SKETCH OF MODERN AGRICULTURE 71 



Live stock. One of the most interesting phases of our colo- 

 nial agricultural history is the live-stock industry. All the do- 

 mestic animals and fowls now grown in the United States, 

 except the turkey, were first brought from Europe. Everywhere 

 the hog flourished, running half wild in the woods, living upon 

 mast and roots, and multiplying rapidly in spite of the depre- 

 dations of wolves, bears, and marauding Indians. Early in our 

 colonial era Virginia hams and bacon acquired high reputa- 

 tion. Goats flourished also, being better able than sheep to pro-' 

 tect themselves against wolves. Later, however, as the country 

 txcame more settled, sheep displaced goats as a form of live stock. 

 Sheep were grown in all the colonies where conditions were suf- 

 ficiently settled to furnish protection from wolves. Cattle were 

 naturally, better fitted than sheep to defend themselves against 

 the savage denizens of the woods, and have been bred in 

 considerable numbers on the frontier ever since the earliest set- 

 tlement. In Virginia and the Carolinas a flourishing cattle 

 business, resembling modern cattle ranching, grew up. Annual 

 round-ups were held at stated places (Cowpens), brands were 

 registered, and most of. the features of the modern business were 

 developed. In New England the cattle business was mainly 

 under the regulation of the towns, and each town was required 

 to have its own brand, in order that cattle of different towns 

 might be distinguished if they strayed .beyond their proper 

 feeding grounds. 



There was little attention to horse breeding in the early part 

 of the colonial era. Horses were brought by the first colonists, 

 but were used almost wholly for riding and as pack animals. 

 The heavy work about the farms was done by oxen, and there 

 v\ere no roads suitable for carriages. In Virginia horses multi- 

 plied in the woods and became wild and were sometimes chased 

 for sport. During the latter part of the colonial period, that is, 

 from about 1 700 on, the more well-to-do Virginia planters began 



