This person would take my sheep for either three, four,
five, or more years, as we might arrange, and would allow me yearly 2s.
6d. per head in lieu of wool. This would give me 2s. 6d. as the yearly
interest on 25s. Besides this he would allow me 40 per cent per annum
of increase, half male, and half female, and of these the females would
bear increase also as soon as they had attained the age of two years;
moreover, the increase would return me 2s. 6d. per head wool money as
soon as they became sheep. At the end of the term, my sheep would be
returned to me as per agreement, with no deduction for deaths, but the
original sheep would be, of course, so much the older, and some of them
being doubtless dead, sheep of the same age as they would have been will
be returned in their place.
I will subjoin a schedule showing what 500 ewes will amount to in seven
years; we will date from January, 1860, and will suppose the yearly
increase to be one-half male and one-half female.
Ewes Ewe Wether Ewe Wether Wethers Total
Lambs Lambs Hoggets Hoggets
1 year old }
January, }
1860 } 500 - - - - - 500
1861 500 100 100 - - - 700
1862 500 100 100 100 100 - 900
1863 600 120 120 100 100 100 1140
1864 700 140 140 120 120 200 1420
1865 820 164 164 140 140 320 1748
1866 960 192 192 164 164 460 2132
1867 1124 225 225 192 192 624 2582
The yearly wool money would be:-
Pounds s. d.
January, 1861 . . 2s. 6d. per head 62 10 0
1862 . . . . . . . . 87 10 0
1863 . . . . . . . . 112 10 0
1864 . . . . . . . . 142 10 0
1865 . . . . . . . . 177 10 0
1866 . . . . . . . . 218 10 0
1867 . . . . . . . . 266 10 0
Total wool money received . . . . 1067 10 0
Original capital expended . . . . 625 0 0
I will explain briefly the meaning of this.
We will suppose that the ewes have all two teeth to start with - two
teeth indicate one year old, four teeth two years, six teeth three
years, eight teeth (or full mouthed) four years. For the edification of
some of my readers as ignorant as I am myself upon ovine matters, I may
mention that the above teeth are to be looked for in the lower jaw and
not the upper, the front portion of which is toothless. The ewes, then,
being one year old to start with, they will be eight years old at the
end of seven years. I have only, however, given you so long a term that
you may see what would be the result of putting out sheep on terms
either for three, four, five, six, or seven years, according as you
like.
