The lambing and shearing seasons are the two busiest and most anxious seasons for the sheep raiser. A good lambing season will almost double the flock, so prolific do they become. Sheep shearing used to be done almost entirely by hand, but nearly all the big ranches now have sheep-shearing machines driven by steam or gasoline power. Still, whether done by hand in the old way or by machines in the modern way, sheep shearing is arduous work. The shearers often go about in bands from ranch to ranch. The quickness and skill of some of the shearers borders almost on the marvellous. One hundred sheep daily is a fair average for good shearers, but some exceptionally expert operators can double that score. A great deal of care has to be exercised to clip the wool as close as possible, and still leave the animal uninjured. A shearer who could not practise his business without badly cutting the sheep would soon be discharged as incompetent. The poor animals have to put up with a few scratches and cuts, but it is seldom that one is severely injured. The amount of wool and mutton sent out from these sheep ranches is almost incredible. An especially fine quality of wool is produced on the great ranches of Patagonia, one of which is larger than the state of Rhode Island. [Illustration: A HERD OF HALF-WILD HORSES] Horses are also raised in great numbers in Argentina. One who sees the fine draught horses in Buenos Aires need not be told that Argentine horses are of good breed and quality. The average Argentinian thinks that he knows more about a horse than anything else. Pedigreed stallions have been imported by the hundreds, and the very best blood has been brought in. One will find as good horses in Argentina as anywhere. They are generally well taken care of, too, for lean and skinny horses are very rare. During the Boer-English war fortunes were made out of horses, for the British government bought thousands of head and paid fancy prices. They were beaten, too, in many a bargain by the shrewd _estancieros_. Pig breeding has not been developed much as yet, although considerable stride has been made in some sections, but the export of pork does not amount to any considerable sum. Great hopes are, however, entertained by the Argentinians for this industry also.