Alexandria Daily Gazette, Commercial & Political

Alexandria Daily Gazette.
SATURDAY, JUNE 24.

COMMUNICATION.
SHEEP SHEARING.

At a time when a general spirit appears to pervade our country for the encouragement of domestic manufactures, and as inseparably connected with it, an attention to the improvement of our breed of sheep, any information on the subject must be acceptable, particularly to the agricultural part of the community.

On Monday the 29th ult. a gentleman in Upper Freehold, Monmouth county, sheared from eleven yearling Ewes, some of which had lambs, 81 1-4 lbs of clean washed wool: which is more than 7lbs. 6 oz. per sheep—the weight of three of them previous to being sheared, (the only ones weighed) and after being washed and thoroughly dry, was as follows:—109lbs.—98lbs. and 111lbs. A few days before a gentleman of Nottingham, in Burlington county, sheared from a full blooded Merino Ram, 3lbs. 11 oz. of wool: he was also washed, and weighed when dry, 88lbs.

It is to be wished that more general information was given from different parts of the United States, of the weight of fleece, and comparative value of the different breeds of sheep: the ewes above alluded to, were from the improved Dishley or Bakewell breed.

Any information given on this subject ought to be as explicit as possible, particularly stating whether the sheep had been washed previous to shearing, as a considerable diminution of weight takes place in that case. The Merino Ram here mentioned, weighed before being washed 91lbs.—The gentleman in whose possession he is, found from comparing the weights of several ewes, before and after washing, that those which sheared from 5 to 5 1-2 lbs. of wool after being washed, lost from 4 to 5 lbs. in washing, the whole of which loss comes out of the fleece.

We have been thus particular, from observing that Mr. Custis, in giving an account of the weight of the different sheep exhibited at his last Arlington sheep-shearing, has not distinctly stated in each instance, whether they were washed previous to shearing, nor whether they were weighed with the fleece on or off.

(Trenton Fed.)