The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1874-05-10
9ailg9erald
SHEEP GROWING Nv rENAs-AN'
sWERs 10 QUESTIONS,

MI. ~ NJ, ffVhyi Oh llls WY h"'
placed In our hands letter from MI
q, w. Meyer, Il friend Of his IN Mer-
Ger county, Pennsylvania, making IN
quiry In regard 10 sheep growing III
Texas, We have also lately met sew
eral gentlemen In Dallas seeking In
formation on the same subject we
design, very briefly, TO meet suoh IN
quirles In a simple statement of DEM
onstrated facts.
Tho adaptation of southwest Texas
TO sheep farming has been fully settled
for many years. a great deal was
written on the subject for ten or M
teen years before the war by men OF
experience in the business. Among
them most prominently stood the late
George w. Kendall, Of the New Or
leans Picayune, the Hon. Henry 5.
Randall, of western New York, Cap
tain Thomas Deetron, OF Matagorda
bay, several intelligent German gem
llemen and numerous others, Ill OF
whom, excepting Mr.. Randall, wrote
from actual experience In the country,
while he was one OF the largest breed
crs In the north, and was thoroughly
posted In the capacities Of Texas.
Without an exception, they consid-
cred northwest and southwest Texas
MS one Of the finest sheep countries IN
the world. The business rapidly grew
into large proportions before the war,
but during that period twas materially
checked as one Of its attending calam-
tiles. Since that time ii has greatly
revived and the present exports OF
wool are large.
Strike line from Cook county, on
Red river, southwesterly through
Parker, Bosque, Bell, Williamson,
Caldwell, aud Gonzales to Goliad, near
the coast, and seven-tenths of all the
country west of that line may be classed
as admirably adapted to this business.
OF course some sections, are better than
others, and some counties east Of the
line are fully us desirable. The striking
advantages are that the whole country
is remarkably healthy for both man
and beast and entirely free of malarious
influence. Being high, undulating,
billy or mountainous, in the one part
or the other, the whole region is free of
swamps and drains itself admirably.
TO Il large extent the short, curly mes
quit grass, succulent and nutritious,
furnishes grazing throughout the year.
In other places green winter mesquit
is found, while in all sections excellent
pasturage is found from the first of
March or April Gas we go north or
south to the close of November, and
during the winter months it is abund-
ant in all the pasture regions for sheep,
when allowed to run at large. This Is
permissible excepting during the prev
alence ofcold north winds and sleets,
when the sheep should be protected
and fed under shelter The whole Of
such time will not average more than
five or six weeks in the year.
Sheep growers meet these two de-
mands by saving prairie hay in the
summer as winter forage, and by build
ing single wall of plank, posts or
stone on the north, with u covered
shed open to the south. They are
usually covered with hay, Large
breeders have shepherds always with
the focks, accompanied by trained
dogs. In bad weather they are grazed
near home, but in large part of the
year they are driven more or less over
the country, stopping lat night where
ever chance may dictate. This pro-
notes health and affords a change of
pasturage. Mexioans are model shep-
herds, and are very generally employed
at extremely low wages.
There is no difficulty in buying
graded sheep anywhere from Bosque
county south at low figures, but there
are also large numbers of all the usual
varieties of thorough breds. Large
numbers of such were brought from
England, France, Vermont, New York
and elsewhere prior to the war, and
their progeny are now numerous and
widely scattered, The inferior sheep
Of northern Mexico, on account of
their low price, fifty cents toa dollar
a head, were introduced in great num-
bers from fifteen to twenty years ago,
but have been SO long crossed with
pure bloods as to leave slight traces of
their former inferiority. Large flocks
of them, thus graded, are in the SOUTH
west corner of the state. p
The only disease that ever became
serious among the flocks, was the scab
duringthewar, aggravated byunavoid-
able nonattention, and the difficulty
of getting the materials used as a REM
edy-dipping in decoction of tobacco
being considered an infallible antidote.
The ewes, II allowed, will drop lambs
twice,a year. Mr.. Kendall contended
that 1t was better 10 allow.but one drop
annually. Others permitted two, at
least, until their fioeks became numer-
Gus.
We regard the upper counties Of
Jack, Archer, part of Young, part of
Parker, Eastland and all the country
west of them as peculiarly desirable
for sheep farms. On the inner line of
this belt the danger Of Indians has
about passed, and the field Of safety Is
steadily expanding bysettlement Re-