Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1847-09-11
SHEEP HUsBANDRY IN THE SOUTH.
SIXTH LETTER OF II. S. RANDALL, ESQ.

1 IL. y. l.,
GENTLEMEN With your permission, / will now resume
my review OF COL RASDALL excellent of letters now
In course OF publication in the New York Farmers Libry
on the adapaon OF the South to the purposes of sheep hus
band Having obtained admission 10 your columns in the
first instance through the poleness of Mr. SKINNER will
not espass any unreasonable upon your
indulgence fully aware, am, that other and equally i'm
portan public interests demand the space might otherwise
be tempted to occupy.
In his sixth letter Mr. RANDALL proceeds to consider the
profits of sheep husbandy in the Southern States with re-
ference especially the praccaby comparative eco.
nomy of making it the basis Of eectual ameloraon in
soils naturally sterile those which have been rendered so
by excessive and nudcious cultivation" To render these
soils productive, he insists that the must be only
ample, but cheap. The ordinary animal from sta
bles and other accessible aanabe in sufficient
quantities for this purpose, and when transported by land.
carriage to any considerable distance become expensive
The animal manures derived from the agency of commerce
still expensive Gypsum or plaster Of paris is of
itself inadequate the effective ameloraion of the soil and
ashes, though greatly efficient quality too limit
ed in quantity to accomplish the object in view The mari
Of Lower Virginia and South Carolina, underlying
probably does the entire tertiary formation of the Atlantic
States, and the swamp mud, rich with the auvia deposit
ton OF ages which abounds in the whole de-waer zone
indeed inexhaustble of but the former
is valuable only where there is deficiency of organic
ter and the ameloration thereby effected is facous-he
lime serving only to exhaust the little organic existing
in the SOIL and leaving it to greater eventual sety-a
sequence only be avoided by the addition of organic
itself Mar too, is very expensive species of manure
by means permanent its effects. It is doubtful
whether swamp mud of the best quality is not worth more
per load but this is expensive, and often impactcabe
Both too costly for the purposes of ameo-
ration of the soil and the writer hazards the opinion that
would be better economy to desert the
rally barren soils of southeastern coast and purchase
the virgin and fertile lands of the southwest, than to at
tempt reclaim the former by so expensive as those
above Indicated"
mixed system of green and animal manuring-he latter
made aanable by sheep husbandrys recommend
ed the best method of poaby retaining these
soils. The experience and testimony of various English
farmers under analogous circumstances adduced
tain this view of the subject, and the given why
sheep preferred for this purpose horned CATTLE In
England and in many parts of the United States they
garded. Independent of their fleece much pro-
htable The singular haucinaton of Col John Taylor of
Virginia, this subject is adveed and ascrbed deep
rooted pudces mbbed before his judgment was rpened or
his experience formed In the Northern and Eastern States
sheep likewise preferred mprovers of poor lands main
y however, by pasurage and not England for
their marketable qualities In the Southern States similar
policy would be found equally expedient and profitable
lands yielding scanty supply of excellent grasses
Those grasses he observes, will every year increase
and the land will be gradually erzed by the droppngs of
the Sheep without cents expenditure it of any kind
and every particle heritage will be to its most pro-
ftabe account by being converted into WOOL mutton and
manure Full and explicit directions given for the best
preparation of the land for green manure the proper plants
for the purpose pointed out and practical great value
and Pernency suggested for their cultivation. He then
continues
elm view of all my preceding statements, do you ask me
advocate sheep husbandy exclusively all the lands at
the South, which already should be devoted to graz
ing Most assuredly have already laid it down as
maxim that agricultural produce should be controlled by the
demand want and the adaptation of the country to such
production. BY this rule, least the South should never
import horse, (uness for the improvement Of Breeds
mule, pound of beef pork, butter cheese, wool She
tcdtS them all, and she produce them all econo
mcaly than she import them The declared impossible
ty in politics, fperium npeio should be in agricul-
ture far be consistently with the above MAXIM
the attitude Of every farm and plantation Each should be
independent to the greatest economical extent so far as the
production of the necessaries comforts uxures of life
concerned, of every other farm plantation in ,cord
This mixed and mufarious farming objected by theo-
rrsts, nasmuch trenches the princ
pe But favors rotation and thereby prevents the exhaus
ton Of Soils leads to bountul Of the everyday
comforts Of life, and finally it less hazardous The one
crop farmer il crop and market both their avora-
BILE sate realizes great profits But if the market is poor or
the crop small the loss proporonatey large The farmer
pursuing mixed hubanay will generally fall greatly be-
hind the best profits of the other and his losses are rarely
considerable. 1t is better play for hit than CANNON
where, the of the small capitalists afuence or
penury stand the hazard of the die =
elf the above positions true, the South called upon
to increase the breeding of other domestic animals well as
sheep To extent sufficient to supply her ,cants
consider her imperiousy called upon do So advocate
the breeding of sheep specially, vastly extended
SCALE because has been already shown they the BEST
if not the only, recamers Of your unproducve lands and
because in that surplus of the products Of grazing which
these extensive recamaions will bring about Hey furnish
you the exporting article (,coo for ,chich you can find the
largest -hmtai market, and IN grocng which you
best compete with other producers"
The advantages which the South possesses over the North
reference extended system of sheep husbandry are
thus strongly and eoqueny presented in the conclusion Of
this letter
The South, them possesses the same great advantage
with the Northwest in the production Of woocheap lands
and supcradded to this she has the Short mild winters which
give her decided advantage both the Worth and Northwest
She has marked advantage the Northern and Eastern
States IN both particulars, and instead Of importing
featured ,coo from them, she supply them by export
,UM at least the material And she will do this, at
distant day. unless her content in the great struggle
and battle of industrial interests sacrifice their by
apathy irresoution"
1t assuredy much to be desired that the South should
awake to conception of her interest in this
spec especially when that interest clearly and distinctly
pointed Inv Markham