The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-05-25
FENCE OR NO FENCE.
DR.. Dupont-The Fence Question and
the Land Sharks

Editor Morning Menus: In tho Savannah
Daily Times of May 10 appears an inter-
view with Dr. Dupont, commencing with
the queer paragraph concerning the fierce
question: ITS pretty scheme of a nice
LITTLE nest of land spectators. That's about
the magnitude of it." On inquiry at the
Tax Receivers office | find that Dr. Dupo {
returns his cattle at $500, without men
tioning how many head Of cattle he has,
and on this herd, which he pastures on
other peoples lands, to subSist on what
the frosts will kill and the fires consume, he
pays the county and State about 50 30
year. AS e landowners get notbi e from
him for pasturage, and the State and county
get only SO 80 year. he undoubtedly has
good thing in 1t if he can keep up the
same system.
New let us see what it costs his neigh
bors to fence their crots against his cattle.
1t is estimated that the county alone, which
gets from him about one dollar to one dollar
and half year, expended recently nearly
81, 900 in fencing its farms so as to keep
neighboring cattle from destroying the
crops Each little farmer planting an acre
Of ground has to put up over 800 feet of
fence to keep stock out. Eight hundred
running feet of fence takes about
100 to lao panels of rails, ID rails
to panel, say l,SO0 to 1000
TdlIS lIeSS TullS COSt 10 CoHla w
81 a hu1dred to cut independent CT the
timber destroyed, aud as the fence decays
and has to be renewed every two or three
years, the same expense and destruction of
timber has to be suffered by the little
farmer at each renewal. To this must be
added the work of building the fence,
which certainly amounts to as much as cut
ting the rails It will be found, therefore,
that each little farm OF ar acre has to
stand an average expense of not less than
$40 year fer fencing. Counting fifty
of these little farms, as in the Doctors
neighbOrhood, their contribution annually
by expense Of fencing to keep out the doc
tors stock is $500, to which must be added
$500 or more incurred by the county itself
on its own farm, and we find that the doc
tors neighbors have to expend 81 900 year
for letting the doctors stock run at large,
while the doctor pays the county 81 50 a
year for the benefits that he receives by this
enormous expenditure to which he puts
them. Where 1.-THE poor'' land you have no
idea of their number" says the doctor get
their share Of the benefit is beyond my cal
culation.
There are probably between 1000 and
1000 miles Of fencing in Chatham county.
Let us take 1000 as the basis of calculation.
One thousand miles are over 5,O00,0 600 run
ming feet, 6 running feet to panel, - rails.
In other words, 100000 panels of - rails to
panel-10 rails, 2 stakes and a rider--or
about 100000 rails. To cut these rails
takes over 100000. To plare them in posi-
ton in the fence as much more. That
makes S120,00 | have never aScertained
how many rails will make a cord of wood
but perhaps the farmers can figure it for
themselves. And as all the tree, except
what is used for rails, is destroyed by fire or
decay, and the fence itself soon decays also
| think | am safe in saying that by the
expense of fencing and wear and decay the
farmers of this county incur an annual
loss of not less than 100000.
Now let us take another view of it. An
acre of land will produce from 100 to 300
bushels of potatoes. A hundred bushels of
potatoes will feed a cow, or a SOW, year,
and you have good COW and profitable
SOW when kept up and fed. But that same
acre will produce a winter crop of turnips,
also good food for COW and SOW. Meantime,
having no expense of fencing, the small
farmer can put in a crop of ten acres, instead
of one acre, and have the surplus product
of nine acres to live on and sell. Wouldn't
he be better off, The doctor seems to be
suffering from monomania on the subject of
LAND sharks" Ny acquaintance is quite
extensive among gentlemen who are buy
ing and selling lands, and SO far as my
observation goes, they are making arabic
land out of swampy jungles, causing houses
to spring up where the wildcat held his car
nival, and making old fogies like the doctor
better off In spite of their own idioSyncrasies.
But" says the doctor, ''cattle require
Udriety in their Diet So they do, doctor,
and the way to give 1t to them is to plant
all the land you can in a variety of feed
which you can dig up and house safely dur
ing the winter, and feed out to your stock
when that which 1.-THE frosts kill and the
fires consume" has gone where the wood
bine twineth and the whangdoodle mourn
eth" etc.
The doctor forgets also the dripping
value" of cattle when congregated. If
proper attention were given to this one
feature of stock farming, the extra value
of the crop products of the land would pay
for keeping up and feeding all the stock in
Chatham county.
In the above calculations have made no
reference whatever to the destruction of
fences by fires and the incidental losses of
crops thereby, resulting from the ingress Of
stock feeding at large on what the frosts
kill, etc. Indeed it is generally believed
tnat they leave the outside range for the
crops" whenever they can get at them,
even by jumping fences. One single
jumper in neighborhood not Only keeps
every farmer anxious, but ofttimes is the
occ iSlon OF quafreIS, HgntS, and even more
serious and lameutable results; and the
only satisfaction ''the poor farmer" can get
from cattle owners like the doctor is that he
must keep his fences in better order, very
poor comfort for crops destroyed, fences
broken down. and starvation staring him
and his family in the face.
These fence gentlemen may mean well
for themselves especially, but their fala-
cious arguments won't stand the scrutiny
of even an ordinary pair of spectacles
The doctor should give more time to the
study of his subject before lie appears in
print. Gold type" is wonderful micro
scope, through which is seen the luninary
tdmihoe of ones inside ideas. should like
to hear more from him.
LOUIS A. FALLIGANT
OFFICIAL.