THE FARMER'S MONTHLY VISITOR 



169 



lore the flood, " but tliere went up a mist iiom 

 the eaitli aud watered the whole face of the 

 ground." — Gen. ii, 6. The opjiosite extreme was, 

 it rained forty days and forty nights, and there 

 was a flood which continued 377 days. It ap- 

 pears that a drought continues longer than ex- 

 treme wet weather, and in regard to moisture in 

 the atmosphere of the earth, observation seems 

 to favor the opinion tliattlie exliaustion is greater 

 than tlie accnnjulation, or that, all the world over, 

 the supply of rain is not quite equal to the de- 

 mand ; lor which reason we may generally ex- 

 pect two or more dry seasons to succeed one ex- 

 traordinary wet one, as did the dry summers of 

 1840 and 1841, that of the uncommonly wet one 

 of 1839. The summers of 1805, 1840, and 1841, 

 are among the driest ever experienced in New 

 England. The summer of 1805, was thought by 

 soiiie to be drier than any ever before known. 

 Near the central part of the State of New Hamp- 

 shire, there was scarcely any rain from about the 

 first of June till the 8th of July. From that time 

 to about the middle of August, so little rain (ell 

 that if eVer "the heavens were of brass, and the 

 rain powder and dust," they were literally so then. 

 On the 1st, 2d, and 3d days of August, the weath- 

 er was cloudy, and there was every appearaiice 

 of rain, but the prospect ended in a (few scat- 

 tering drops, to the great discouragement of the 

 industrious farmer. In the months of July and 

 August, 1841, the drought in many places was 

 more severe than that of 1805, or 1840. — There is 

 one way, at least, of improving a dry season to 

 gocd account, which I observe many of our agri- 

 cultural friends have wisely availed themselves 

 of, and that is the collecting of swamp manure. 

 which is both plenty and profitable. 



DUDLEY LEAVITT. 



For the Farmer's Monthly V^isitor. 

 Rearing Sheep and Growing Wool. 



Hon. Isaac Hili. — Sir: — 1 am desirous of 

 saying a few words to my brother farmers through 

 the medium of your valuable paper upon the sub- 

 ject of wool growing. Though I am a novice in 

 newspaper scribbling, and do not feel competent 

 to instruct those who have been much longer in 

 the business of rearing sheep and growing wool, 

 yet 1 feel a deep solicitude tor the success aud 

 prosperity of this important part of our hus- 

 bandry. 



It is not uncommon of late that I hear tt assert- 

 ed by those who have been long in the business, 

 and who have been much bene(ited in former 

 years by the annual clippings of their flocks ; that 

 they will abandon the business, that it is not 

 worth their attention, that they cannot grow wool 

 at the present low prices and will slaughter their 

 sheep (or swiue (feed, &c. &c. 



Now I think these gentlemen take rather a su- 

 perficial view of the matter, and look at the pic- 

 ture only on one side. It is true that this article 

 for the last few years has not made very anjple 

 returns, especially for the present year. The 

 last winter was uncommonly long and severe : 

 the drought in the sununer was equally so; both 

 of which has tended to reduce our flocks in num- 

 bers and condition. But these are causes the ef- 

 fects of which no human sagacity can foresee or 

 control : and their operation has been equally se- 

 vere upon the other branches of our industry. 

 But let us go back a few years and see how the 

 account stands. I have purchased (or the last 

 eight years from fifty to one hundred thousand 

 pounds of wool Bach year for some of the wool- 

 en mills in Worcester county at the current pri- 

 ces ; and I find by referring to the copy of my in- 

 voices, that in 1834, the first year I commenced 

 purchasing, the average price paid per pound 

 was 45 cents, and would have been much higher 

 but (or the contraction of that institution from 

 wliich President Jackson thought pro|)er to with- 

 draw the public deposites. The succeeding year, 



1835, the average was 58 cents per pound ; in 



1836, 60 cents; in 1837, (memorable for the gen- 

 eral ex|)losion of Banks, "grea/reg'u/a<or"andall) 

 40 cents per pound; in 1838, 48 cents; in 1839, 

 52 cents. In October of this year the " balance 

 wheeV stopped first, and put all the Bank machi- 

 nery again afloat south and west of New York, 

 which has ever since operated to depress the 

 price of this article. In 1840, the average was 

 42 cents, and in the beginning of the present 

 ye«r it rose to a feir price in anticipation of a re- 



sumption of specie payments by the suspended 

 Banks : but nineteen days of specie paying 

 drained the vaults of the iiistitution left so "pros- 

 permis and happy" a (few months previous by that 

 honest and " able financier," N. Biddle. This, as 

 was to be expected, again depressed prices so that 

 in the purchase of 70,000 pounds thus far this 

 season the average is again down to 40 cents. 



