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SPRINGFIELD, MAY, 1859. 



NO. 5. 



PUBLISHED MONTHLY, 



BT 



BAIIillACUE <fc BAKER, 



JOURNAL OFFICE SPRINGFIELD, ILL 



S. FRANCIS. Editor. 



*»f — - 



TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION. 



One copy, one year, in advance $1 00 



J'ivo copies, " " 3 75 



Ten " and one to the person getting up club 7 60 



Fiftoen copies and over , 62J^ centa each, and one to person 

 getting up club. 



CONTJENTS. 



Fremiam Essay 267 



Clean Upl 259 



Calves „ 259 



More Staples 260 



Less Land and Bettor Culture ....260 



Breeding Ewes ^ 260 



Blood Horses 261 



Suffering Stock „.261 



The beat Whitewash wo kn ow of. %,„„M2 



[From the forthcoming Transactions of the State Agricoltor- 

 al Society, now in press.] 



PREMIUM ESSAY. 



Camels., 



.262 



WoolCircul;r ^62 



White Beane ^ {•fl2 



Union Fairs ^ _262 



Natural History ., _263 



Rhubarb Wino 263 



TheFotatoe Crop 264 



The Robin 264 



Influence of the Moon ^65 



Carrots ^q 



The Verbena , 266 



Locusts , 



,.266 



Swine Flesh nog 



Information Wanted 2..7 



Soft Maples 267 



TheOsago Orange „ 267 



Early Vegetables „ 267 



Apple-Pie Melon _207 



Experience with Imphee „ 268 



Cutting Fence Timber 268 



Health and Hogs „ 208 



Excellent Bread 208 



Lima Beans 



Under Draining 



Look out forTroo Peddlers ; 



Fairbanks' Scales 



Coal Tar Paint 



Mr. Dunlaps' Nursery 



Currants and Gooseberries 



Illinois State Fair 



Great Sale of Stock ^ 



Markets 



.288 

 208 

 269 

 .269 

 .269 

 .270 

 .270 

 .271 i 



I 



271 1 

 .271 i 



On the various breeds of Slicep and their Adap- 

 tion to the Prairies. 



BT A. B. U'CONN£LL, OF SANOAMOir CO., ILL. 



At tills late day, I presume it will no 

 longer be disputed that our climate is 

 well adapted to wool growing, and also 

 for the fattening of mutton. I have 

 been growing wool in this State for the 

 last fourteen years, and several years 

 previous in the State of New York. — 

 When I first saw Illinois and its Prairies 

 I arrived at the same conclusion with 

 many others at that time, having been 

 raised amongst the hills and rocks of the 

 East — that the Prairies were too low and 

 level for the health of sheep and their 

 development. 



It is a very common idea that sheep 

 will only do well in a hilly country, 

 from the factthatmuch of the low, level 

 lands, of those countries are inclined to 

 be springy and mossy, and that sheen 

 confined to such pastures, soon get dis- 

 eased, and the owners are compelled to 

 turn them upon the hills or lose their 

 flocks. I have no hesitation in sayinor 



that sheep are not 

 diseases upon our 

 foot rot that made 

 their flocks East, 



liable to contract 

 Prairie soils. The 

 such havoc among 

 will not continue the 

 second summer upon our Prairies. I 

 speak from experience, and have also 

 known other cases, where large flocks 

 have been driven here with the disease 

 upon them. It has never shown itself 

 the second summer; and but very slight- 

 ly the first. 



We have no contagious diseases here 

 that I know of, except the scab, and 

 that is said to be easily subdued and 

 kept down by a decoction of tobacco and 

 soft soap. To cure the disease, it is 

 necessary, directly after shearing, to dip 

 the whole flock, once a week, for three 

 or four weeks. I kno-w of one flock of 

 about fiiteen hundred, that had the scab 

 that nas sheared five lbs of washed wool | 

 per head for the last two years; but if I 

 any flock master should be so unfortun- I 



ate as to get it into his flock, my advice 

 would be to keep them from breeding. 

 Let them get fat upon the summer range 

 and sell them to the butchers. As the 

 disease does not trouble or afiect them in 

 summer, it does not injure them for 

 mutton. -^ 



Then I arrive at the conclusion that 

 our climate and Prairies are well adapt- 

 ed to sheep husbandry. For I believe 

 it to be a fact, which is generally 

 acknowledged, that no country can sur- 

 pass us in growing the necessary food, 

 both to make wool and mutton. The 

 question then arises which is the most 

 profitable breed. The answer depends 

 entirely upon circumstances and locality. 

 If near some large towns, and mutton is 

 the object of the breeder, then I would 

 say, some of the long wooled breeds or 

 the Southdovvns. There is a great di- 

 versity of opinion as to which of the 

 above breeds will prove to be the most 

 profitable for our soil and climate. — 

 Having never bred or handled either of 

 them, I do not feel competent to decide 

 between them. The Longwools attain to 

 greater size, and shears a larger fleece, 

 but they will not bear to be herded in 

 as large flocks as the Southdowns; and 

 being greater feeders, in case of long 

 drouths, will not Btand as much short 

 keeping. v; .^. .'; ,: :^ ■ 



There is probably no country that con- 

 sume© more mutton than England, and 

 there the Southdown mutton, for its fine 

 flavor and superior quality, stands pre- 

 eminently the highest. But probably 

 for their great size, where but a small 

 flock is desired, the Longwools may 

 yield the greatest profit. 



Having decided which are the best 

 breeds for mutton, the question comes 

 up — which is the best breed for wool 

 growing? I answer the Merino. In 

 all fine wooled flocks, wool is the first 

 object, and mutton the second. So in 

 pursuing our inquiries, we must take 

 into consideration which is the most pro- 

 fitable breed for both wool and mutton 

 combined. There arc three class e of 

 Merino, the French, Spanish and what 

 is termed of late years the American. — 



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