Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1908-12-31

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were did not amount to anything
These old peltcrs evidently came west
in the COS, and It makes me swear like
sixty when | think Of them. 1t was a
bad deal, and no farmer should buy
one at any price, An old, worn-out
range sheep is the nearest thing to
nothing at all there is on earth.
Result on Lambs.
There were also a number of lambs
| about year old or less. This brought
my average down to seven pounds.
| The next year was the same, only
lots more young lambs. My proper
tion of very young and very old was
away above the average, so 1t dropped
to 81 pounds, This is just the aver
age sheep fleece in the United States,
Idaho gong a trfle better. | can say
right here that good, fair, coarse-wool
mutton sheep will shear close to 10
pounds.
In 1905 and 1907 my wool was sold
to hide buyer, who made several
cents pound on it without doubt In
1906 is was sold direct to a wool
buyer.
The lambs for these three years are
as follows:
1905-Lambs 50 so wool $1.55, $405.
1906-Lambs $2.75, wool $1.40, $4,15,
1907-Lambs $500, wool $1.24, $4.24.
The lambs were sold to local butch
ers in Nampa and Boise, and weighed
from rs to 100 pounds. The average
income for three years was $4.15, or
call it s. even up. This is counting
lambs at 100 per cent increase; it
will average close to that with care.
This does not count losses Of ewes, Of
which there will be an occasional one
Now, we find we can pasture -
sheep on an acre, and one acre of al
falfa, counting four tons Of hay to
acre, will winter 20 sheep, and this
hay land will also furnish pasture in
the spring while regular pasture is
getting a start, and also in the fall.
These two acres, one of hay and one
of pasture, will keep an average OF
163, or say 16, sheep the whole year,
or eight to each acre, and an income
of 81 each sheep makes $G2 income
per acre.
Another thing. these sheep harvest
their own crop on three out OF every
five acres. Now, every farmer knows
it costs good money and lots of sweat
to put nay IN the stack.
One OF the strongest points in sheep
raising is they are SO little work or
.trouble most of the time. For about
eight months they will run on pasture.
You only have to keep little water
running and corral them at night,
When evening comes mine are all in
or close by, and all there is to do is
shut the gate and open it in the morn
ing. Even this is not necessary if you
have a coyote tight fence, but we
sleep better when they are corralled,
and most of them like to go into their
house.
In winter a farmer has only to feed
them hay, when they have to be fed,
and only when lambing has he really
to give them much work; but still they
are always under his eye to see that
everything is going right.
Revenue From Wool.
People say sheep and wool have
returns very long.
Well, let us see. I sold my last
wool for 10 cents. This same farm
shoull get the same, less freight, or
20 OT 20 IGlilS, lhSlSdu VI lJ diIl VIC
will get it when enough farmers raise
sheep so it will be worth while for
wool buyers to look it up. AS long as
we have only few hundred or thou
sand pounds scattered all over the
country, we will have to be content
with the best range prices. The same
holds true of lambs. My lambs, if
had enough to ship to Chicago, would
have brought me from 81 to Sc net
last year instead OF SO. With plenty
of sheep on the farms, buyers would
be here every month, taking all the
lambs ready to go, at prices away
above local, or the farmers could pool
and ship themselves and get full re-
turns. The more that go into it the
better, so you see | am working for
my own interests as we'll as neigh
bors in this discussion. If we can
ship east, prices can drop so per cent
and still we can make good money, or
we can even cut the prices | got right
in half and still make more money
than selling hay at $4 in stack. ! sell
my hay to my own sheep at $S per ton
and they gather threefifths of the
crop.