Mr. Clark assigned the young ranchman to work on the upper floors of the warehouse, where the wool was stored. Here were great piles of loose wool, reaching from floor to ceiling. Some piles contained only the finest wool; other piles held that which was next best in quality; still others were made up of coarser varieties of fleece. There were piles of scoured wool, piles of wool from South America and from Australia—wool everywhere!

With keen interest Thornton wandered from one vast pyramid of fleeces to another, catching up handfuls of the different varieties and examining them. Then he walked to the place where the men were busy opening the first spring shipments of wool from the Crescent Ranch. This wool was emptied from the sacks on to the floor in great heaps. The crews of men—skilled in judging the fiber — set to work to sort it, separating the different qualities into piles. The young ranchman rolled up his sleeves, and with the other men began to grade the wool.