The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1865-07-12

came few words OF happy wit and
laughter-provoking pun from President
Magoun, welcoming the Iowa wool grow
ers to Grinnell, where even sheep become
studious and where 'sheepish' students
are never found. Then Professor II. w.
Parker, another worthy member of the
Faculty Of Iowa College, brought down
the house, more than once, too, by read
/ ing the following:
POEM on THE SHEEP.
My merciless friend, our worthy NJ, c.,
Has assigned few rhymes on sheep to me,
Which for obvious reasons-name and pluck
Had better been laid on our neighbor B--k.
Of him, without doubt, my friend WAS shy
From ar of some ifs and but in reply
SO called for my Pegasus formerly gay,
Now quite too steady horse to say ncigh.
Thou muse,-who erst on Arcadian hills
Breathed through the pastoral pipe in thrills
That drew the 1 ok, or in later time
Inspired sweet Marco bucolc rhyme
Il mean rythm) with thine my spirit steep,
Who fain would sing of the innocent sheep
All ages past have sounded tn ir praises
W hat more can we do than to echo the lays?
nut HOlc Vi uleCOluduCe WIS ever nearu,
What but single unfortunate word
The epithet sheepish and that is a sur
That rightly belongs to the vilainous cur
The shepherds pest, the world disgrace,
The Dig, with conscious shame in his face,
Sinking away from his bloody feast.
Away the treacherous cowardy beast!-
Hound spaniel, terrier mastiff an all,
| would that our nations powder and ball
Not needed to free US from something worse,
Might he spent to remove our canine curse.
except, OF course, the shepherds help
Which aloneis not a scoundrelly whelp.
There 'cds another opprobious phrase
"Woolly-head' uttered in by-gone days
When men were counted no better tnan sheen.
We will not revive it but let it sleep.
Yet, one little truth the people should heed
That black was no doubt The original breed;
And the dusky lamb but roverts to the type
Whence came our fine hocks of every stripe;
And even the Merno's wool is known
10 change to hair in re gn zone.
All! gentle muse! this doggcrel strain
Wakes not the soft melod, of old again.
Can st not discourse of the Golden Fleece
Which led afar brave youth of Greece,
Ih" wofld-famed JasonY No song of the flock
But must have that for its capital stock
That shone at last to his wishful ewes!
Where did he roam in his valiant quest?
Where save here in tne glorious West?
For here is the Eden of pas ure ground,
The broadest and richest that man has found
And here the grass shall turn to gold
And oe IN the full fleece together rolled;
Here in the land of the setting sun,
Each feecy cloud, when the day is done.
Is glowing sign of our wealths increase.
And marks the home Of the Golden Fleece.
Then down with the lordship of cotton and oil
And down with shoddy and ill-got en- spoil!
And long live the true NOBILITY CT wool,
Its escutcheon adorned with the shearing tool
And long live the sheep with his precious
fleece,
The emblem of innocence, wealth and peace
The symbol still more, of higher life
In world where crime is unknown, and
strife;
There in green fields the Good Shepherd leads
The Flock that on heavenly pleasure feeds.
DR. Shaffer, of Fairfield, the energetic.
Jealous and efficient Secretary of the State
Agricultural Society, ever aboundng in
good works and jovial work, then pres
ented the following:
REPORT OF COMMITTEE on PREMIUMS.
Your Committee to whom was referred
the award of premiums on Sweepstakes
and general list Of sheep at the Sheep
shearing Festival, held this day, most
respectfully beg leave to report that they
award the Sweepstakes Premium on the
best buck to Messrs. Grinneil, Langdon
Il Holyoke, being the two year old buck
Gold Drop. His weight of carcass was
"a lbs. and of wool 2Ot lbs. In arriving
at this conclusion, the Committe beg leave
to state that they took into consideration
all the points required by the published
programme, and even then found it diff
cult to pass by other animals of very
great merit.
They award the Sweepstakes Premi-
um on the best eve to J. n. Dixon, of
indianapolis, Iowa, for his yearling lamb.
Weight of carcass Az lbs, weight of
fleece l0l lbs.
The awards on the regular classes are
as follows:
PREMIUMS.
Best Buck (sweepstakes) Grinnell, Langdon d.
HOlyoke premium, ,...............Sl $40 90
Rest Ycarling Buck, Samuel Gilmore, prem 5 90
Best two year old Bucs T.. H. Crime do 8 90
Best three year old Buck, Dixon & Lewis do o.
Best year old Buck, A. shiland, do 90
SECOND CLASS EWES
Best eve, year old, ]. NJ. Dixon prem. 5 90
+" Dixon & Lewis, do 8 90
J B Glinneil, do 20
Your committe, after deliberation, de-
clined to award second premium on
sweepstakes, regarding that this class is
intended to bring all ages. grades, and
kinds into competition with each other,
and believing that there cannot convent
emily be a ''second best" The commit
tee cannot forbear congratulating those
present upon the marked success which
has crowned this first sheep-shearing fes-
tivaI in Iowa. Without any organic ,tion,
without funds, without the prestige of
former success. and relying solely upon
The great interest only of late awakened
on the subject of sheep growing, a few
individuals made the proposition to meet
here for the purpose indicated, and a
most cheering response has followed.
Let this be but the harbinger of more
glorious results. Let it be stimulus to
arouse all persons to the importance of
such an association. and active intellioent