The Elbert County tribune., 1910-06-17

Tba Southdowns Shropshire, Hampshire
Downs. oxford Downs. and Dorsets are among
the better-known shortwooi sheep' ihe Doises
staple is the shortest.
The Cheviot is the best known among the
mountain breeds. The Cheyiot is sometimes
called a midde-wool sheep.
The French beeds best known are the
Choletaise. which carry good fleece. the Lar
zac a short thick-set animal with long-fbered
but rather scanty wool, the Berrichome du Gre
van, better known for its heavy milking quail
ties than for WOOL and the Manchamp sheep.
known as La Chamos, which produces most
excellent long and fne-ibered combing wool
In addition to the domestic sheep introduced
into America by the English. Spanish and Portu-
guese settlers South America possesses a group
of woolbearng animals which are native to the
country. This group. the auchenia. is one of the
two branches into which the existing genera of
the family of the camelidae is divided. The 9TH
er branch is the camel (canelus) of the Old
World.
Most authorities agree in dividing the
chenia into four Species the guanaco, the vicuna,
the llama and the alpaca. The two last named
are not known in the wild state but were do
mesticated by the native Indians long prior to
the coming of the Spaniards to South America.
There is to doubt that the guanaco
and the vicuna might also be brought under sub
lection.
The vicuna Is smaller animal, about the
size of the falow deer. 1t is found in the high
mountains of Bolivia Peru and Ecuador seldom
descending below 10000 feet. Although 1t may
be tanned 1t is to all intents and purposes a
wild animal. 1t yields exceedingly fine and
delicate wool of reddish-yellow color, which
is worth about twice much alpaca.
The alpaca the wool-producng animal of
the Incas. as 1t is yet of most of the people of
the Andes and the west coast Of South America
1t Is found principally in Peru and Bolivia but
does not thrive below about 5000 feet
All Of the South American countries are pro.
ducers of wool from the domestic sheep, and
most OF them are exporters to a greater or less
degree; but the recent development of the sheen
industry in Argentina Uruguay and Chile lends
n particular interest to South America as a pur.
veyor of this OF the worlds staple articles
of trade.
The annual wool clip of Argentina for the sea.
son of 1S49-50 was 100000 Kilograms II 600 900
pounds This was respectable showing for the
time and gave Argentina position OF impor-
tance In the wool trade. The wool. however was
a coarse grade most of 1t what is known to the
trade as Cordova used by worsted spInners for
carpet yarns. In so years the industry had in
creased thirtyfold SO that the clip of the year
1S99-19OO was 239000.000 kilograms-525 800 900
pounds. This represented about one-fourth OF
the worlds production The quality of the wool
meanwhile had improved.
recent census Of the country (19Os) shows
67.211 754 sheep. 1t Is almost impossible for the
mind to grasp these figures. but some idea OF
their significance can be gained when II is stated
that III the animals were assembled In a gigan
tic drove. 12 abreast, they would reach across
This places Argentina second to Australia, which
leads the world with over SO, 100, 600 the United
States third. with about 56,00O,0OO and England
fourth, with about 35.O0O.0OO
The export of wool from Argentina for the
year 1908 amounted to 3s61s3.O0O pounds