VOt,. XS1.no. II. 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER, 



*i 111. In this connection, it may not be amiss to | celcbrntcd Merino (lock nf General Wiidswortli, of 

 W« ention, that I liavo this fall sowed live iicres ofiGenesec; nnd the residue the bcslcommon wooled 

 ''■* jmnioM land with the seed of white pine, and am sheep that 1 could procure. I cominenced crossing 



89 



ow planting- several acres with acorns, which it is 

 III (tended to protect against cattle with a fence." 



SOWKD CORN. 



'o the Editor of ibe N'ew En-rlaml Farmer : 



It may amuse, and perliaps be of some advantage 



the agriculturists of the country, to be correctly 



iformed to what extent of production the soil may 



" e relied upon or referred to. This is especially 



mportant to those who have but little land to cnl- 



ivntc. My attention having been drawn, in past 



ime, to this subject, I this year (1842) appropriated 



piece of ground for the purpose of sowing in 



roadcast (.so called) a quantity of Indian corn. 



ielying on the prevalent saccharine matter thought 



be therein contained, I took what is commonly 



allod sweet corn. It came up well, though its 



'" jrowth was not comparable with that planted in 



' the hill. At the first appearance of the spindle, a 



* portion of the lot of average appearance was cut, 



"^ and two careful persons were my assistants in 



weighing the product (August 22.) 



The production was as follows; 272 1-2 square 

 feet or one rod, gave at the rate of 13 tons 122.') 

 pounds to the acre. It may be well here to ob- 

 serve, thai after spindling, at several subsequent 

 periods, there was a decrease of weight. 



My next experiment was made with Southern 

 flat corn. This was scattered in rows. The 

 growth was rapid, favored by the season. This 

 too was taken as the spindle began to appear, and 

 the production was calculated in like manner as in 

 the preceding case, and was a little over 21 tons 

 to the acre (Sept. 2d.) 



In both cases these crops were fed out in aid of 

 the pasture. 



The result in both these experiments, would 

 8eem to give great force to the system of soiling, 

 well thought of and recommended by so many ag- 

 riculturists. 



I am, sir, yours, 



JOHN WELLES. 

 J^atick, Sept. 6, 1842. 



MANAGEMENT OF SHEEP IN WINTER. 



Extracts from a paper by L. A. Morrell, Esq., in 

 the Transactions of the N. V. State Agricultural 

 Society : 



" It will readily be acknowledged by all who 

 have had the least experience in sheep husbandry, 

 that winter is the season, in our latitude, when the 

 skill of the sheep-master is most severely tested ; 

 and that in the ratio of his attention or neglect, is 

 his profit or loss. 



The first iujportant point which will bo discuss- 

 ed, connected with the winter management of 

 sheep, is prolcctiun, in support of which greater 

 space will be required than is wished. The strong 

 and inveterate prejudice entertained by thousands 

 of farmers against this necessary matter in slieep 

 economy, is truly surprising; the grounds of which 

 are, that it enervates the constitution and induces 

 disease, and consequently deteriorates the qualitv 

 and diminishes the quantity of the fleece. It will 

 be my endeavor to prove that these conclusions are 

 the very reverse of being true. 



It is now many years since I embarked in sheep 

 husbandry. My original purchase amounted to 

 about 500, the half of which were from the then 



with these, nnd steadily pursued the policy, even 

 to the prr.ient time, of improving their quality by 

 combining fineness and closeness of pile with as 

 much regard to size and vigor of colistitulion as 

 possible. A judicious course was adopted during 

 the season of pasturage, by changing the flocks 

 often from one field to another, feeding an abun- 

 dance of hay and grain during winter, but heavy 

 losses, varying from Jiine to twelve per cent. — and 

 let this be noted — would occur yearly, in despite 

 of these efl'orts. It was not, however, until about 

 the year '3.5, that my eyes were opened to the cause 

 of this mortality, so sensibly felt in the purse, and 

 revolting to humanity ; it was the necessity of pro- 

 tection. Accordingly, I forthwith erected a num- 

 ber of barns with sheltering apartments — hereafter 

 tn bo ascribed — which proved an immediate reme- 

 dy to these misfortunes. Since that event, on re- 

 ference to my sheep records, it appears that my 

 loss has not averaged, annually, to exceed one and 

 a half per cent, with regard to number, and if com- 

 parative value were the standard, not the half of 

 one per cent., inasmuch as the deaths were con- 

 fined to small and late lambs, and ewes inclined to 

 age ; whereas exposure cut down good as well as 

 indifterent. But to make my limited loss, during 

 the season of foddering, appear still more striking, 

 I will state the fact, that last Avinter, out of two 

 thousand, sixteen only died of the age of two years 

 and upwards, (several of these through casualties,) 

 and the residue that died were small lambs, ten 

 from bad nursing, and the number about twenty. 

 If this statement is contrasted with the per centage 

 before the resort to protection, it will readily dis- 

 pel the delusion that it tends to enervate the con- 

 stitution of sheep. 



