AMERICAN SHEEP AND SHEEPSHEARING.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 6780, 12 February 1884, Page 4

AMERICAN SHEEP AND SHEEPSHEARING.

The London Agricultura I Gazette of a recent date thus expresses itself on a report which appeared in the National Live Stock Journal of Chicago :—" The report is so terse and to the poiat that we borrow it in full—' At the public shearing of the Arkansas Valley Wool Growers' Association held at Wichita, Kas, on April 21st, 1883, the exhibit of sheep was very fine, both in the longwool and finewool classes. The interest surpassed that of any previous year. Three merino rams (whose aggregate weight was 4061 b 12oz) yielded 951 b 12oz of wool. Three merino ewes (weighing 1891 b 12oz) yielded 601 b 12oz of wool. Heaviest fleece shorn, Kip Van Winkle, 331 b 3oz ; heaviest ewe fleece, Lady Banker, 21lb 4oz. This ewe has a lamb by her side. Heaviest Gotßwold fleece, ram, Kechi, 181 b 4oz; heaviest dots wold carcase, Keohi, 1691 b 4oz ; heaviest merino carcase, Prince Albert, 1451 b. 12oz ; heaviest merino ewe carcase, 1441 b Boz. Lightest fleece, a black Mexican ewe, 6 years old, 31b 4oz. Her lamb, a cross with an ordinary merino ram, sheared 41b 12oz, or nearly 50 per cent." more than the dam, the wool being a good quality' of light, medium wool. The season being backward, and the grease not being brought out into the wool, the fleeces were^lighter than they otherwise would have been. One thing was particularly noticeable, namely, the bright,' clean conaitim of ± the wool, showing a

1 marked improvement in this respect ove » ; former years.' How often is it in th< power of an English reporter to furnisl his reader with, any information so pre cisc and serviceable as this is ? The sen tenee we give in italics deserves notice ii a country like ours, where the sheep pern at a Royal show look as many colored ai , a Turkey carpet, without a word o i r eni' >onßtrance from tbe shovr ra ana g ers In tht"" humble hope that ' it is never toe late to u ne ?^ ' — even w^ at waa once ca^' e^ « our Brh* 8 * 1 arrogance '— and^that^foi once we ma 7 conde3cend to. take a hin; out of Broths Jonathan s practice, anc be at least as w/ v , in « , to discourage false 1 appearances as he i. ". these A niencan clip. , pings are inserted in the London Agricultural Gazette," _