SEA*MUD AS A FERTILIZER. 
341 
would be increased nine cents per pound; this cer¬ 
tainly is attainable; but the way in which you 
propose to bring it about, namely, by crossing with 
the “ Paular, or old-fashioned Merinos,” you would 
not obtain that end, thousands of fine flocks would 
be reduced in quality, (c) In this section it would 
reduce the quality as much as you wish to improve 
it. Coarse sheep would be improved by the cross; 
but to apply it to all the sheep in the United 
States, as I understand you to say, you would find 
yourself very much mistaken in the result. I ven¬ 
ture to say, that on the same quantity of feed, you 
can not increase the heft of fleece of a fine flock 
shearing from 2\ to 3 lbs., by your cross up to 3f 
to 4 lbs. per head, and have the wool in equally 
good condition. ( d ) An increase of feed will do 
much toward increasing the heft of fleece. A 
few words more and I have done. 
Examiner, page 52, says: “ As to Paular Bucks, 
it strikes me that you might, for any practical pur¬ 
pose, just as well have advised a cross of the fab¬ 
ulous Unicorn, for it would be just as easy to find 
the one as the other at the present time in the 
United States; for depend upon it, there is no such 
thing now existing, as a Paular Buck , nor any thing 
deserving the name in the whole country.” And 
you say that “ there are still large and valuable 
flocks scattered over the country.” (e) 
H. D. G-rove. 
(a) Immediately upon the receipt of this letter 
of Mr. Grove’s we wrote on to Washington to as¬ 
certain the facts in the case, but were answered 
that the census bureau was abolished, and they 
could not tell. We know that when the person 
for taking the census in the district in which we 
were then residing, called upon us, he required the 
number of colts, calves, lambs, and pigs, although 
some of them were only three days old at the 
time ; and to our objection of rendering an account 
of such young stock, he remarked, “ never mind, 
they will be grown when the census appears, and 
it is the law.” Most of those to whom we have 
put the question about rendering an account of the 
lambs in their flocks, say they did so; others do 
not recollect. If there has been irregularity with 
sheep-owners in giving an account of their lambs, 
of course we are incorrect; and we think, upon re¬ 
flection, we may have estimated the number of 
lambs too high; though, on the other hand, we are 
quite certain Mr. Grove has set them down as en¬ 
tirely too few; for we know flocks that produce 
within a fraction as many lambs annually as there 
are breeding ewes. 
(b) Perhaps when Mr. Grove has travelled south 
and west more extensively, and seen in the months 
of March and April, as many half-bare sheep as 
we have, which shed their wool from disease, 
want of care, &c., he may come to a different conclu¬ 
sion. We have often seen flocks in the same 
condition at the north too, leaving many of our 
farmers little to boast of in this respect. 
(c) We have turned to the article to which Mr. 
Grove alludes, but really, we do not find that we 
used the expressions attributed to us. We said 
“ Spanish Merino,” also, “ unadulterated Merino 
meaning thereby, the Rambouillets more particu¬ 
larly. We also spoke in general terms, in recom¬ 
mending the use of these. Such a flock of Saxons 
as Mr. Grove’s we would especially except; and 
if the accounts which we hear of them be correct, 
and we have no doubt they are, we would not 
cross them with anything less fine than them* 
selves. They are unquestionably superior animals, 
as is proved by their superior weights of fleece, 
and the high price the wool commands; and we 
wish, since the name of Saxon has been so basely 
misused in this country by miserable counterfeits, 
that Mr. Grove would give his flock the name of 
Electoral; for they and their descendants are prob¬ 
ably the only ones entitled to it in the United 
States. With this name, they would then fairly 
stand aloof from the common herd, as they deserve, 
and not be associated in idea hereafter, with the 
miserable riff-raff of the country, passing under 
the general name of Saxons. It is our intention 
next season to call and see Mr. Grove’s flock. 
(7) We meant to be understood as alluding to 
a cross on the coarser and more restiff sheep of 
the country, when we spoke of obtaining an in¬ 
crease of weight of wool on the same food, and 
we know that this can be done. 
(e) True enough, but we did not say these val¬ 
uable flocks were Paulars; nor did we go so far as 
to assert that they were pure Merinos of any dis¬ 
tinct name. We wish it understood, that we do 
not endorse all the opinions of Examiner any more 
than we do other correspondents — he speaks for 
himself, and we for ourselves. 
For the American Agriculturist. 
SEA-MUD AS A FERTILIZER. 
Flushing , L. 7., November 8th , 1843. 
Can you inform me whether the sea-mud which 
is found on the shore, below high-water mark, is 
of any value to the farmer; and if it is, in what 
way would you advise that it should be applied? 
Do you think that it would answer in a compost 
heap, or would it be preferable to put it into the cat¬ 
tle-yard or hog-pen ? I have thought that the only 
objection to using it would be on account of the 
great quantity of salt, which it contains; although 
Leibig and other celebrated writers, speak in very 
favorable terms upon the application of salt. And 
here arises another question. Are not those farms 
which are situated upon the sea-shore sufficiently 
