The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1874-06-20
Communicated
Is 1T Profitable to Raise Sheep in
the Vjcjnjty Of TO1USOntOaUn

lSn Sneep WEeI properly managed cannot Iai 10 De
source from which certain and regular income will
low But there is still another extraordinary gain at
ached to modern sheep farming which is the additional
fertility brought to bear on the crops and consequently
The increased yield of every production from the nlu
ence of the dung and urine of sheep.
Sheep shearngs ocks of different characters colors
mentioned in the historical part of our religious
and the Great Shepherd of the Church, the
Savior of men, speaks of the fold and of the lambs and
in fact all through both Old and New Tesaments there
comparisons between these meek and innocent cre
lures and the christians, thus showing that in oden
rges right back the flood they the main stay of
the husbandman of the times, and were at all events CO.
equal with the kline.
To make sheep raising profitable the best breeds must
obtained and they must be managed in the best way
then they will pay for all food given and for all the care
bestowed besides which flock of sheep worthy Of the
name of flock, when in the proportion to the acres will
ring the land to grow three fold the number OF pushes
corn grain any thing else per acre And IN what
ver light the subject may be viewed and debated on by
the Gunpowder Agricultural Club the greatest recon-
mendaon the chief advantages and lasting gain is the
Inevitable result of an enriched soil and an annual in
reasing yield of herbage Sheep husbandry In connec
ion with the tage of arabic land and as inseperabe
rom the prosperity of any permanent occupation shouid
laye the patient, pains taking and careful discus
ion possible and if these few lines should appear IN
tme they may suggest wider view OF the SUBJECT ana
far more extended search for proofs of the Importance
keeping sheep, for it is perfectly useless to examine
esuts of profits from the few highpriced imported an
mails the hands of gentlemen farmers or on the Other
tide the few dollars made by few uncared for grades
which through neglect in fencing often nJure crops ny
unnng them day after day to an extent when Is
shepherd who understan the feeding, shearing,
&C. should always have charge of the whole flock, for
very tenant farmer in England has one ana though 1t
proper for the owners eye to oversight the manage
nent it is well to let the man who attends TO them un
er the supervision of the principal feel responsible, in
ghich he will feel pride in seeing them always
box well and all will go prosperously.
There is choice enough among the English breeds to
.atisfy any man however hard to please he may be-
The Cotswods and Lncons are the heaviest IN carcas
ad in fleece and will do well in Maryland as they are
kept in Canada and southwark all through Kentucky
The Lcesters good breed too, and then there are
the pure Southdowns and the Hampshire, Shropshire
and Oxordshie downs which have originated by cross
ing, but which have become established ana disuhct
As Mr. Randall in his practical Shepherd gives good
tnefr eperate fnutvIduaI merits, Tor they are
any OF them good enough for any purpose of raising
mutton and wool or of raising for selling to breed by
others to d1use through the country.
In this particular discussion it would be well to take
it for granted there would be some of the members who
would prefer to be ram breeders and these of course
after deciding the breed to commence with, should
obtain pure specimens of and feed with liberal
hand to obtain the admiration OF the public and it is
worth while in the audabe attempt to show the chosen
breed to the best advantage to have the lambs drop very
early to give them opportunity to BE- strong and vigor
and every kind of food which is known to help them
along at particular stages of their growth of periods
of the should be grown and given to them so that
every desirable trait and quality will be fully developed
steering clear of pamperng it quite right to force
sheep to as early maturity as possible for quick returns
and uninterrupted growth and aptitude for laying on Of
esh fat and wool Indispensable in any sheep which
are to become popular.
Those who ud desire to enter into the pro-
ductiOn of mutton and wool need not little fortune
in purchasing stock to start with for common grade
ewes, which young and healthy will do very well
to begin WITH using pure breed ram of the breed which
sells best in market which be easily ascertained by
calling at the very best hotels and going to the stalls of
frstcasS butchers who the best private families
This is important for the wealthy residents in cities
loU have good meat and are willing to pay the extra
price for it, for in New York. for instance the common
Mernos not tolerated as mutton among the upper
ton for the tables at fashionable hotels In proof OF
which thousands of Canada sheep have the import duty
paid them and then pay for raising and fattenng.
Now the tax is 20 per cent and the winters in that
climate colder and longer by very great DEAL here
is at once as to whether it would be profitable to
raise sheep in Maryland. The Canadians raise sheep
and great draft horses too pay oneth of their value
for liberty sell in the United States and continue
keep up supply, and it seems strange to those who
have pay this protective duty that is the purchaser
in New York, to hear who farm in Republic and
have royalty and aristocracy to support, debating
whether it will pay to raise sheep Without the slight
hesitation must be said that it cannot fail to pay
raise Sheep for however much less it costs to winter
them in the comparatively mild weather during winter
and having settled this question and found the variety
of meat most salabe in Baltimore it only remains to
put of that breed with the and the pure blood
of the sires would bring the offspring of the first
much to them in general characteristics than
would be thought possible and with the pure bred sres
continued to mate with the blood the descendants
have the qualities and shape and fleece of the breed
the belong to, and with natural tment
panied with foresight provide suitable food for
season of the year. the profit of turning the produce o.
the farm into wool and mutton will bring very much
money into the farmers pocket than by sending
timothy hay to market, thus robbing the soil of the
| turn sheep would make in eating that which would
where this exhaustive hay would, for timothy hay
| is really hard on land.
