The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1882-02-16
The Herd Law-ShOuId 10 be
Repealed!
CYPRESS MILLS, BLANco Co., I

CYPRESS Mills, BLANCo Co., !
Feb. 10, 1882. !
To the Editors OF the Statesman:
When l noticed in letter, a short
time ago, the movement among the
sheep raisers to petition for a repeal
of the herd law, | dismissed it
rather cavalierly as an absurd prop
osition. 1t now appears to have
assumed some magnitude, and il is
rumored that the stockmen's con-
vention, soon to assemble in Austin,
will have the subject brought be-
fore it. In the Lire Stock Jour
nal appears a communication from
one who signs himself "Sheep-
Raiser" In doleful strains he COM
plains of the discrimination against
the sheep interest by the herd law.
Discrimination, forsooth Will the
gentleman show any class legislation
in the statute, which provides that
no one shall herd more than twenty
five head of stock on the land of
another, without tie consent of the
owners. But, he says, the sheep owner
is compelled to herd, while the
owner of cattle and horses is not.
The answer is patent: The sheep
owner herds because he finds it to
his interest TO do so. He is at liberty
to turn his sheep loose on land not
belonging to him at any time.
Every one knows a range suffers
more from close herding upon it
than when animals run at will.
Again, "Sheep Raiser" gives us a
hypothetical case, which is as ex-
travagant as Scoville's. He
imagines sheep owner with a
large tract of improved land,
and small flock of sheep, while his
neighbor, stockman, has a small
tract of land and a large herd OF
cattle, which roam unrestrained over
the domain of the much abused wool
grower. Now, for every stockman
with 160 acres of land, and 1000 head
of cattle, produced by "Sheep
Raiser" [ will engage TO produce
fifty with 100 or more acres of land
and less than 100 head of cattle.
How unjust it would be, and "dis-
elimination" indeed, if II law were
enacted that every pre-emptor, a
class that is encouraged by our
states policy to settle here, were
compelled to build two miles of
fence 10 restrain his milch
cows from wandering over
his lines occasionally, or TO a
neighbours pasturage, or else have
the sheep raiser herd OH his (the
pre-emptor's) land while the grass is
growing, saving his own grass to
run the sheep on in the winter.
have seen this done often. Many
sheep raisers herd on the land Of
others eight months in the year, pre-
serving their own range for winter
1t is claimed that the prosperity
of France is due to the fact that
there are more small land owners
than in any other European country,
while the misery of Ireland Is traced
to the possession of that fertile isle
by few. If this be so, the policy
of encouraging pre-emptors
and owners of small tracts,
who are not able to fence, or
to hire a herder for their little
stocks, would seem to be the wise
one, instead of the one indicated by
the sheep raIsers. The merchants
and tradesmen of the cities, too, are
interested in having the lands SUBJ
divided, so that their wares may
find buyers. In fact, every one but
a few cattle and sheep "kings" is in
terested in securing the passage of
laws discouraging the concentration
of lands in the hands of few. 1t is
hoped, therefore, that the petition of
the sheep owners will receive but
little favor.
"Sheep-Raiser" also proposes to test
the constitutionality of the sheep
law. The courts are open, and any
one interested is at liberty to test
the law, and it is hoped the sheep
men will do so. OCCASIONAL.