Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-01-18
SHEEP ANDTHEIR FLEECES
HOW PROTECTED WOOL RESTRICTS
THE MANUFACTURER.

Observation-Disclosures Must Always Have
Goods--How Protection Cuts Both Ways.
Wool is staple of infinite variety. No
two sheep, even of the same breed and
pasturing on the same grass land, will
yield fleeces that will bring exactly the
same price.
So with breeds Of sheep and their nat
ural pasturage. A hundred sheep are
transported from Saxony to Yorkshire,
England. In few years time the fine
merino wool of the Saxon sheep will
either be considerably coarser in quality
or lighter in weight.
Experience in sheep breeding has
taught the wool growers of the world
that certain localities are best suited for
certain breeds Of sheep. 1t does not fol-
low that any of these breeds should be
OF previously known variety. The
great fiocks Of Australia are the result Of
many crosses between the different va
rieties of English and Saxony sheep.
The locality of the sheep run has much
10 do with the value of the fleece. In
England, where the pasture is like a
garden lawn and where the shepherd has
not too many sheep TO attend to, the
fleece is comparatively free from dirt or
artificial impurities. On the other hand,
Heeces coming from the Argentine Re-
public are noted for the number of burrs
knotted in them. This makes a serious
difference in the price paid for the wool
Sheep were first brought to the United
States in 1909. Exactly 200 years after
ward the first important consignment of
merino sheep arrived here. 1t numbered
1000. Since then the merino and Eng
,ish strains have been blended in all the
Cocks in this country.
In some respects the climate of the
eastern half of the United States is I'M
fitted for rearing sheep in greatest per-
lection. The extremes of heat and cold
are too great. In moist, equabls eli
mates sheep never drink water, but
quench their thirst with succulent grass.
Lambs are shorn for the first time
when they are eight months old. This
shearing is called the ''flrst clip" and
commands higher price relatively than
any subsequent. The weight of a first
clip fleece is not usually more than three
pounds, and often less than this weight.
England seems to be the only densely
populated country in the world where
sheep farming is carried on successfully.
The great sheep runs of Australia have
only their owners and shepherds near
them. So also in the Argentine Repub-
lie, and in Texas the inhabitants near
sheep pasturages are much fewer than
in other parts of these countries.
To some extent sheep raising appears
to have been almost pioneer exploit in
this country. In 1868 there were IS, 0O0,-
600 sheep east Of the Mississippi river.
In 1888 the number was reduced to 49,
000, 1000. Even these $4,000, 900 do not
show fair average, for an undue pro-
portion of them are in the twenty-eight
counties Of Ohio which form natural
sheep pasture.
For one reason or other, other states
between the Atlantic and the Mississippi
river have given up largely the raising
Of sheep. In the prosperous farming
state of Iowa dairy farming has been
found more profitable. Illinois raises
dairy products, too, as well as corn and
wheat on former sheep pasture lands.
At the present time the great wool grow
ing states, excepting Ohio, are in order
as follows: California, Texas, New Mexi.
CO territory and Oregon. Three of these
are practically frontier states; the fourth,
California, in its climate resembles Aus
tralia.
According to the report of the agri-
cultural department the total number OF
sheep In the United States in 1888 was
1854, 755. These yielded artotal wool
clip of 301 ,G76, 12l pounds. The total
quantity of manufactured wool inn
ported into this country in 1887 was ia, :
404, 173 pounds. OF this quantity about
81 100000 pounds were for the manu-.
facture of carpets.
Under the tariff of 1888 imported woods
are divided into three classes. These are
comblng woods, clothing woods and car
pet woods. The first two classes are sub
ject to duty of ten cents a pound II
thirty cents or less in value. II they are
more than thirty cents pound in value
the duty is twelve cents a pound. Car
pet woods pay duty of two and half
cents pound II the value is twelve cents
or less pound, and FIVE cents q pound
IL the value is more than twelve cents.
These duties represent respectively ad
valorem 1923, 4.7S and 24.9S per cent.
1t Ii quite apparent, therefore, that the
farmer in this country is abundantly pro-
tected-so much so, in fact, that practi
cally no wool is exported out of the
country.
On the other hand, it would not follow,
II wool was protected more highly than
ut present that the imports Of foreign
wool would be lessened.
AL the woods produced in the United
States are Of medium grades. 1t is
neither the very best nor the worst The
sheep which produce carpet woods have
fleeces which average two and a half to
three pounds each. This does not begin
to pay the American farmer who raises
sheep for the fleece alone, and 80 that
every pound of carpet wool is imported.
This does away with the 81 ,000, 900
pounds Of imported carpet wool referred
to above.
Again, the American manufactures
cannot make fine dress goods for ladies'
wear from American grown wool. BE
has to pack his trunk and go to London
to the great Australian wool sales. There
he buys all the fine wool he requires
like any unprotected English competi.
tor. When his fine wool arrives ut New
York he is glad to shell out "a per cent.
nd valorem duty on it, all for the sacred
cause of protectionl
II foreign wool was admitted free Of
duty the farmer could not lose anything
ON carpet woods, because he does not