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CHAPTER XV. 



ANGORA GOATS. 



Angora goats resemble sheep more than any other animal 

 in their habits of herding and feeding, as well as in the 

 usefulness of their outer coating and in the excellent quali- 

 ties of their flesh. I have thought, therefore, that a chap- 

 ter devoted to their management may not be unacceptable 

 to the farmers of Tennessee. The farm can have no scav- 

 enger equal to a flock of goats. However thick the briers 

 or tangled the undergrowth, a flock of goats will quickly 

 destroy them, and no food is so highly relished by them as 

 that which is utilized by no other domestic animal. For 

 clearing up the underbrush of a woodland pasture, a flock 

 of goats is equal to as many laborers, and they will thrive 

 and fatten on their labor. The flesh of the goat is very 

 palatable and healthful, and the cheapest which can be pro- 

 duced. Mr. Stratton, of Cumberland county, whose letter 

 is included in this chapter, informed the writer that the cost 

 of raising a goat is not as much as the cost of raising a 

 chicken. 



Half a century ago the Angora goat was unknown in 

 America. For a century the existence of cashmere shawls 

 was known, and in high life the possession of one ranked 

 in importance with the possession of a diamond, and was 

 transmitted with equal care from mother to daughter. The 

 brilliancy and fineness of the texture and the high prices 

 which these shawls commanded, led enquiring minds to an 

 investigation of the subject. So rare a fabric, it was argued, 

 should not be unknown in its method of manufacture to 

 the skill and intelligence of the western world. The semi- 

 barbarians of mid- Asia should not be permitted to bring to 



