone
on thus until now very large majority OF
the sheep in the state are of high grade,
having been bred up from
Mexican ewes with Merino bucks.
Every breeder has his flock of thorough
bred Meriuoes, growing larger every year,
and there are some breeders in the state who
give their attention exclusively to raising
full blood merinoes, depending more for
profit on the sale of young bucks and ewes
than on the wool. AS the state becomes
each year more and more populated, and
the vast pasture lands now sustaining mill
lions of sheep are encroached upon FOR agri-
cultural purposes, we will see the focks les
sened in size, thoroughbred Merinoes taking
the place of tine graded sheep. While this
will decrease the number of pounds OF wool
produced in the state, it will not re-
duce the income from that source,
for the difference in price In favor OF
pure Merino wool over the graded wool
will make up for the falling off in the ag
gregate of pounds. 1t hes been but little
over three quarters o. century since the
Merino sheep was first known in America.
Col. David Humphreys of Connecticut inns
ported one hundred pure Merinoes from
Spain in 1902 and 1910 and 1911. Consul
William Jarvis, of Weathersfeld, Vermont
and others introduced many more. In fact
during the year from lSlOto 1911 some 20
600 head were imported from Spain, and
they comprised selections from all the best
and most celebrated of the old Csbanas or
nocks of the migratory Aocks of that coun-
try at tho breaking out of the French and
Spanish wars. At this time these
were the finest and choicest wool pro-
ducipg sheep in the world. having
been preserved with the greatest
care and none had been allowed to
leave spain except now then as aroyal favor
The vicissitudes of war and the confscston
of eststes. however brought many Cabsnas
into market and hence il was that the breed
was obtained in this country. Hseems that
the representatives of the different Cabanss
varied in their characteristics, some .excelliog
In size and constitution, some in the size OF
their A ,ece and some In the quality of their
wool. By judiciou, crossing of those varie-
ties. the American breeders have been ens>
bled TO produce Merino combining all
these qualities, and the result Is that there
has been an increase in the quality of the
wool and in the weight Of the fleece from
three 10 Eve times that of the original
importstions. It is the descendants OF these
importAiions, procured from the eastern and
northern portions Of the u0ion principally,
that our sheep breeders use, for tho improve
msnt of their stocks. SO important has the
pure blood Merino become in the wool-pro-
ducipg economy u the country, thst, IS in
The case Of the thoroughbred horse, registers
are now kept Of the aOcks- In Vermont
there are three hundred sud ffty registered
nocks; in Ohio and Michigan. each one bur
dres: shout sixty in New York; ffsy or more
in Wisconsin. and smaller numbers in
MsiDs. New Hampshire Msssschusets,
COnnscsieu,, Illinois, Missouri. PennsylvspiA
Wet Virginia. Ksnsss, Colorado aud .Te1ss.
While these sheep in the more billy portions
and colder climsts Of New Englsnd have be
come xresi fsvoriiss and have reached The
eresse-t improvements. yet here 10 Terss,
where they I'D elinsts % similar 10 Their
us,ivs spsin, they thrive ard sue
csed admirably, and tss time il not
far distant when the registered h0cks Of cur
st.,s VII eqasl 10 numter those Of any oihe
s,s,s IN shs Uai5n- Airesdy TeKss wool is
soughi Cor N fhs msrkst. and IN sDOibsr d.
e.5s Il VII b 81 The top q the msrkst and
os-y ths ers.. vol g-orirz s.sts 81 tbs |
errrs coassry. b. inst tims we hope 70
~. i.uu ns-ssis v10isn msnufsc,o-ies yih
milf q Of spin5iss s08 l,ons sDd thousands
- rr~tf Cd a ] 1