Wool

Such remarkable advances have been made in the weights of fleeces carried by sheep of particular breeds that it is difficult to say if finality has been reached. The following list gives average weights : In 1885 the average weight of wool per sheep per year was about 5 lb., while 7 to 8 lb. is now the average weight. The weights of Australian fleeces are to-day about double as compared with 1885.

The Colour of Wool.

The prevailing colour of sheep's wool is white, but there are races with black, brown, fawn, yellow and grey shades of wool. For manufacturing purposes generally white wool is, of course. most valuable, but for the homespuns, which in earlier times absorbed the bulk of wool, natural colours were in many cases used with good effect. In domestic spinning, knitting, and weaving, natural colours are still largely taken advantage of, as in the cases of rough yarns, Shetland knitted shawls, Highland tweeds. etc.

Tables I. and II. give useful particulars of the World's sheep and wool and also illustrate recent developments in wool-growing.

The Physical Characteristics of Wool.

The most important physical characteristics of the wool fibre are the cell structure, the fibre diameter and the fibre length. Researches into the external structures of ranges of British and Merino wools reveal interesting differences which largely explain the felting qualities observable in the respective wools. It is usual to consider British wools under the headings—mountain wools, lustre wools, demi-lustre wools and down wools.

Fig. z illustrates typical fibres taken from the Swaledale (an improved Blackface Scotch sheep) showing in K the external structure of the kemp, in I. medullated and non-delullated coarse fibres and in //. the finest fibre, which in this case approaches the merino fibre in actual scale structure.

Fig. 2 illustrates typical fibres taken from the Lincoln sheep, typical of the lustre wool class ; in this case in I. there are con tinuous and intermittent medullated fibres.

Fig. 3 illustrates typical fibres taken from the Romney Marsh sheep, typical of the demi-lustre class. This is a remarkably good felting wool and the very clearly defined external scale structure is probably a dominant factor with reference to this quality.

Fig. 4 illustrates fibres taken from Southdown sheep—the best of the fine British breeds—which are particularly interesting in that there are no medullated fibres, while both thick and thin fibres clearly show a merino origin. This is not a milling wool.

In fig. 5 a photo-micrograph of a typical merino fibre is shown, from which it will be gathered that the typical merino structure is of the coronal pattern in which each scale tends to encircle the shaft of the fibre and rests in the cup formed by the scale be neath it.

In fig. 6 a photo-micrograph of a New Zealand cross-bred fibre (Lincoln X merino) is given, this presenting a curious blend of the British and merino wools external fibre structures.

Wool fibres vary in diameter from more than to less than In the best bred merino wools, say a 70's quality, shoulder staples or locks of wool will snow a useful uniformity varying only from about - to whereas in the typical mountain wools variations from ,,,, " to are quite usual. The explanation is that the well-bred merino wool is entirely the under coat of the wild sheep, while the mountain wool appears to be composed of fibres from both the under and outer coats of the wild sheep with modified fibres coming in between the two types.

Just as the life history of a fish may be recorded in its scales so the life history of a sheep is recorded in its wool fibres. The single factor-fibre diameter-usually reveals important facts with reference to both "race" and "environment." Wool fibres vary in length from under one inch to more than 18 inches, in fact, on several occasions when sheep have accident ally missed shearing for two or three years a wool growth, in the case of crossbreds, has been recorded to more than 40 inches. The yearly growth of wool, however, is within the limits indicated. The following are the average yearly growths of the most impor tant breeds of sheep.

Blackface . . . 18" to 1o" Southdown . . 3 " to 4" Lincoln . . . 12" to i8" Clothing Merino . II" to 3" Romney . . . 6" to 8" Combing Merino . 2r to 5" Shropshire . . 4" to 6" It should be noted that the first year's growths of wool, sheared from what are termed "hogg" or "teg" sheep, are usually rather longer than the above owing to the lambs being dropped from February to April and the shearing not taking place until the fol lowing May or June. Hogg wool also reveals itself in its pointed fibre tips.