Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1876-01-06

to water. tie was delighted witt
the prospect-dogs excepted
He told me that be had wintereC
his sheep here at a cost of ter
cents per head, while in Michigan
it cost him one dollar. But q
greater advantage still was that
he had never lost a young lamb
here from cold, whereas in Michi-
gan, in winter, the loss was large.
Lambs dropped in Tennessee, e.
ven in midwinter, were healthy
and thrifty, and grew like pigs,
whereas in Michigan the chances
were against the tende: new com.
ers at that time of year being a.
BILE to survive.
But all these advantages were
we'll nigh neutralized by the
hordes of internal dogs which
roamed over the country catching
sheep as cats catch mice. This
man was wrought up to the point
of demanding a dog tax of twen-
ty.five dollars head.
REMARKABLE DOG DEVELOPMENTS.
1t is a sadly significant fact
that every one of the thirty coun-
ties (from every division Of the
State) the returns from which
have been sent in, contains more
dogs than men. There is not an
exception. When all the dupli-
Gates are made out it is probable
that not a couniyin the State but
what will show greater number
of dogs than men!
Is not this positively discour-
aging? Can a people, supporting
such members of non-producing
animals, ever attain wealth? A
sheep is a producer; every one is
an item of wealth; every pound of
wool sent out of the State brings
cash quickly in return. But a
dog produces nothing. He is
consumer, non-producer, a tax
upon labor, an unmitigated curse,
and, where they exist in numbers,
they are a sure indication of the
poverty of the population. On
the other hand, sheep are an EN-
blem Of civilization, thrift, wealth
Where you find them in greatest
numbers, you find wealth, indus
try, comfort, intelligence, thrift. =
Where dogs are the rule and sheep
the exception, you find poverty,
shiftlessness, ignorance.
TIE CURSE.
The returns from the thirty
counties. taken as a basis, indi-
cate that there are about 225, 5,0C0
dogs in the State Listed for taxa
tion. The manner of listing them
in many counties is exceedingly
defective, so that tens Of thou
sands will escape taxation. but
even supposing that 225,OOO is
the correct number, what do you
suppose is the yearly cost of their
support? Not less than four mil
lions Of dollars each year. If
what is fed to the dogs was given
to the hogs, the net result would
be more than four millions Of |
dollars worth Of pork annual
~. With that amount Of mon
ey brought into the State each |
year, you would hear less Of |
"hard times" down here, and |
less complaint that there is ''no
money in the country"
An average dog will, at the
lowest calculation, eat five cents
worth of bread and meat daily.
Multiply this by the number of
days in a year and dogs in the
State, and we find that they
cost largely over four millions
Of dollars annually, to say moth
ing of the sheep they destroy,
and the immigration they hinder.
What they consume outright
would fatten more than four
millions of dollars worth Of
pork, which would bring yearly
into each county largely over
forty thousand dollars. And
this in the face Of the fact that
there are counties in this State
the people of which DO not en-
JOY the distribution of as much
as forty thousand cash dollars
among them from ali their ex-
ports combined.
TWO DOGS TO ONE MAN.
In every one of the thirty
the returns from which
ire in, there are more dogs than
nen.
In Cheatham county there
ire 7S0 men and 1899 dogs, or
nearly three dogs to one man!
[ should like TO nowhow many
sheep there are, and if there is
lot constant complaint in
that "there is no
in the country" In
Clay county there are 897 men
md 1,16l dogs. The total val