109 
have their wool-crop in good condition. The wool of Western Oregon, as a whole, 
always commands the highest price in the Pacific coast market. 
The following is the account of my flock for 1874: From 262 sheep, 1,883 pounds of 
of wool, at 32 cents per pound, $602.64; 69 sheep sold for $1,608; cash income, $2,210.64. 
Increase of flock by lambs, 126; decrease by sale, 69; leaving the flock of 262 increased 
to 319. About one-half are thoroughbred Merino and the other half grades of common 
stock with a few Leicesters; 204 are ewes and ewelambs; 49 wethers of various ages, 
such as were not deemed fit to keep for rams; and 66 rams of various ages. My chief 
income is from the sale of rams. Good grades as well as thoroughbreds are kept for 
that purpose, not because the former in value for use are to be compared with the - 
latter, but because many beginners in wool-growing cannot at first see the economy of 
buying the latter, though they generally come to see it with ex}«rience. Sheep, asa 
rule, are kept on pastures or bush-lands the year round; their clicf enemies being the 
dogs, the coyotes, and negligent owners. ; 
IMPROVEMENT IN STOCK-GROWING.— Texas, Bexar : The Kansas trade 
will about clear the county of stock this spring. The stock interest in 
the county is undergoing a rapid change. Stockmen are fencing pas- 
tures and introducing the best bulls from Kentucky, Missouri, and Ohio 
for crossing with native cows. 
RELATIVE VALUE OF VARIETIES OF COTTON.—M.S. A. Duke, of Drew 
County, Arkansas, reports to this Department the results of an exper- 
iment designed to ascertain the relative vaiue of the Peeler, the Boyd, 
and the Dickson varieties of cotton. He divided a field of about three 
acres into three lots, and on each, accurately measured, planted one 
kind. The land was of the same quality except that perhaps the plat 
on which the Dickson variety was planted was slightly superior. The 
figures below express the rate per acre as deduced from the carefully- 
ascertained factsineach item. Theprices per pound are those for which 
the products of the several varieties were sold in the New Orleans mar- 
ket. 
| Cost. of Per cent 
nue Seed-cot- : | Per cent. |Value per| Total + we 
Variety. Lint. | ¢}:; : produc- |Netprofit.) of profit 
y ton. of lint. | pound. value. On: fini BARE 
| | | Tivintil 
| Pounds. | Pounds. | Cents. | Dollars. 
Peeler ....... ee | i, 951 al4,.7 .| 26. 38 144 74 12 $46 27 $28 36 61. 27 
BoyG? G7. 308.35 15< he 1, 956 588. 78 | 30.1 124 72 12 46 24 25 8&8 56 
TAGRADIL css in » <2 2,497.| 738.37 29. 56 12} 90 45 54 66 30 79 65.5 
The seed-cotton was weighed in the field by the pickers each day, and 
that weight is given. Mr. Duke says: 
Had the first picking been thoroughly dried before weighing, it would have made 
some differenee in the percentage of lint. On the first picking the average per cent. 
of lint of the three varieties was 27.33, while the last picking was 32.67, or an average 
on the whole crop of 30 per cent. of lint. If the weight of bagging and ties were in- 
cluded, which is always done in commercial transactions, the average per cent. of com - 
mercial cotton is 32. 
The greater cost in producing the Dickson cotton arises from the 
greater quantity to be picked, the price of picking being $1 for every 100 
pounds of seed-cotton. 
IMPROVEMENT IN THE CARE OF STOCK.— Georgia, Harris: The great 
difficulty here is in carrying stock through the winter and procuring 
rough food for them. Unusual attention is now paid to grazing-lots and 
shelters for stock, and more grain has been sown than ever before. 
BAD FARMING.— Mississippi, Lowndes: This county has been importing 
corn, wheat, meat, mules, and horses for the last nine years. Cotton has 
been the specialty. No stock of any kind, worth mentioning, has been 
raised. The low price of cotton and high price of provisions will force 
