Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-10-18
ooNNUN1oATfoN.
bogs and sheep.

Nessrs Editors: / have no ambition to appear
before the pablo coRtribntor to the press, bat
with your permission will entsr my protest against
the remedy for sheep-killIug dogs set forth in
communication il your daily issue of 18th inst
the signature of B. Il. P, in which TIE writer I'M
dertakes to show the folly of legislatlng about
dogs.
The wool~growing interest of the South is a mat
ter of too much interest to be lightly treated and
whilst B. b. P idea of essociatns cattle with sheep
for their protection is practicable under some cir
cumstances yet it cannot be of general application
and hence it must fail TO cure The crying evil Sheep,
other than ordinary ewes, may safely be pastured
and fed with cattle and if the cattle be large and
in good condition. in day light snesking dog will
attract their attention. and they will hurry him out
of the incOsure and after sheep have become habit
arlsd to use with the cattle, they learn their has
tired to dogs and the dogs fear of them, ard will if
frightened by the dogs, flee to the cattle for pro-
tection.t
But ewes with lambs or larabs when first dropped
can not safely be kept with cattle hey may gore the
former and trample the latter under foot and when
separated from the cattle, they must be penned day
and night or fall prey to the dogs. And besides.
when The cattle lying dowa at night, the loorth-
less sneaking starving ours, pounce upon the choic-
est specimens ofthe flock and suck their hfes blood
before the cattle can be reused And hent does not
always suit to keep sheep and cattle together for
the former will do weldon short pasture and may be
used dogs perniaing Craze down the briars, and
norous oeedS the farm, and thus serve the double
purpose of feeding themselves, and identifying and
improving the farm. Whereas, every farmer that
knows or cares any thing about good cattle, know
they must have the best of pasture and if they ar
taken from that to protect the sheep among the
briars and bushes and short grass-the Injuries of
the dairy lcA soon be 1oantjng have fe W good
cattle my little farm, and a new flock of South
down sheep, and sirs on one occasion they were all
running in hill pasture in view of my door in day
light, when a servant ran in haste to advise ma the
dogs had one of my sheep, seized my double bar
rel shot gun and ran to its relief and killed one dog
and wounded the other before they could be made
desist, but butcher could not have done moro ef
fectiye work on my $50 buck, and although some
of the older sheep, had TO the cattle che cattle
had failed to notice the dogs, and other coca
sion, in the morning while the cattle were in the
milk-yard and the family were all busy about
domestic affairs. several of my neighbors' dogs fell
upon the sheep in lot adjoining the yard of my
dwelling and damaged them to the amount of some
$50 before we could drive them off. This mischief
is done in daylight, because the sheep are housed
every night, summer and winter. This, sirs, is my
experience, and my own interest. no less than the
public good, prompts me to cfer these reasons for
my protest. Sirs, in my humble judgment the loss
suffered from dogs to the sheep interest in this
country, demands effective remedy, and if cur
Legislature would pronounce thcm a nuisance and
pass law for their ertsrTHiRGtiOn it would add tens
of thousands of dollars annually to the resources
Of the South. If nothing can be done than
legG5s the killing of dogs upon the 1ooo groroers
premises or to hold the of them responsible
for all dImags done to sheep, it would effect some>
thing. To my brother farmer have this to say,
it Is time we should demand that a remedy shall be
had-or will the present pressing wants of our
country prompt our representatives to. look earn
cstly into this matter.
a Lover OF WARN CLOTHES AND Coon NUTTON.
Davidson county, 18th Oct, 1861.