Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1880-10-21
What Shall be Done With the
Dogs f!

taking the bull by the horus in tho matter
of dogs. If there is any reliance to be put
in statistics as we ind in our tax reports,
the State is overrun with worthless, half
starved dogs, continually becoming rubd
and bringing some unfortunate citizen to
the rost horrid and untimely death The
instances are not few but many, and the
condition Of things is now repeated from
cd in the Auditors reports of 1860 was
67,727. From this report williamsburg
was ommttcd, which,a ,at an average estimate,
calls for ,G93 additional dogs, uggrcgatug
69, ,4l0 in all. The Comptrolcr's report Of
1879 for twcnty-scven out of the thirty
three Counties shows dog roll Of 66,3l8.
With twu-ninths OF this statement added TO
it for the six Counties Of chesterfield, Oar
Iingtou, Grccnvile, pickens, Spartanburg,
and Sumter ommittcd from The report ow.
lug to County Auditor S abstracts not being
sent up u time for Comptro'lcr's report, wo
have 4,759 more, or total dog list of 81,
075; being an increase of l3,34S dogs in the
decade, or 1884 per year. Now, we do
not know, US we have said, how reliable these
returns urc-wc should frankly say VIC know
that they arc Lot ut all rciablc-bGt we
believe that this is but half tho number of
the dogs in the S,rte.
If sc have million Of people IN South
Carolina, this calls for 1000 fam lies,
and, from what wo sec and know for our
to II family, which calls for 100000 dogs
in the State, and there is not q dog less.
The census Of 1870 states the families in
the State at ISL 900. If The Auditors re-
port was correct, then there was q dog to
every two and quarter families. Now the
census of 1880 calls for 100000 famlies
at 81 900 dogs there is, then, according to
this return, dog to every four families.
Is this ut all in the ncighborhood of the
truth when 50 many families have many
dogs, if some have none?
Onr impression ie, lha! there are no! !ess
than 100000 dogs in the State, and VIC be
licvo the safest way is TO pass an Act levy
ing tag of 81 dog oil the way through,
and SIC each for all not returned to asses
sors.
Now, as the educational fund n eds larg-
or appropriations. wc would turn over this
dog tax to the education of the puor.
Would not the food that is fed out to ono
dog keep three sheep, with the pasturagc
they may enjoy, but for the dogs that run
them down? At this rate wo would have
10000 she in the State Instead of l94,-
600, which, with an average of 2.G pounds
per hcsd, gives 1850 900 pounds of wool,
or, with good average of sheep we'll cared
for, there is no reason why this clip should
not reach an average Of four pounds or 2,-
400, 900 pounds, worth 100000 to 81 900,
900 year, and as much more 10 marketa-
Bile mutton. Ireland, with 1900 square
miles less than South Carolina, had about
100000 sheep in 1915, or one sheep TO
the inhabitant, or I54 to the square milo,
or ono to every four acres At the Irish
rate Of sheep raisirg, and with four pounds
to the clip, wc would have wool crop worth
from seven to eight millions of dollars annu.
ally, and mutton production worth as
much more. Why shonld not this be so I
There is tho Stote Of Ohio, which in 1870
is stated at 100000 sheep and clip of
20,539,000. Nor need this shcep raising
detraot bale from our cotton production.
South Carolina's cotton area is stated in the
Department report for 1878 at 944,650
acres; call it to day 100000. The whole
number of acres reported for tho State is
l6,625,000.
Now, folding shoop on this cotton area,
and there is no process known more impro-
wing to the soil, what is to hinder US from
making overy aoro of this cotton double and
treble its yield? With tie pea vine and
ash element, our coast phosphatev, oombin-
ed with sheep raising, who can tell what
this million of acres would produce ia cot.
ton lint, besides SI5,000,000 por annum of
wool and flesh product.
So far as our mutton is concerned wo