The best way take care of sheep is to initiate the
English system as far practicable in Maryland fol
| the winters not much colder and the housing Of
sheep for any but very short periods is unnecessary
leads to loss in the hardness of the constitution and
the loss of many lambs through the effects con
| fnement. 1t should be contrved to have some old
natural grass fields which have not been ploughed fol
many years. because this they could in the dead
Iof Ftprv infT To
thy and red clover, and old sod graZed by sheer
would spring white clover and numerous other beau
tfully fine and sweet heritage which faens animals and
keeps green through long drouh and close eating
| through the extreme thickness of the set.
n heEe Is one ea9t9n necessary to all who commence
| on sheep husbandry The only ones that it is ever
worth while to cure being scab and foot rot these
VIII not trouble any well managed flock unless some
careless neighbours sheep should communicate Them
Unfortunately neither Spooner Yonat possessed the
right kind practical knowledge and their fine writing
ana palnstakng descriptions of seats of ailments &C.
with all the crackjaw language employed only prove
that to the common flock master all the erudition ex
6l6lted amounts to nothing There could be greater
Jolly practlced than for any man to waste his time
permit his shepherd to loaf around sick sheep The
lmals ought to be seen twice every day. and if in
any field stands or lies aoof from the and OH exam.
ination there has been accident and it not struck
with maggots it may be known something is wrong or
is coming on, and every sheep with disposition to
ailments should always be weeded the better way is
for the shepherd to slaughter the animal right away
ana as every animal in properly cared for flock is al.
ways good mutton and whatever is about to all the
sEeep mas had no time to faint the meat produce
unpleasant flavor there is loss sustained and in the
course Of few years there will be such thing as
disease from one year to another.
This is not theory it is practice it is the general GUS
tom on all the principle farms in the best sheep farming
country in the world The writer of this was literally
raised among sheep and knows all that it is possible to
be known about Them and has had charge al the va
reties mentioned here and has owned and kept for
years Dorset, Somerset, WEIGH and Merno sheep also
OXfordshre crosses, and witnessed the management of
many other varieties.
The widow of an old school fellow CT the writer gained
the first prize given by the Royal Agricultural Society
OF england in or about the year 1870 for the best Guilt
Vated and best managed farm in England and accor-
ding to the report of the committee appointed judge
y owing to the liberal feeding and general good man.
agement ola numerous flock of sheep woman, the
only in the list of aspirants, the coveted honor
through spirited sheep husbandy The farm was rent.
ed as almost all there and about 400 acres She
kept more sheep than she had acres and
oIgvlng those being fatened good deal of olcake in
addition to all the good feed which grown on the
farm the soil became fruitful and her crops so penti
full that she not only obtained the reward of prosperity
IN accommodating wealth, but received the highest pre-
miums from the greatest agricultural association. Her
management of sheep was to keep somewhat over 200
breeding ewes, which, per report had raised ON an
average of years from 20 to 40 per more lambs than
they numbered. All the eve lambs kept and the
oldest ewes regularly drafted that there old
ones to be sold at the rate of inferior mutton The re-
turns being considerably 200 fat sheep 200 three
year-od ewes and 100 and upwards of wethertags or
shearhogs they called after being shorn of their
first feece,l and as, if remember right, she had them
all shorn before going to market this would give over
200 feeces with 200 from the breeding ewes and
100 and odd from the tags which would merge into
the flock the place of draft the ensuing autumn
The feeces average about 10 pounds each of washed
WOOL the fat sheep about SIS each Say only 200 fat
sheep sod that would be 00 40 per pound
only 500 aeeces and this would be 81 900 more which
is $4,000 from sheep alone. Cattle kept as well as
sheep. There a four system of cropping
pursued at any rate the arabic land which admitted
of 80 acres of wheat being sold every year. and this was
over 40 bushels per acre. but the particulars were
published in several United States papers, your readers
may recollect details better than does your correspon
dent Sheep raising, when conducted properly Is al
ways profitable, and not only so, but makes everything
else on the farm prosper. e
NS- The hoys who have found the mysteries
of mathematics a terribly tough subject to Crap
pie with will envy Missouri rustic who grasps
by intuition all the rules of arithmetic In de-
scription OF this marvellous man given by a cor
respondent Of the 81 Louis Republican, it is stated
that he cannot read or write letter or figure,
and never had day s education. He cannot ex-
plain the method by which he solves The most in
tricate mathematical problems except that he has
a Enumeration table which is ''away on beyond |
the books y The correspondent who in ervewed |
him gave him some very difficult ques !ons--such
as might have puzzled the most learned ari hma-