244 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan., 



I want to repeat again, first of all, that there are very few- 

 farmers in Connecticut but what should have sheep on their 

 farms because there is such a large proportion of the State 

 that is worth more to stock with sheep than can be gotten out 

 of it in any other way. I know some of the drawbacks. If 

 you people were to tell me confidentially the thing that stood 

 in the way most of all I should say it was on .account of dogs. 

 But, my friends, I say to you that that is not the reason at all. 

 The farmers themselves are to blame for that obstacle being 

 in the way of their success. Do you know that dogs very 

 largely are influenced in their conduct toward sheep by the 

 fact that they have never seen them before? They think they 

 are wild animals, and if upon the farms of Connecticut there 

 were fifty times as many as there are at present there would 

 not be as many killed by the dogs as there are now. 



Another thing: We have got some politicians over in our 

 state. I want to give you a little history of the best dog law 

 that ever was introduced into the New York state legislature 

 from the point of view of the farmer. That bill was a very 

 favorable one to the sheep breeding interest. It was intro- 

 duced and referred to one of the committees of the legislature. 

 There was a hearing on that bill. How many farmers do you 

 suppose attended that hearing? There was not one, either in 

 person, by proxy, or by letter. Some of the country clubs 

 down on Long Island sent delegates up to that hearing, and 

 they took money enough in their pockets to put up a nice 

 dinner for the committee. They met around the table, and 

 they wined them and they dined them, and before the cigars 

 were half smoked out the committee voted unanimously that 

 there was no call for that bill. Now I want to tell you that 

 we never can hope to secure legislation in that way. I do not 

 blame anybody because the dog men said that the bill was bad 

 and a wrong to them. They had just as good a right as any- 

 body else to come before the committee of the legislature and 

 present their views. I have no quarrel with them, but I do 

 have a quarrel with the farmers who were too indififerent to 

 make their wants known. 



When the Grout bill was before Congress I helped pass 

 the hat through an audience of farmers at an institute in our 

 state in one of the leading dairy sections for the purpose of 



