In the economic use of labor about the modern packing house, probably no other department can show the benefit of modern methods to greater advantage than in sheep slaughtering. The effects of this division are first, economy, and second, better workmanship. It is natural that a man performing one particular operation day after day becomes more expert than if he were doing various kinds of work. =String Gang.=--Formerly sheep were slaughtered largely on a piece-work basis, one man dressing the sheep throughout. With the modern method each man does one particular part of the work, becoming very quick and expert in his line. In Fig. 79 a string gang at work killing and dressing sheep is shown. A gang sufficient to handle 300 sheep an hour should have at least thirty-six to forty sets of hooks, or, in other words, facilities for working on thirty-six to forty sheep at one time on the dressing rails. =Sheep Ring.=--An early type of “sheep rings” is shown in the accompanying drawing, Fig. 80. The principles formerly in use are now modified to the extent that an endless conveyor is substituted for the stationary dressing beams, the output being increased. Some additional beneficial features are added, namely the use of a wheel hoist which is substituted for the friction hoist. In a space 80 × 32 feet in size, 2,000 sheep per day can be handled readily by means of the complete ring method. The sheep are hoisted with a double shackle, two at a time, and the work is continuous from there on until they are dressed, the sheep never touching the floor again, which means a great saving of labor over the old way of handling sheep by hand entirely. This diagram illustrates the different processes in the arrangement, it also gives height of rails, trucks, spreaders and hooks used on the different rails. Wherever a volume of thirty sheep per hour or over are being slaughtered a saving can be effected by adopting this method of handling. [Illustration: FIG. 79.--VIEW OF A “STRING GANG” AT WORK KILLING AND DRESSING SHEEP.--CONVEYORS ARE NOW SUBSTITUTED.] [Illustration: FIG. 80.--DIAGRAM SHOWING ARRANGEMENT FOR SHEEP KILLING AND DRESSING WITH “STRING GANG.”] In Fig. 101 is shown how the hogs are handled by means of a wheel hoist, two at a time, and hung on the sticking rail. Likewise where sheep are killed in large numbers, it is advantageous to hoist two at a time, the shackle being modified. The men shackling become very expert and can shackle two in practically the same time that they can one, and if a gang are running on a capacity of five hundred per hour, it will be seen that considerable time is gained by doing it in this manner. [Illustration: Choice. Good. Medium. Common. FIG. 81.--WETHERS.]