1853. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



569 



pictures of silver." This is the spirit that shall 

 subdue tlic earth, fill it with substantial homes and 

 happy people, and crown it with gladness. It will 

 adorn our cities, turn the wheels of our manufac- 

 tories, feed the laborer and artisan with the boun- 

 teous products of the earth, fill the shelves of the 

 merchant and freight the ships of commerce, and 

 what is more than all these, elevate the moral 

 condition of man, and stop more profligacy and 

 vice than all the laws and prisons in the land com- 

 bined. 



Utter these words of yours, friend Stow, every 

 where, on your hill tops and through your sweep- 

 ing vales. Say to the men of the mountains that 

 courage, perseverance, and faith, will enable them 

 to subdue the most incorrigible lands, so that 

 they shall reap plentifully from what was but the 

 barren rock ! That the dwellers in the valley shall 

 turn aside the waters, lift the recumbent soil to 

 the sun and air, and vivify it with productive 

 powers ! Your mission has not ended with the re- 

 clamation of your fields, and your victory over the 

 obstacles that were strown in your path. You must 

 animate others with your own faith and hopes, 

 and encourage them — and they others— to gain 

 that independence and. contentment which you 

 have yourself achieved. Such must be the 

 men who will give strength and permanence to 

 our institutions, and make us, truly, a worthy ex- 

 ample for the nations of the earth. 



RIBRINO SHEEP FOR MUTTON. 



Mr. Editor : — In the Wool Grower for May is 

 the folluwing statement or advice : — " If you grow 

 sheep for mutton, grow the large, coarse kind." 

 Believins that the sentence contains a senti- 



o - --. a 



ment calculated to mislead men, and defeat their v^^^^^, o|^<^t»D.iug, uj nicmnj sucep, — --ic is»aiiowe( 

 object, viz., the greatest income of cash from a to be a good business to rear them for mutton.' 



their fleece and meat. This will be considered 

 fair by the friends of coarse sheep. And first, we 

 assert that we can raise as many lbs. of Merino 

 mutton from an acre, or a given number of acres, 

 stocked with the Merino wethers, as we can stocked 

 with coarse sheep ; and secondly we affirm that it 

 is equally good, and will fetch as much by the lb. : 

 and our third statement is, that the acre will 

 yield one-third more wool, and every pound is 

 worth one-third more than coarse — so that the 

 fleeces are worth more than double those from the 

 acre stocked with coarse sheep. J am aware that 

 it is said by tradition, or self-interest, that the^ 

 mutton of the Merino is comparatively valueless. 

 We have, on hearing these objections, been re- 

 minded of the South Sea cannibal's repast on the 

 flesh of his dead enemy, or of the chap that man- 

 aged to shed tears to sell at so much a pint. The 

 truth is the objection is without foundation — it is 

 fiilse and disreputable. Take a leg of Merino, 

 and one of the fat South-Down, mutton, and have 

 them equally well cooked, and not all the old epi- 

 cures in America can tell which is which, if they 

 be blind-folded before setting at the table. 



We will here introduce testimony from several 

 highly intelligent gentlemen from different States 

 corroborative of our position. Says Mr. Theodore 

 N. Davidson, of Virginia, — "I can raise as many 

 pounds of Merino mutton to the acre, as of any 

 other breed, and I am sure, of decidedly better 

 quality." Says H. W. Chapline, of Virginia,— 

 "The Merino highly recommends itself to all far- 

 mers." After enumerating several qualities in 

 their favor over the coarse sheep, he adds, — "Their 

 mutton, when fat, -is excellent, being tender ,juicy, 

 and of fine flavor, when well cooked." Says Mr. 

 Bidleman, of N. Y.,— "I know by experience, that 

 the Merino makes better mutton than the coarse 

 English sheep." Says Nathan Dustan, of Galena, 

 Ohio, — "A grade of sheep between coarse and fine, 

 are better for mutton than the coarse grained Eng- 

 lish sheep." Says John Young, of Belleville, 

 Ohio, speaking of Merino sheep,— "It is, allowed 



given number of acres stocked with sheep. We 

 deem it a duty to examine, and expose its incor- 

 rectness. It is generally a conceded point, that 

 animals of the same kind, or breed, being of the 

 same age, flesh and temperament, will consume 

 food in proportion to their live weight — i. e., an 

 ox which weighs 2,000 lbs. will consume 25 per 

 cent., or one quarter more food, than any ox of 

 the same breed, age, flesh and temperament, that 

 weighs only 1,600 lbs. A sheep that weighs 200 

 lbs. will consume just double of one that weighs 

 only 100 lbs.— the age, the breed, the flesh, &c., 

 being alike in both. Sufficient experiments, both 

 in England and America, have established this 

 axiom beyond all reasonable doubt. No scholar 

 will deny it. Hence it follows that the true esti- 

 mate of profits should be reckoned by the acre, 

 and not by the head. Here is the tripstone of 

 multitudes — this is a common blunder. If an 

 acre turn oS" annually more profit when stocked 

 withSouth-downs, than ten acres will, stocked with 



Says James DeMott, of Seneca Co., N.- Y.,— . 

 "Butchers here declare that they prefer sheep of 

 medium size— from 60 to 70 lbs., and at least one- 

 half Merino— that they are the most profitable for 

 mutton — ^they show more fat when opened, and 

 the flesh is better generally than the common large 

 sheep, or English breeds." Says Humphrey How- 

 land, Esq., of Cuyuga Co., N. Y.,— "The Merino 

 wether isfullyequal to South-Downs for mutton." 

 Says Mr. Samuel Good, of Scottsville, Monroe Co., 

 N. Y., — "The Merino sheep are the most profit- 

 able, both for mutton and wool." [See Patent Of- 

 fice Reports for 1850—51.] This array of evidence 

 might be extended, almost ad-infinitum. Thous- 

 ands in the vicinity of Brigliton market will give 

 in similar testimony. 



Aside from all this, the following are a few 

 among many other reasons which the Merino claims 

 as characteristic of the race : 



1st. They are hardy, and endure the severities 



c • 1 TIT . ' . ,1 ,7 '""' "|0^ the climate much better than the English or 



Spanish Mennos, yield the best returns m dollars native breeds of sheep, for the best of reasons, 

 and cents, then the palm of honor must be award- viz., they are much better protected, having about 

 ed to them. ^ 400,000 wool hairs to the square inch, while com- 



mthis comparison, we do not propose to esti- mon American sheep have 62,000 only.- 

 mate_ the iMennos at their value for stock purposes, 2d. Their longevity is great. They propagate 

 but simply as the coarse sheep are reckoned— for [doing well, until 12 and 15 years old. ^ ^ 



