570 



2^W ENGLAND FAB5MER. 



Dec. 



eficial to the wool ? Let us reason by analo- 

 gy. How much is necessary to the human 

 head, to the horse, cow, fowl, or any of God's 

 creatures for whom he has provided it ? Not 

 much ; hardly more than in an imperceptible 

 degree. More than this is a burden, a waste 

 of vital power, and twice an expense, — first in 

 the purchase, and secondly in getting rid of it. 

 Since writing the above we have referred to 

 Dr. Randall's Practical Shepherd, the best 

 work, probably, ever prepared on the subject 

 of sheep husbandry, and copy as follows : — 



Proper Amount and Consistency of Yolk. 



I esteem it particuLarly fortunate for the preser- 

 vation of tlie intrinsic value of our merino sheep, 

 and fortunate for the public interest, that it is al- 

 ready incontcstibly ascertained that the greatest 

 amount of yolk is not consistent cither with the 

 greatest amount of wool, or v.itli the greatest ag- 

 gregate amount of both j-ol k and wool " The black, 

 miserably "oily," "gummy" sliccp, looking as if 

 their wool had been soaked to .saturation in half 

 inspissated oil, and then daubed over externally 

 with a coating of tar and lamp-ljlaek, never exhibit 

 that maximum of both length and density of wool 

 which, with a proper degree of yolk, produces the 

 greatest aggregate weight. Yolk has been gener- 

 ally thought to be the pabulum of wool, and if so, 

 its excessive secretions, as a separate substance, 

 may diminish its secretions in the form of wool. 

 Be this as it may, the fact I have stated stands 

 without an exception. And animals exhibiting 

 this marked excess of yolk, are invariably feebler 

 in constitution, less easily kept, and especiallj' less 

 capa1)Ie of withstanding severe cold. Such ex- 

 cessive secretions appear, then, to cause, or else to* 

 be the results of an abnormal or defective organi- 

 zation. For these reasons, tiicse comparatively 

 worthless animals, once so eagerly sought, have 

 already gone out of use among the be.-t informed 

 breeders; and where they linger, it is, like anti- 

 quated la>liions,inregions where the current ideas 

 of the day penetrate slowly ! 



There should be enough fluid yolk within the 

 wool on the upper surfaces of the body, to cover 

 every fibre like a brilliant, and, in warm weather, 

 like an undried coat of varnish — but not enough 

 to till the interstices between them, so that the 

 fleece shall appear, as it sometimes does, to l)e 

 growing up through a bed of oil. And if there is 

 a sulliciency of yolk above, it must be expected 

 that underneath where the fleece is less exposed 

 to evaporation and the washing of rains, and to 

 which part gravitation would naturally determine 

 a flidd siib.>^tance, a considerably greater quantity 

 of it will be fountl. 13ut hardened or pasty masses 

 of it within the wool are to be avi ided, on all parts 

 of the l)ody. A portion of the fluid yolk will ne- 

 cessarily inspissate or harden on the oiiier tnds of 

 the wool. It is proper that it should sensibly 

 thicken those ends, and clot them together in small 

 masses on the upper parts of the b.jdy — f)rniiiiga 

 coat considerably thicker, firmerand harder to the 

 hand than wouhl the naked wool, and quite rigid 

 when exposed to cold; but it should not cover the 

 wool in roimdeil knobs, or in thick, (irmly adher- 

 ing patches, botmded by the fl;ece cracks— slick- 

 ing to the hand in hot weather like a conii)Oundof 

 grease and tar, and in cold having a "board-like" 

 Ktittness. Underneath, for the same reasons given 

 in reference to inside yolk, a greater quantity of it 

 must be tolcratetl. it should stick the masses of 

 wool together in front of the brisket and scrotum, 

 and large rounded knobs of it inside the legs and 



thighs and on the hack side of the scrotum, are 

 considered desirable. 



Another "hobby" of sheep raisers is that of 

 "wrinkles" — but we must look at his paces 

 another time. 



THE HORSE AT FAIRS. 

 To justify the prominence that is given to 

 horses in the premium list of agricultural Fairs, 

 the editor of the Prairie Farmer copies the 

 following table prepared by the Auditor of 

 the State of Illinois. It shows the value of 

 horses, as compared with other farm stock, 

 «&c., to be larger than we supposed it to be : — 



The assessed value of neat cattle in the State 



of Illinoia for the year 1S67 is $17,144,597 



Do of sheep 3,510,777 



Do.ofho^s 5,221.552 



Do. of manufactured articles 2,210,536 



Do. capital stock of banks 2,270,326 



$32,387,783 

 Do. of horses . • 32,578,223 



While admitting that trials of speed, as at 

 present conducted, are objectionable and de- 

 moralizing, the writer believes that e.Khibitions 

 and tests of horses may be arranged in such a 

 manner as to encourage the improvement of 

 this noble -animal and to develop its valuable 

 qualities. For this purpose the whole matter 

 must be taken from the hands of those who, 

 caring nothing for the improvement of stock, 

 own and train horses for the purpose of put- 

 ting money in their pockets by winning purses 

 or premiums offered, and by successful betting, 

 often secured by the merest tricks, of which 

 the following is given as an illustration : — 



A is a breeder; B and C are unscrupulous jock- 

 eys. Each enters a horse, A's bein^' the best. 

 The race is "mile heats, best 3 in 5." The flrst heat 

 B's horse keeps A's at the top of his speed, while 

 C's runs slowly, and just saves his distance. Sec- 

 ond heat, C's horse, nearlv fresh, runs at A's and 

 keeps him at the top of his speed tlironghont the 

 second mile, while B's runs slowly and just saves 

 his di.-^tance. A's horse having won two heats at 

 the top of his speed, must now win a third against 

 two horses, neither of which has exericd liis powers, 

 but in a single heat ; and the hi.-toiy of the turf 

 shows thousands of cases in which the joekcj'S 

 have thus succeeded in beating a flrst class animal 

 with others by no means his equal. 



The writer would have the managers of our 

 agricultural Fairs and of our Breeders' Asso- 

 ciations assume the control of the "speed 

 rings," and so conduct every performance that 

 "honest men may without sacrifice of self- 

 respect, present their animals for competition, 

 and the crowds of old and young avIio attend 

 the annual Fairs may witness the contest with- 

 out the consciousness that they are patroniz- 