These prices may be considered comparatively 

 high, as wool sold these years in many sections 

 of the country. But it must be remembered 

 this is a section of fine wool ; there are but few 

 better within the United States. The quality of 

 this article here ranges from three-fourths Meri- 

 no to high graded Saxony, and is generally 

 cleansed in the best miinner. 



I find the average price paid for these eight 

 years to be 48 J cents per pound ; the average 

 weight of fleeces is 3 pounds, giving 1,44§ c. per 

 head (or the fleeces. In addition to this every 

 flock of the ordinary proportion of ewes well pro- 

 vided (or,' will produce annual!; one-third as ma- 

 ny lambs as there are sheep in the flock. In 

 many flocks tlie increase is much greater : but 

 taking this as the average, and allowing the mod- 

 erate price of one dollar per head (or the lambs 

 (which is below the average value for a succes- 

 sion of years) it increases the income per head 

 within a fiaction o( $1,78. The cost of winter- 

 ing a sheep is allowed to be 75 cents by our best 

 (armers, and 35 cents for summering, to which 

 must be added 10 cents (or washing, shearing and 

 furnishing with salt, and 9 cents i)er head (or the 

 mterest of capital invested in this stock, and for 

 losses by escapes from pasture and the severity 

 of winters 16 cents per head more. Thus we 

 get the whole annual expense, viz : $1,45 per 

 head ; which leaves a net yearly income of 33 

 dollars on every hundred sheep (or the last eight 

 years, a period fraught with almost every descrip- 

 tion of embarrassments, a reducing tariff, Bank 

 suspensions, a vast foreign competition, evasion 

 of duties, and a total derangement of the cur- 

 rency. 



Now I would ask my brother farmers what 

 have they, or wi:at ■ coidd they have done with 

 their lands to have obtained a better return ? Has 

 the fattening of pork, the dairy, or even the mo- 

 rns multicaulus been more successful? From 

 our sheep we get our return* semi-annually ; our 

 fleeces are in the market early in the summer, 

 and nothing will command ready cash quicker. 

 In the autumn the drovers are at our doors soli- 

 citing us for our lat lambs and wethers, and we 

 have not the expense and trouble of going a hun- 

 dred miles to seek a market, nor the perplexity 

 of finding a purchaser. And who of any expe- 

 rience does not know that a home market is al- 

 ways the best ? 



How the business may prove wlien the adva- 

 lorem duty of 20 per cent, on foreign wools 

 takes elTecl, time will soon determine. A reduc- 

 tion of the specific duty of 4 cents per pound, 

 and about 15 per cent, advalorem which njust 

 take effect on the 1st of next July, unless some 

 act of the next session of Congress should inter- 

 pose, will undoubtedly bear hard upon the do- 

 mestic wools. I am no great stickler for a strict 

 adherence to the compromise act, regardless of 

 consequences. I believe there is yet wisdom and 

 foresight enough in our national legislature, if ex- 

 ercised with prudence and discretion, to e(fect 

 something to save this great staple of the North 

 from annihilation. But " the chivalrous South" 

 are not all like the late knight of Roanoke who 

 " would go twenty rods out of his way to kick a 

 sheep." We do not ask for a retin-n of the tariff' 

 of 1828, that pernicious " American system," nor 

 for any partial oi- extravagant protection. All we 

 desire is, that when the foreign capitalist enters 

 our market with the raw material or the wrought 

 fabiic, that he shall be subjected to the payment 

 of a tax that will prevent his underselling our 

 own commodities at a price that will give us a 

 (air return for oiu- investments and our labor. 

 With this we will be satisfied. And slionld the 

 compromise act in its operation prove inadequate 

 for this purpose,! believe there will be such a re- 

 vision as will give us this reasonable protection. 



