Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1869-06-16
WHOLE NUMBER 375.

duu EN- DlllllC protest from the eastern
dealers and consumers, who declared
that they would not receive such wool
without a large allowance for extra
lshrinkage. At this point our State had
nearly lost its good name for WOOL and
/ it was then, in May, 1866, that this As
sOciatiOn was organized, and since then
| has ZealOusly labOred to correct the evils
Of the trade, and to convince the wool
! growers Of the State that it was for their
interest to cooperate with us. We are
| gratfed to know that q large number of
| our wool growers do heartily sympathise
with our movement, and are disposed to
aid in the accOmplishmen Of its objects
| by their influence and example, and we
confidently believe that the day is not
| far distant, when Ohio will occupy no
equivOcal position as to the character
and condition of her wOOls.
So decided an Improvement was no.
| ticed in the condition of the wool of GER
| tain sections Of the State, last year, that
/ the WOOls Of those sections were eagerly
sought for, and as a natural result COM
manded three to five cents per pound
more than the average price; while in
other localities, known as the "hard,
| heavy wool sections, - and where but lit
/ tie attention had been paid to condition,
/ it was with the greatest difficulty that
| the wool could be sold at less than the
minimum of the season, even in many
| cases with large deductions.
Owing 70 the low prices of fine wool
/ the past two years, the severe drOUth of
| last summer, and the prevalence of the
| foot disease-the latter said to have
! been introduced with these fine greasy
wool sheep-many of our wool growers
| determined last fall to dispose of their
! sheep and abandon the business.
Driven by a sudden panic which at
one time almost threatened the entire
annihilatiOn of our fOcks, hundreds of
! thousands of sheep were consigned to
/ wholesale slaughter, and the universal
! decree seemed to be that the race of fine
wool sheep should be exterminated.
Fortunately the panic soon subsided
and the slaughter Ceased-nOt, however,
until, as is variOusly estimated, one and
a half to two million head-principally
poor and diseased sheep-perished. 1t
is claimed by most of our wool growers
! that at the prices which have prevailed
since the close Ofthe war, wool growing
as compared with other branches Of
farming in the State, cannot be made
renumeTative. Indeed, it is asserted by
many intelligent growers that at any
price less than fifty cents per pound, it
will not cover the cost of production.
Having given the subject careful in
vestigatiOn, we are forced to admit that
the present breed Of small fine wool
sheep, will not, on the high priced and
arabic lands of the States, prove profit
able. We hold however, that by the in
PRODUCTION of different breeds, and by ju-
diciOus management, both sheep-breed-
ing and wOOl-grOwing can be made pro-
fitable even on the most valuable
land in Ohio. The United Kingdom of
Great Britain, with a population of 29,-
900, 900 and an area of only 40, ,S72sqUare
miles, Qess than that of New York,
| Pennsylvania and Ohio in 1860 contain
ed $4,000, 900 to $4,000, 600 sheep, which
produced go, 900, COO to 275, 900, 900 pounds
of wool, the shrinkage on which in
cleansing for the cards would not, we
presume, exceed 25p per cent.
The United States, in the same year,
with population of 81, ,O0O,0 900 and an
area of 2, 844, 900 square miles, contain
ed 14,000,0OO sheep, producing only
about 100000 900 pounds of wool, the
shrinkage on which was not less than
42per cent.
1t is a well known fact that farmers of
Great Britain, even on the high-pTiced
lands of that country, make sheep
breeding profitable. Let the farmers Of
this country follow their example and
the same result will follow. The aim Of
the English farmer is to raise a sheep
that will yield sir to eight pounds clean
1go0J annually, and at the age of one to
I three years carcass of dressed mutton
weighing I25 to 200 pounds.
The wool these sheep, (the long wool
breeds, finds a ready home market,
and to a limited extent, nOtwithstand-
ing our high tariff duty on that class
of wool, is exported to this country,
where that branch of manufacture
which requires this peculiar staple, has
but recently been developed, and it,
very rapid increase is only retarded by
the scanty supply of raw material. In
our opinion the farmers of Ohio can re-
aIize no better returns from any other
department Of farming, than by devOt-
ing a liberal space of their time and at
tentiOn to raisingOf long wOOled sheep,
having in view not in wool alone, ian
Over-prOductiOn of which they need not
apprehend) but the mutton, the con-
sumption Of which is rapidly increasing
in the United States. In view of the in
feriOr quality Ofthe great bulk OfmuttOn
which has of late been thrown upon our
markets, it is a matter of great surprise
that the demand for it should increase
at all.
The great wonder is that it finds any
so poor, in this land of plenty, as to be
forced to take it at any price, for hu-
man food. By crossing the present
breed of sheep in this State with the
long wool breeds, very great improve
ment can be made both in the wool and
the quality and quantity Of the NUT
ton.
This crossing produces a very desira-
! bic, long, sound staple which ispeculiar-
] IT,, i 8,
| LANES, as well as a great variety of 9TH
| er goods, and finds nearly as ready a
market as the long cOmbing, although
at not so high prices.
! That there is now produced III the
| United States a much larger proper
| ton of three-fOurths 10 full blood Span
/ ish wool, than is required by our manu-
| facturers, is becoming more and more
apparent each year. Were it not so, /
/ the high duty imposed upon this class
| of wool, amounting almost to the prohi- |
/ bition of foreign impOrtatiOns, would
| ere this have largely enhanced the price |
as it has in the case of long cOmbing and |
quarter blood woods.
| On the tens OfthOUsands Ofacres Ofthe |
cheap lands of other States, in the
mountainous districts of the Middle !
| Southern and Pacific States, and on the |
vast prairies of they West, where of nee !
| cessity sheep must be kept in large herds, /
fine woods can be grown to an advan- !
! tage, at much lower prices than the old
| improved and more valuable farming 1
lands of our own State, and from those !
sections, our mills will unquestionablv |
be supplied with these woods, whilethe /
present tariff remains in force.
In view of the great demand now ex-
isttng for one-half and One-fOurth blood
and lOng-wOOls, we would urge upon the |
wool growers of Ohio the importance of
losing no time in so changing their
hOcks by crossing and otherwise, as to
meet this demand, and at the same time
in preparing their wool for maket, strive
not to be OutdOne by any other State in
the Union.
This we confidently believe will in
sure them an active and ever-increasing
demand for all they can produce, and at
prices that will prove highly renumera-
tive and satisfactory, II