ELECTORAL SAXON SHEEP. 
269 
fleeces, scarcely enough to hide their nakedness ; 
yet from these, whose ill adaptedness to our cli¬ 
mate is evident in their light fleeces, has arisen 
this general feeling, constituting an excellent string 
for Americus, and one which he has not failed to 
pull upon. But the writer, who has been inti¬ 
mately acquainted with Mr. Grove and his flocks 
during the last fourteen years, can assure Ameri¬ 
cus and the public, that his sheep are really, en¬ 
tirely different animals, and truly “ ought not to 
be associated in idea with the miserable riff raff 
of the country, passing under the general name of 
Saxons.” (a) 
But Americus is entirely in error when he sup¬ 
poses that the Saxons (I mean the real animal), are 
more liable to disease than other varieties of sheep, 
and especially the Merinos; and that such great 
skill and rare attainments are necessary in order, 
with them, to “snuff disease” while it is yet afar 
off, and thus by timely care and the use of proper 
means, avert the trouble and danger while it can 
be successfully dealt with, which is usually before 
it would attract the attention of common observ¬ 
ers ;” and as an evidence that such is the fact, the 
writer would observe, that notwithstanding Mr. 
Grove was suddenly and unexpectedly taken away 
at a most critical season for his home flock (20th 
Feb.), leaving everything in confusion, but one died 
from wintering. Yet all animals that herd are lia¬ 
ble to epidemics, and often to very fatal and sweep¬ 
ing ones, no matter how hardy or how well cared 
for; and the causes that produce these visitations 
have not yet unveiled their secret sources to the 
penetrating eye of human science. To such de¬ 
vastating influences, sheep—Merino and Saxon— 
are alike subject, and every variety share and share 
alike; and the writer has too frequently heard of 
the unfortunate condition, many years since of a 
very distinguished flock of Americus’ favorite Me¬ 
rinos, in a neighbouring town* to believe that they 
are exceptions to this general rule. True, the 
Saxons may require a better shelter in order to 
live, and just live through our winter storms, than 
the Merinos ; yet there is a natural cause for this 
other than a more hardy constitution, and not very 
favorable to the fleece of the latter animal, while 
at the same time both will do better, at much less 
expense of feed, when properly sheltered, a fact 
well known to every practical wool-grower, as 
well as to the man of science. The reason that 
Merinos can withstand our hard storms better than 
the Saxons, is not probably found in their posses¬ 
sing any more hardy constitutions; but in the cir¬ 
cumstance that a secretion of the skin, or some of 
its glands, gathers from the surface into the wool, 
and so glues it up as to render it impervious to 
water. This substance gathering in the wool, 
serves as a bed for dirt of every kind, and hence 
when we hear of the heavy Merino fleeces from 
this or that flock, we must calculate that they 
consist of “ gum, yolk, dirt , and other substances,” 
and from 45 to 60 per cent, only of wool. This 
substance, while it serves in some degree as a nat¬ 
ural shelter for the animal, so far depreciates the 
* The flock of Merinos in Pittstown, Rens. Co. belong¬ 
ing to the late Cadwalader Golden, Esq., where hundreds ] 
of these valuable animals were swept off in a single season ) 
value of the fleece, as in the end to be much more 
expensive than the artificial shelter required by the 
Saxons. 
The Saxons belonging to the estate of Mr. Grove 
have been bred with great care, and from the best 
quality of this celebrated stock of sheep; and 
while from long and careful management they 
have beeome perfectly acclimated, they have, by 
his uniformly selecting the most perfect animals 
for increasing his stock, even improved during the 
operation ; till they can boast, not only of being 
unsurpassed bv any flock in the country, for purity 
of blood and fineness of staple, but of being une¬ 
qualled by any other of the same quality of wool, 
in beauty of form and average weight of fleece. 
How then stands the question between the “Elec¬ 
toral Saxons,” and Americus’ Merinos? He ac¬ 
knowledges that “ the Saxons live and thrive in” 
Mr. Grove’s hands as well as the hardy Merinos 
do in his own ; and the writer of this article knows, 
that many flocks of more or less purity of blood, 
live and thrive, perhaps equally well in the hands 
of many others in this vicinity. The Saxons are 
kept on much less food—afford nearly as high an 
average weight of fleece—of much finer staple— 
and commanding a higher price in market—require 
an artificial shelter, which in reality costs much 
less than the natural one depreciates the value of 
the fleece of the Merinos—are no more subject to 
disease than the latter, and are calculated to sup¬ 
ply an equally necessary space in the wants of so¬ 
ciety—all of which considerations give them a 
rank much in front of the Merinos. 
The noble flocks of our late friend, however, can 
no longer be kept tpgether, and in a few weeks 
more are destined to be scattered to the four winds ; 
and when I look about this region of country, and 
see how much the wool-growing stock has been 
improved; and when I hear almost every one, 
now that envy is silenced in the grave, frankly give 
the credit of this improvement to them, and the 
influence that their able management has shed 
around them. I cannot but look upon their scatter¬ 
ing under these circumstances—the breaking up 
of these pure fountains for the nations improve¬ 
ment—as a public calamity. 
S. A. Cook. 
Buskirks Bridge , Aug. 16, 1844. 
(«) We are much obliged to Mr. C. for quoting 
from some remarks of ours (see VoL II. page 341), 
where we expressed a decided wish that Mr. 
Grove would no longer allow his sheep to pass 
under the general name of Saxons, since it had 
been so basely misused in this country; but would 
hereafter distinguish his flocks by the name which 
justly belonged to them—“ Electoral Saxons.” 
PAULAR MERINOS—NO 6. 
In my last, I made sundry enquiries of Mr. Jew¬ 
ett, to all which I hope he will soon see fit to favor 
your readers with simple and direct replies. In 
order to encourage him, by a good example, to 
answer civil questions, I will now endeavor to res¬ 
pond to some of his inquiries. He asks me, in 
regard to the throatiness of the Paulars, whether 