I see no just cause why we should hastily 

 abandon the business of growing wool. My 

 flock of sheep now numbers (bur hundred. I 

 shall increase rather than diminish it, and trust to 

 events for the result. Wool and woolens are so 

 essential to human comfort, they never can for 



any length of time be kept down below the aver, 

 age of the other jjroductions of our farms. 



At some future time I may give my views as to 

 the best breed of sheep for our noithern region, 

 or name the kind with which I have been the 

 most successful. For the present I have said 

 enough, perhaps too much, and- do not ask you, 

 Mr. Editor, to insert this to the exclusion of oth- 

 er and more useful matter. It may need many 

 corrections. I am sensible of my deficiencv in 

 all that constitutes a writer for the press, and" re- 

 gret that others, far better qualified, have not 

 treated more upon this subject in the columns of 

 the Visitor. 



J. W. COLBURN. 



Morris Flats, Springjield, Vt. Oct. 16, 1841. 



For the Monthly Visitor. 

 Slabbers in Horses. 



What is the cause of slabbers, or drooling in 

 horses? Some years you will see almost ev-ery 

 horse (rom ten to twenty days in August drool- 

 ing. It has been said that " Canada thistles, or 

 lobelia causes it ; but this is certainly a mistake, 

 for these vegetables are up from May to Decem- 

 ber ; and I have known horses to make half their 

 living on Canada thistles without slabbering; and 

 as to lobelia they never eat it It has also been 

 supposed by some, that the spider's web, telae 

 aranete, causes the disease ; but I believe without 

 sufficient foundation. I know that some of our 

 physicians think it a medicine of much eflScacy ; 

 especially in nervous diseases. I have tried it 

 on myself, and others, and it had no effect what- 

 ever. Perhaps we had not faith enough. 



Now I will state some facts, hoping that some 

 of your numerous readers will give us informa- 

 tion on this subject. The Messrs. Irelands of 

 this town had a horse which slabbered so bad, 

 you would scarcely have known him in two 

 days he had become so poor. He certainly drool- 

 ed much more than 1 ever saw one before. Some 

 said he was poisoned ; but by taking him from 

 the stable he was well in two days. When put 

 in the stable again, he began to slabber. Then 

 they began to mistrust it was caused by clover 

 hay, which proved to be the (act, by trying it on 

 two other horses, one x)f which ate not more 

 than a pound, and began to slabber in five min- 

 utes, and continued two hours. This hay was 

 cut when rather green, but was cured well, with- 

 out any rain on it ; yet it was very black, as all 

 green clover is when dried. It grew on a small 

 plat betbre the Messrs. Irelands' door. This plat 

 was sowed last year, and every weed was pulled 

 from it this year, so there could be no vegetable 

 but clover. 



Now why should this hay cause the disease? 

 I believe for one, that what caused these horses 

 to slabber — causes the disease in all others. I 

 have for many years thought that this disease was 

 caused by a peculiar state of the atmosphere in 

 August or September. May it not be owing to 

 a blast on green clover at this time of the year? 

 And what is a blast ? Is it caused by animalculse ? 

 or what? We wish for information. 

 Yours with respect, 



STODDARD. 



Sept. 26, 1841. 



Poni-TRr. — " When," says M. Bose, " it is wish- 

 ed to have eggs during the cold season, even in 

 the dead of winter, it is necessary to make the 

 fowls roost over an oven, in a stable, in a shed 

 where many cattle are kept, or to erect a stove 

 in the fowl house on purpose. By such meth- 

 ods, the farmers of Auge liave chickens fit for 

 the tal)le in the month of April, a period when 

 they are only beginning to be hatched in the ("arms 

 around Paris, although fin-ther to the soutii. It 

 would be desirable that stoves in (owl houses 

 were more commonly known near great towns, 

 where luxury grudges no expense for the con- 

 venience of having fresh eggs." It is worthy of 

 remark, that the Irish peasantry, whose poultry 

 occupy at night a corner of the cabin, along with 

 the cow, pig, and the family, (requently lay very 

 early, in conseqiJence of the warmth of their 

 night quarters ; and there can be no doubt that 

 this is the chief secret for having new laid eggs 

 in winter, paying at the same time due atteniion 

 to protect the hens from wet, and to have tliem 

 young, or at least eaily in moulting. — Dom the 

 Poxdiry Yard, by Peter 'RotwelU 



