The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-09-11
The Future for sheen,

During the past few months sheep
have sold in the butcher markets rela-
lively as well as cattle, says the Texas
Wool Grower. To-day our advlceS are
to the effect that fat sheep averaging
100 pounds and upward will sell at
$4,000 4.25 per 100 pounds, and that
cattle averaging ], 0O0pounds will bring
about the same price per 100 pounds,
which places both classes Of stock on
an equality, and excepting that sheep
cost a heavier percentage than cattle
to market, the stock would realize to
the owners the same amount. We do
not see anything in this to cause sheep
raisers to complain of, except the eX-
cessives charges, for allowing the
quality to be as good, the sheep are
fully equal the cattle in value for
meat, and yet have a fleece behind
them; that is, they have nearly or
quite paid their own expenses while
growing.
Of course many sheep have sold at
less than four cents per pound.
Some have gone for three and
a half. some for three, and some
even below two cents, and the
weights have not been 100, nor
though the sheep raiser had much to
contend with, yet, as what appears on
the surface is not all; in many in
stances so it is here. The cattle sales
show some men have marketed prime
stock, realizing $35 to $40 per steer,
yet the proportion of these is hardly
greater than sheep of the same quail
ity, which have realized $3.50 to $4.00
per head; then again, some steers
hive realized TO their owners from
80, to so pounds, and they have paid
only the commission men, feed yards
and railway companies, and the buyer
has been disappointed and the seller
has been minus the sheep, and IN many
instances has learned and wished he
had cattle to ship, because they would
pay out better. Yes, truly;
without in vestig ,ting closely
it looks like it, looks as
$25 TO $35 per head, and some have
only realized SIP, $15 and 800, and
have paid no better than the general
run of poor sheep which have sold at
low figures. Yet 500 steers do not
pay even as well as ST. sheep, for no
sheep can be marketed from Texas
without having a credit for one or
two fieeces which will cover any adj
ditional expense of running sheep
over cattle, while the amount realized
for the latter is the whole and sole
| credit for three years growth.
1t is not here the intention to advo-
cate running sheep rather than cattle,
nor to show that the cattle buiness is
not a paying business, for undoubted-
ly it pays well, but rather to encour-
age sheep raisers to hang On to their
sheep and have confidence in the final
outcome of their fiocks, to cause them
to study whereby fioch x rth now
two dollars Can be Iiie.1c no tn four
dollars head, and a flock producing a
dollar fleece can be made to average
much higher either by increase in
| quantity or improvement in quality,
to study whereby the cost of running
the sheep can be reduced without en-
dangering the profit, to study the
markets and learn when the best
prices can be obtained and to study
how to fit the stock for market at that
particular time.
Sheep raising in Texas can be mate
rally improved by change of methods,
IN some instances, by IT. fusion of
good blood in others, by culling
f1ocks in others, by increasing
small herds to the capacity of
a wide range on others and by divid-
ing large f1ocks on overstoeked ranges
in others. There is much to do and
much to. think about, many little
things going wrong for something
not thought of until the time arrived
for using it, many disappointments,
many vexations, but no more
than in any other business, and
there is no other business which hav-
ing suffered from the depression
sheep raising has that will stand so
high in the future. The business is in
our hands with many advantages IA
voring us, with one or two only
against us, and these overcome we
can make sheep pay handsomely in
the future as in the past.