Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1900-10-31

| sheepman moves his floclzs to grass.
| The cattle owner, with his wild and
scattered property, may not do this.
He thrives or he goes broke in a sim
gle locality. The cattleman is handi-
| capped at every point of the struggle.
| His crop natures more slowly. To
secure the best results he must wait
three or four years till his product is
| ripened by age. In not over one year
out of four will cattle accumulate any
respectable amount of fat on the West
ern ranges. The price of the product
| depends much on the condition of the
corn market, for range beef rarely if
ever goes to the block direct. A sin
gle dry season means no fat or growth
for cattle. al means also no increase
| for the succeeding year. The tales of
cattle barons and of enormous profits
| in the cattle business belong to the
early days, when the plains were COW
| cred with knee-deep grass, with water
in every gully. At present there is
more money in the fattening of steers
| than there is in the rearing of them on
| the range. Under favorable condi-
tions there is money in the cattle busi-
ness, but favorable conditions are
rarely present. The plateau region is
now in its fourth successive year of
drought. Thus it comes that the cat
defend the heath he very reasonably
holds his own.
THE sheep owner, to begin with, is
at considerable expense. for he has to
| maintain a man with every 2000 head
of his woolies. But he shears once
or twice year, and at the present
prices for wool, an average half-bred
Merlno will bring him annually from
that source alone $1.20. The increase
of his tlocks is fully forty per cent. per
annum. He need not wait several
years, like his enemy the cattleman,
for entrance to market. His wethers
at the present rates bring him $3.50
lean, and So when in good condition,
but spring lambs, four months old,
are rated in the Eastern markets at
| even n greater price per head than is
paid for matured muttons. 1t Is
business of quick returns and ample
profits. Were the value Of the wool
almost to be destroyed, the sheepman
would still be on an equality with the
cattle baron. The tendency is emphat-
ically toward the rearing of cattle in
compounds, such as are found on the
great Maxwell grant of Northern New
Mexico, while the Southwestern ranges
are being given over to the sheep. A
few thousand head are annually fat
tened for exceptionally choice mutton
on the alfalfa pastures of Arizona and
Southern Central California, but the
owners prefer the lush spring grasses
of the plains. The result is the same
and the cost is far less.
1T cannot be denied that the life of
the sheep owner is far from happy
one. He is prosecuted on every side,
and even the United States Govern
ment takes hand in the persecution.
The main trouble is with the Forestry
Division Of the Interior Department.
1t is generally conceded that sheep
have an injurious effect on the West
ern water supply. OF course rain falls
upon the sheep as upon the just and
unjust-but the forestry expert gener-
ally insists, (a) That sheep eat out all
underbrush and even young trees, de-
Stroying the natural checks to too
rapid evaporation, the conservators'
of the snowfall, and even threatening
the future of the forests, deprived of
their young CROWN; (b) that sheep
pack the soil and clear away the
grasses, thereby creating conditions
that deprive the soil of porosity and
render the run-off too rapid for the
public veal; (c) that sheep herders.
with their camp fires, are a perpetual
menace to the forests and are prolific
cause of destructive fires. Sheep own
ers deny these allegations specifically
and entirely, yet the ideas are adhered
to by the men who lead scientific
thought in this direction. Even now q
commission of eminent scientific ex-
perts is poking around in the mount
aims of Colorado, New Mexico and
Arizona. The sheepmen's associa-
tons are welcoming them with effu-
sion, and have contributed literally
toward their proper entertainment
and education"