Although philosophy enters largely in support of 

 the position that sheltering of sheep in our vigo- 

 rous climate, is a counteracting cause of disease, 

 yet it is deemed necessary to state only a simple 

 fact to overthrow the pri-judice heretofore stated in 

 reference to this point. When my flocks were ex- 

 posed, the diseases to which they were subject 

 were scab, pelt-rot, scours or purging, and an ex- 

 cessive discharge of mucus from the nose, and many 

 died from apparently no other disease than sheer 

 poverty. But since protection, no epidemic has 

 prevailed, and disease of any kind is rare indeed, 

 only occurring in individual cases. From this re- 

 sult, whatever may be the conclusion of some, it 

 must nt least be clear to every unprejudiced mind, 

 that tvarni shelters are the preventives of disease, 

 rather than the inducing cause. 



That protection will deteriorate the quality of the 

 fleece, of which very many seem quite sure, nothing 

 is more groundless; a mere delusion, and like eve- 

 ry thing else of this character, originating in igno- 

 rance. This class of farmers say, that the Saxons, 

 which yield a finer wool than any other variety, and 

 possessing more delicate constitutions, live in a 

 colder climate than ours, and hence conclude that 

 exposure is necessary here, to prevent deterioration. 

 That the climate of parts of Germany, where the 

 pure Saxon abounds, is colder than this latitude, is 

 very true ; but the fact it appears, is not known, 

 that there protection is of the utmost necessity, and 

 is most rigidly practiced. Ignorance of this is the ■f'"' Cramp in the Stomach. — Warm water sweet- 

 foundation of the fallacy which so generally pre- ened with molasses or brown sugar, taken freely, 

 vails. will in many cases remove the cramp in the sto- 



With the statenicnt of one or two facts, I will mach when opium and other remedies have failed. 



close the discussion of ihis point, although it could 

 he made stronger by other illustrations. The first 

 clip shorn after my flocks were slielteicd, their 

 wool (stapled at the Middlesex manufactory. Low- 

 ell,) sold, sorted, three cents per lb. higher than the 

 previous one, which arose not from selling the 

 coarsest sheep during the interim, having parted 

 with only about fifly of iliis class. And again, my 

 wool, previous to that period, was harsh, weak in 

 fibre, and to use a technical term, dead in feeling ; 

 since then, it has been distinguished by life, soft- 

 ness and elasticity, and great strength of fibre. This 

 is always a natural and sure consequence, when 

 sheep are kept in vigorous and hcaltliy condition. 



The next point I shall notice is, that protection 

 wilt increase the loeight of the Jl.rece. .Ml farmers 

 are aware th^it in fattening swine, or other stock, 

 mildness of temperature is of paramount importance 

 to hasten the process — and why .' Because the 

 comfort of the animal is thereby promoted. And 

 it is asked, will not the same cause produce a simi- 

 lar result with the sheep, when its comfort is thus 

 consulted ? Surely this will not be questioned. 

 And who will deny that a sheep in good condition 

 will shear a larger amount of wool than one in 

 very ordinary flesh. But I will leave theory, and 

 resort to stubborn facts spread before me in my 

 sheep records, which will place the point in ques- 

 tion beyond the cavil of the most sceptical. Be- 

 fore protection, the average yield of wool per head 

 was from 2 lb. 7 oz. to 2 lb. 9 oz. ; and this too, 

 when the flock partook more of the 'old fashioned 

 Merino' characteristics than at present ; and pro- 

 vided the same means had been adopted to secure 

 their health and condition as now, the produce 

 would have exceeded 3 lbs.: of this there is not a 

 doubt. The first clip that followed protection, the 

 average per head was 21b. 10 oz. ; the second, 2 lb. 

 14 oz. ; third, 2 ib. 12 3-4 oz. ; fourth, 2 lb. ID 1-2 

 oz. ; and the last clip, 2 lb. 12 oz. The disparity 

 in these averages is in part to be attributed to the 

 difierenco in the number of yearlings, but mostly 

 to the seasons, which in an unaccountable manner 

 affect sometimes the weight of fleece generally. I 

 shall not go into further particulars, but state that 

 the aggregate increase of five clips, as above, 

 amounts to seventeen hundred pounds, which at the 

 prices sold, would cover the interest of the whole 

 flock for five year.^ valuing them at one dollar and 

 fifty cents per head 1 This is submitted as one 

 only of the solid arguments in favor of the policy 

 of protection. The legitimate conclusion to be 

 drawn from the above premises is, that sheep kept 

 in good condition will yield a larger quantity of 

 wool — ergo — the necessity of protection, as one of 

 the means to promote this condition. 



Increase of lambs, is another sure result of pro- 

 tection. It is almost superfluous to tell an intelli- 

 gent, practical farmer, or the animal physiologist, 

 that in order to produce a healthy and vigorous oflT- 

 spring, the sire and dam should possess sound con- 

 stitutions, and good condition during pregnancy is 

 of the highest importance. By means of great at- 

 tention to those important particulars, together with 

 skillful crossing, may be ascribed nil the improve- 

 ments which have been made from time to time, in 

 domestic animals." 



