The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-06-17
Raising Sheep for Mutton.

f. d. Curtis In Country Gentleman.
Now, while it is true that national legislation
may help to promote the interests of the flock
masters, 1t is equally true that the farmers and
those more directly interested are not doing all
they can to help the cause An active demand
always stimulates the supply Our people
should wear more wooden goods. and those or
home manufacture This will increase the home
market for wool, or ought to, and help to keep
the manufactures running. The production of
wool has been leading feature in this country
OF sheep husbandry. The carcass has been
neglected, or rather the attention paid
otherwise. The aim has been to get much
weight of fleece as possible on the least amount
of body This line of breeding quite general,
has made the mutton inferior. and if Americans
ever had general taste for it, they have lost it.
The emergency is now too great to spend much
time arguing where the responsibility rests, or
who is to blame, but rather let us accept the I'M
fortunate fact that Americans as class. do not
eat mutton, and 80 fully half interest in sheep
husbandry is paralyzed and almost dead
weight, which the other half-the wool--must
carry. This is all wrong. and we shall never
see full measure of prosperity for sheep hus-
bandry until it is righted.
Legislation for the protection of wool cannot
make up in these days for the lack of sale for
the mutton. Here is a chance for great deal of
patriotic missionary werk-to educate our peo-
pie to help wonderfully in the prosperity of the
country, by eating more of the flesh OF sheep.
olEdugo hS IL may S06Iu, bu0 City p6op6 sdG OH
the mutton They are the least interested, and
yet but for them mntton would be SO low In
price that 1t would not pay to dress sheep and
put them in the market They would not bring
the cost of transportation.
There has grown UP in the country towns and
among country people propensity to eat moth
ing but beef The farmers themselves do noteat
moro than third the pork they used TO, and not
a fourth of the mutton They never ate enough
mutton. and now they do not, as a class, eat any.
The men who own and breed sheep do not eat
mutton. They will pay twice and, more than
likely, three times as much for Texas beef as
they would have to for mutton, and four times
as much as their own mutton would cost them.
Charlton is quite sheep town. and venture to
say more sheep are eaten on Kirby Homestead
every year than in the whole town.
Our country butcher last year killed and ped
died in the surrounding country, among the
farmers and at the hamlets, fifty beef cat
tie, and could only get rid of five sheep.
There are hundreds of sheep owned in the
town There ought to be thousands), and every
one Of these sheep owners are blowing Congress
poor prospects for keeping sheep. The butcher
says he cannot sell mutton, as the people all
want beef" Right here there should be serious
consideration of this subject Either the NUT
ton is such that the people will not eat it. or the
notions and tastes of the people are SO strongly
against it that they will pay almost much
again for inferior beef. If the appetites or no.
tons of the people could be changed. and the
mutton improved so that the demand for 1t would
be increased in proportion to its cheapness and
healthfulness, there would be substantial and
paying basis for sheep husbandry, notwithstand-
ing the low price of the feeces.