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GExNESEE FARMER. 



Nov. 



A Chapter on Wool Growing. 



Messrs. Editors: — It is about forty-eight 

 years since the first importation of Merino sheep 

 into the United States, by Chancellor Livings- 

 ton and Gen. Humphrets ; and as they were 

 not quite as tall as our native sheep, and looked 

 rather dark colored and dirty, they were consid- 

 ered by many a very inferior animal, and a,pest 

 to our country. Others seemed to view thqir 

 good properties, and, on a fair trial, found them 

 very valuable, and much more profitable for the 

 wool grower, especially in our northern States, 

 than any other, as they v/ere more hardy, gave 

 heavier and much finer fleeces. They are also 

 much more tame and docile. A fence three feet 

 high is sufficient to keep them. They are like- 

 Vise very prolific, kind to their young, and good 

 milkers. 



Hon. Wm. Jarvis imported several thousand 

 •in 1310 and 1811. My first purchase was in 

 1S12. The most of my neighbors considered 

 me unwise, because they were such inferior 

 looking creatures. It was also said that their 

 meat was strong, but they bore aquaintance well. 

 We found that they would keep fat on short feed, 

 where our native sheep would be poor — as I 

 have ever found it to be the case, when I have 

 kept them both in the same flock. When butch- 

 ered, their quarters were as heavy and their meat 

 as sweet as our native or any other kind of 

 sheep; and 1 can make a thousand pounds of 

 mutton of Merino sheep as cheap as I can of any 

 other kind of sheep whatever. They were all 

 that the wool grower wanted, especially in the 

 northern States, till the introduction of the Sax- 

 onies — their wool being finer than the Merinos, 

 and less gummed, it would of course bring more 

 by the lb. Many, therefore, disposed of the 

 Merinos and purchased Saxonies, or crossed 

 their flocks with them. After the large impor- 

 tations of Saxonies in 182.5 and 1826 almost all 

 of the fine wool growers crossed their flocks with 

 them, and very many to their sorrow, and my- 

 self among others. We soon found them to be 

 a very tender animal, and light shearers ; and 

 although our wool would bring us more by the 

 lb., our fleeces were so light that we only ob- 

 tained about three-fourths as much for our year- 

 ly clip as when we had the Merinos, and we lost 

 twice as many in wintering. And in rearing 

 Saxony lambs we would loose 25 per cent., 

 when we formerly lost only 5 per cent, in rais- 

 ing Merino lambs, and for three years past we 

 have not lost over three per cent. 



In 1835 I sold my farm at the east, disposed 

 of my flock, moved to Western New York, 

 where I now reside, and resolved to keep no 

 more Saxony sheep, but have done what I could 

 to establish a flock of Merinos. For the last five 

 years I have spared no pains or expense, as far 

 as my ability would possibly admit, to obtain all 



the information possible concerning them. In 

 order to find those flocks that had been kept pure, 

 I have searched out the pedigree of almost every 

 flock that has come before the public, and have 

 become perfectly satisfied that I have not only 

 found, but have obtained, as good as there is. I 

 have purckased, in all. 59 Merinos from the most 

 approved flocks in the Eastern States — 47 of 

 which were ewes — and I have paid for the 59 

 S'1,025, exclusive of charges and expenses. I 

 now think that I have a flock of sheep again. 



The summer of 1847 was the dryest, in this 

 vicinity, that I ever knew in my life in any 

 place. I never before saw Merino sheep as poor 

 as mine were, and even when the winter com- 

 menced their bones could be counted. Yet in 

 June last my breeding ewes, 140 in number, 

 averaged 4 lbs. 3oz. per head of washed wool, 

 and I sold my entire clip for 34 cents per pound, 

 cash at my door. 



One cause, Messrs. Editors, of my sending 

 you this article is the anxiety that some appear 

 to have to return again to the Saxony sheep, to 

 which I have no objections. Let all who wish 

 to keep them do so. Wool dealers and manu- 

 facturers like the Saxony wool, because it is 

 finer and less gummed than the Merino ; but let 

 them summer and winter the two animals, and 

 shear them, and they will perhaps find themselves 

 mistaken in some things. The Saxony spirit 

 has been quite visible for a year or two past at 

 our State Fairs, and especially at our last at 

 Buffalo, the judges on Merino sheep seemed to 

 I possess a good share pf it. Some of them, at 

 j least, if not all, being wool dealers instead of 

 wool growers, seemed to favor that class of Me- 

 rinos which were pretty well tinctured with Sax- 

 ony — Merinos and their grades being all admit- 

 ted as Merinos, so that the premiums are award- 

 ed to Merinos and their grades, which gives the 

 committee all the opportunity that they may 

 desire to give the preference to such as have the 

 finest fleeces and least gum, which leaves tlie 

 most of the pure bred Merinos in the back 

 ground. We do not say but what some premi- 

 ums were given to full blood Merinos at the said 

 Fair at Buffalo, but the majority of them were 

 given to those that were crossed with Saxony — 

 while a goodly number of those who exhibited 

 pure bred Merinos, and of the first quality, 

 received nothing, and the only reason no doubt 

 was because they were Merino. 



A number of others in this State have been 

 doing what they could for ten years past, to get 

 up a flock of pure Spanish Merinos. Those of 

 us who have for many years been keeping both 

 Saxony and Merino, with their grades, and have 

 sheared them year after year, and now for the 

 last few years have been traversing the country 

 from Dan to Ceersheba to find the pure bloods, 

 and of the best kind and quality, have the vanity 

 to believe that we know something about Merino 



