d hind legs; cowtail, when the breech is very
strong; brokes, from the lower part of the front legs and belly, which
are classed as super, middle, and common.

Fine, short wools are sorted according to the number of counts of yarn
they are expected to spin, as 48's, 60's, 70's, and so on. Thus we see
there are different methods of indicating qualities in different
districts, and also of indicating differences of qualities between the
woolen and worsted branches of the trade.

It may be noted that the quality of the wool varies in the same way as
the quality of the flesh. The shoulder is finest in grain and most
delicate, so the wool is finer in fiber. There is more wear and tear
for the sheep at its haunches than at its shoulders, hence the wool is
longer and stronger; about the neck the wool is short, to prevent the
sheep from being weighted down while eating, etc.; the wool on the
back becomes rough and thin, being most exposed to the rain. From the
foregoing it will be readily seen that there is necessity for careful
sorting, in order to insure obtaining an even running yarn, and
subsequently a uniform quality of fabrics.

=Wool Washing.= Fleece wool as it comes into the market is either in
the "grease," that is, unwashed and with all the dirt which gathers on
the surface of the greasy wool; or it is received as washed wool, the
washing being done as a preliminary step to the sheep shearing. Wool,
unlike cotton, cannot be worked into yarn without being thoroughly
cleansed of its impurities. These impurities consist of greasy and
sweaty secretions, of the nature of a lubricant to the fiber. Combined
with dirt, sand, etc., which adhere to the wool, these secretions form
an encrusting compound, known as yolk, which acts as a natural
preservative to the wool, keeping it soft and supple. This compound,
with other extraneous matter, must be removed before the wool is in a
workable condition. The amount of yolk varies, the greatest amount
being found in fine, short wools from the warm climates. In
long-staple wool the amount of yolk is comparatively small.

[Illustration: WASHING ROOM]

Various methods of removing these impurities have been tried; one is
the use of absorbent substances, such as fossil meal, alumina, etc.,
to withdraw the greasy matter, so that the remaining impurities can be
easily removed by washing. In other methods, naphtha or similar
solvent liquids are used to dissolve the wool fats. This is follo