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Show It is not surprizing that a number of breeders were anxious to own a sheep with such prospects as a sire, but at $900 the bidders were narrowed down to representatives of Utah's Sanpete community. When the Candland firm no longer challenged their neighbor and competitor, John K. Madsen, the Seely Brothers carried on the competition to $1925. The highest bid of $2000 being placed by Mr. Madsen secured for his Mt. Pleasant Rambouillet Farm _ the highest priced ram lamb on record. After buying that high priced single offering, John K topped the other classes by selling the high ram or rams. The Russian Commission was again in evidence and purchased a Madsen stud ram and a pen of five. 8 It was the custom of the Sale to be opened by an offering from the flock that topped the previous year's Sale. And so it was that for a period of years, the Madsen flock was first in the ring--to open the bidding. It was a tremendous responsibility requiring courage and good judgement to start out with the best quality animals, for however the bidding went in the first round set the tempo for the rest of the Sale-generating encouraging prices-or the opposite. By 1928 the Madsen Farm had made its third sale to Russia. And the new ram sale at Ozona, Texas had begun. It became an annual event. Ozona claimed to be "the biggest little town in the world", and John K agreed with that. He had made previous sales to D. T. Hanks of Ozona and had been a visitor at the Hanks' Ranch. After returning from his first trip there, John K said that everyone in that town 192 |