SHEEP-BREED SOCIETIES.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1359, 9 February 1912, Page 8

SHEEP-BREED SOCIETIES.

TEE VALUE OF FLOCK BOOKS. It lias probably escaped the observation of tho average stud-brocders that sheep-breeding is carried ou to-dav in all parts of thu world that are on the list of large wool-producers, in an indefinite and semi-chaotic manner (says "Lana'' in the "Sydney Horning Herald"). Tho same'writer proceeds:—This may seem an' extraordinary statement, seeing' tho number of breed societies that are in existence, and others in course of formation, especially in the United States. 1 readily admit that these institutions havo done remarkably good work, and in a certain direction are continuing to do so; but what has been the ultimate result? Production of wool lias not kept pace with the demand, and each year now sees tho. number of sheep in the world grndually decrensing. Yet eminent authorities oil agriculture have always dinned it into farmers that no stock returns greater profit than a sheep. The two countries possessing the greatest number of breed societies aro Great Britain and the United States of America. Which of the two has the most 1 don't know; but, as tho latter has' many devoted to the various tvpes of merino, it, likely leads. The work done! by all is to bring about a model production—as near as possible—of the breed or typo it represents, and to keep a faithful register of the pedigreed members of the Hocks that are entered, together with their history. Each lays down what should bo the various characteristics of the type, and several allot a certain number of maximum points for each of these. This is all right ns far as guaranteeing the purity of the sheep goes, but it has had n result that w;ls perhaps not looked for; it has produced too many stud-breed-ers. This would not mat tor if we had only a limited number of breeds or types, but they can be counted by the score. Tho average sheep-breeder in. Australia will hardly credit this, but the breed societies that .contributed to the prize-list last yea'- of the T!oyal Agricultural pociety of England alone numbered 25, ami there "re others who have as yet not done so. There are also some breeds which have no institution to represent I hem. Fifteen or 111 of the registered breeds arc represented in Australia and >>"o\v Zealand, but such a.s Derbyshire, Oils. Dorset Dawns Exmcors. Kerry Hills, Dnvtmnors, e!.c, are perhaps undreamt of by the bmlv of wool-growers on I here. Til fh'n United State-nearly all the Hril.Wi breeds have been given a trial, and they havo also imported there the African, I'er-ian. and one »r iwo oilier* not l.u-'wu in England: New Zealand has :,].-:, a tvpe—the Corriedale—of its own evolution. Then we know that the merino ha'' many T.iricties, and it Australia had followed

the lead of Great Britain and (he United Slates in (he matter of breed ,ix-ie!i,-we would have .-ecu at Iim~(: half-a-dozon nf these merino institutions. Fortunately, (-ho has not. fur tho "pedigree" evil would have been accentuated. ' A New /.calandcr. recently "returned from a visit lo the Old Country, had the pedigree question, or lather tile traffic in pedigreed sheep, vividly brought before him. Jlo learned that as soon as the demand for a certain type or breed was strong there came scores of breeders ready In sell stud sheep whose pedigree was a> long as some of those of famous racehorses, and their pedigree was in several instances their best point. Vet those sheep were duly registered. Only recently tins question' of safeguarding the reputation of pure-bred stock intended fur export was brought under the notice of (he .Minister for Agriculture in New Zealand. Hut how can he possibly do so unless he is assisted by tho executives of breed societies. No Hock that is entered should be allowed insertion unless ii. committee of experts lias inspected it and certified that each of its number is qualified, and this inspection must bo done yearly. The committee need not necessarily work together, but. each member lie allotted certain districts. Inspection of (locks does take place in many of these societies, but. as a rule a member is allowed to send in .subsequent entries without requiring inspection. But this is not nil that is required. Only the best should bo entitled to tho words "stud sheep"—and the balance, if worthy as such, should be entered as "utility" sheep', which is more comprehensive than flock sheep. It is the utility more than tho stud sheep that the body of sheepbreeders require, and this applies more to the coarse-wool led than to the finewool led breeds. Coming nearer home there are three or four breed societies in Australia, and thev are making tho same mistake as the Uritish and American ones in putting all their eggs in ono basket, i.e., the production of a coarse-woolled model, with a heavy coat of wool. I'lentv of these could be seen at the sheep shows in Sydney of late years; and the man that can now produce a Lincoln fleece of 301b. and over, or a record fleece of other British breeds, has no trouble in selling his cast of rams and ewes, especially if he can tack a long pedigree to them. Hut have buyers forgotten what has happened to the" recordbreaking merino, with his 401b. to 501b. lleece? It is evident they have not. nor are they cognisant of the influence these hearj- wool-bearers will have on our frozen meat industry. Breeders of mutton sheep have been told over anil over again that tho most profitable carcass for the London trade is a well-shaped, mediumweight one. Now, if you are going lo breed sheep as big as donkeys, or sheep with a lleece above-tho usual" weight, vou do not meet tho demand of the London butcher. Besides, it has been shown that if-you have too much wool the carcass suffers. This is what breed societies should teach, and they also should not allow a single pedigreed sheep to be sold as a pure-bred unless their inspector cau give a certificate to that effect. The reason why greater care must be taken in the purchase of pedigreed sheep of the British breeds than in merinos is that many of the so-called breeds are only varioties of one breed. In fact, it is difficult to pick out many unadulterated on the list, after tho Southdown and Leicester. L'ven the Lincoln has a cross of the Leicester in him, and a large number of other breeds have been similarly improved, either by the Southdown or Leicester. Thus, following the dictum of science, it is impossible to say what class of sheep would be produced from a crossed breed if left unattended to for manyyears. Tho same cannot apply to merinos, i.e., tho pure Spanish merino. Tho greatest improver of sheep that perhaps the world evor saw was Bakewell. He found, after many years of practical exnerience that sheep carrying a heavy fleece" had always less aptitude to fatten, and were far slower in ripening, than those whose fleece was moderate, and he considered symmetry and early ripening to be of moro importance than the loss of a few pounds in the lleece. Which, put in plain language, means that the gain of 101b. in the carcass was of greater valuo than the lossof, say, 21b. in the fleece. What Bakewell preached over 150 years ago holds good to-day, and why, the average breeder may ask, is not this maxim made a prominent feature bv breed societies. Surely, for the requirements of our export trade, such a sheep as Bakewell aimed at is worth better encouragement than tho heavv-weight and heavy-fleeced sheep we see at the shows In this matter, of course, the Agricultural Societies can be of as great an assistance as the breed societies, but to bring about the best results the two should combine, and the sheep show executives should bo chary of accepting pedigrees, unless properly certified as already indicated.

The factory supplier who cools h.'s milk directly it comes from the cow gets a better test and subsequently a bi<«*er cheque than he who allows liis millTto disintegrate over-night bv beiii" kept in an ordinary vessel. D'urintr hot weather especially tho milk should be put in a cooler, for by this means it retains its real quality. This opinion has the endorsement of factory managers and inspectors. For full particulars regarding the best coolers write to Albert J I'arton, Carterton.—Advt.