1859. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



503 



Our stay in the pleasant city of Augusta was 

 made delightful by the generous hospitality, and 

 kind attentions of our old friend Eaton, (late 

 pu' lisher of the Maine Farmer,) and those of his 

 cheerful and intelligent family. The storm did 

 not disturb the proceedings of the fair, within 

 those doors, — for rational conversation, and song 

 and laugh, blended so harmoniously with every 

 domestic duty, as to afford a beautiful type of a 

 true New England home. 



Our visit was also made pleasant by meeting 

 and conversing with several gentlemen distin- 

 guished for their zeal and knowledge in agricul- 

 tural matters, and who are truly benefactors of 

 the race. Among these were J. J. Thomas, one 

 of the editors of the Country Gentleman, Dr. 

 Holmes, agricultural editor oi the Maine Farmer, 

 Messrs HoMAN and Manley, of the same paper, 

 some of the officers and trustees of the society, 

 and gentlemen from Maine and other States. 

 Several other matters were suggested by our 

 visit, which we may touch upon hereafter. 



DBSTBUCTION OF SHEEP BY DOGS. 



The assessors in Ohio, under an act of the 

 Legislature, have endeavored to ascertain the to- 

 tal number of sheep killed and injured by dogs 

 during the year 1S58. The returns from only a 

 few counties have been puljlished ; but these, 

 few as the counties are, disclose a fearful amount 

 of slaughter. We append the returns of eleven 

 counties, covering not more than one-eighth of 

 the State : 



Counties. Killed. JFoiinded. Faltte. 



Greene 1,239 S20 $i.l04 



Har.iEon 0S7 1,473 3,0S6 



Delaware 781 555 1,02G 



Muskincum 1,206 8S4 3.110 



ChimpaiRn 682 6G4 3,189 



Lorain 432 156 1,219 



Suiamit 820 820 2,459 



Lake 412 100 888 



Stark. 626/ 710 1,879 



Cuyahoga 683 1,112 3,193 



Wajne 747 657 2182 



7,054 7,860 $25,342 



Here are over 7,000 sheep killed and nearly 

 8,000 injured, at a cost to the owners of over 

 $25,000, and all by a pack of curs utterly worth- 

 less. If the proportion holds good throughout 

 the State, the annual loss to sheep-growers must 

 be about $200,000, and if all th" dogs in the 

 State were put together, they would not be worth 

 a tenth part of that sum. We trust that the leg- 

 islation under which these statistics have been 

 gathered will be followed up vigorously, and that 

 some judicious measures will be taken to abate 

 an evil of such magnitude. Other States will 

 doubtless follow Ohio in any efficient measures 

 she may adopt. The danger to sheep from dogs 

 has for a long time prevented an increase in the 

 sheej)-growing business in this country. Many 

 men who would otherwise engage in it are re- 

 strained from venturing from the risk attending 

 it in consequence of the dog-pest. If this were 

 removed, the business of v/ool-raisin;? Vv^ould at 

 once l)ecome a leading and a profitable one. — 

 Pittsburg Gazette. 



For the New England Farmer. 

 NOTSS OH" POPUIiAK PALLACIES. 



Mr. Editor: — Some years since, while I was 

 engaged in selecting a pair of chickens from the 

 dressed fowls in a butcher's stall, a Frenchman 

 stood near, and observing that the dealer seemed 

 to prize very highly a particular pair, on account 

 of their bright yellow skin, he remarked that 

 the preference for yellow-legged and yellow- 

 skinned fowls was a Yankee prejudice. The deal- 

 er admitted that this might be true, but that it 

 was for his interest to buy the most saleable arti- 

 cles, and he had found by experience, that the 

 yellow-legged sorts could be sold more readily 

 and for a higher price than any others. The 

 Frenchman replied that the Americans were very 

 dull in the exercise of their observing faculties, 

 and he suspected that their national love of gold 

 might be the cause of this preference, which was 

 founded on an egregious error. In France, he 

 added, the yellow-legged chickens are considered 

 unfit to be raised. Their flesh is dry and stringy, 

 compared with that of the blue, black and white- 

 legged fowls, whose flesh is by far the most ten- 

 der and juicy. 



I have, since I heard the Frenchman's remarks, 

 taken every opportunity to put them to a ration- 

 al test, and have found them to be correct. The 

 yellow-skinned fowls have commonly either green 

 of yellow legs; those with black, blue or white 

 legs have a white skin. There are some excep- 

 tions ; but the exceptions are not numerous. I 

 raise a great many chickens every year for my 

 own table, calculating to supply it weekly with 

 one pair, from July to February. For t\vo years 

 past, I have kept the Black Polands, which are 

 black-legged ; the G'dden Pheasants, which are 

 blue-legged ; White Polands, wiih white legs, and 

 another sort, allied to the Dorking, with yellow 

 legs. The chickens are all raised and fed in the 

 same way, yet the yellow-legged individuals have 

 almost alway.'* been found inferior to the others 

 with white skins. The last are the most tender, 

 delicate and agreeable. There are occasional ex- 

 ceptions, but so frequently are the yell w-legged 

 chickens dry-meated compared with the others, 

 that I am surprised that our own countrymen 

 have not discovered the fact. 



It is remarkable that the same prejudice exists 

 in this part of the cou!itry in regard to Indian 

 corn. Is it possible that the Frenchman's satiri- 

 cal jest upon our love of whatever resembles the 

 color of gold is founded on fact, and that this 

 prejudice carries away our judgment ? The New 

 England people consider the yellow corn the on- 

 ly sort that is fit for the table, and believe that 

 the white kind is fit only for hogs and cattle, 

 rne opposite of this is the truth. Meal made 

 from the white corn is the best both for cakes 

 and for puddings, but the yellow corn is more 

 fattening when given to domestic animals, and 

 is preferred by them to the white. The Southern 

 people are well acquainted with this fact. All 

 iheir Indian bread and their hominy are made 

 from white corn ; and they smile at our simplic- 

 ity, which leads us to prefer the yellow corn. As 

 the Southerners use Indian corn in a greater va- 

 riety of preparations for the table than we do, 

 and are adepts in this branch of domestic econo- 

 my, I think they are better authority than we at 



