The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1889-05-28
SPARKLING LETTER FROM OUR
IRREPRESSIBLE AND mex
HAUSTIBLE "WOOL-
VERNE"

- u - - -
Carnivora; Family, Mustelldae;
&enus, Gulo; Wolverine, found IN the
Nortnern states and Canada, and IN
the northern parts of Europe and
Asia. is about three feet long, OF a
dark color, and is very powerful and
Eerocious when attacked. 1t is so
.AreWd that it scarcely eve enters a
trap and hence is seldom caught. 7"
Euet WHY a M~ichigander is called a
Wolverine l never knew. They are
mt especially shrewd about traps nor
$erocious when attacked. 1t may be
for similar reasons to those which
kaye nicknamed the natives of other
sabes, Badgers, Buckeyes, Hoosiers,
Nutlneg's, etc.
The way in which The PROGRESS
~EvE FARMER has changed it from
Wolverine to Wolverine IS a piece
If o~remeditated Mrs. Partingtonlsm
600 utterly funny. I couldn't beat 1t,
myself. Bearing in mind that Mlchl-
z<an stands near the head Of the list
Of states in wool production, 1t as a
ueat hit. Quere. Has HE PROGRESS
wv FARMER a aOag on the tale end OF
It's staff?
Speaking of wool reminds me that
Texas and southern California are
great wool producing sections. Just
Whv the South with it's perennial pas
Mres doesn't lead the world IN wool
rs we'll as cotton, is amystery. When
at pasture sheep demand compare
zTvely little care if dogs and thieves
zre not too plenty. AS renovators of
worn lands they surpass other stock.
A flock of sheep will get fat in a fresh
pasture or summer fallow where cat
te will sUarve and horses become skel
stons. In parts of England sheepare
Rearly wintered in the turnlp field.
lam assured turnips grow to enor-
NOUS size and hundreds of bushels to
che acre down South.
A few acres in clover, alfalfa, ber-
muda and a field Of turnips for
Efnter ought to keep a hundred good
aheep and not interfere with cotton
and tobacco culture either.
AT a sheep shearing at Grand Blanc,
his county, this spring, feeces were
shown weighing from fifteen to twice
that number of pounds. But these
sheep are housed and oftened blank
eted IN winter, and if the sheep are at
pasture and a load of hay to be drawn
when a shower comes up, the sheep
are sheltered first. They are fine
wool and with more wrinkles and
FUCKERS than a mouthful of greenp per
zsimmon. 1t is a very common thing
for ordinary farmers with grade sheep
so sit-up nights sometimes to watch
for and care for lambs in winter and
aearly spring Early lambs are profit
able and often sell at less than six
months for more than the mature
sheep and fleece.
A recent writer in the Ohio Farmer
says: Speaking of the Oxford down
lambs at six months old will, with
ordinary care weigh 125 pounds, and
when fully matured 200 to 800
pounds"
ANY of the down sheep, South,
Hampshire, Oxford, Shropshire are
hardy, prolific and with southern eli
mate and pasture could be made to
bring So and upwards at four to six
months with little care, so can the
long woods. You are neal the great
markets, less than a day by rail.
Train load after train load, twenty
i've to thirty doubled decked cars
loaded with sheep. pass here. What
is against the South becoming a great
mutton and wool producer ? Ticks,
dogs, darkies? You might make a
nice profit by mixing wool off the lat
ter with Southdown wool or selling it
as "Downsouth Xxx" were it not for
the "bloody shirt" howl from north
ern pre- sidential aspirants every time
one of b edarkies was clipped too near
the skin. If nine-tenths Of the politi-
clans north and south could be con-
Verted into commercial fertilizer and
utilized to renovate your wornout cot
ton lands, the country would be a ma
terial gainer-but the beyond would
suffer spiritual loss.
Except the soldiers the average
people North are shamefully ignorant,
of the South in all material respects.
I plead guilty for one, but n thing 1
am learning is that there are lots of
workers, plenty of energyin the South.
Letters come from them freely. The
assertion from some southern friends
that large classes of Southerners are
lazy is growing shadowy. 1t is
equally evident from my letters that
the diet of your laboring classes is
against development of great energy.
Germ is by chemical analysis largely
composed of carbon. So is oil, Goa
is almost all carbon. It is alright fol-
a hea% producer, but that you don't
need as much as we do at the North,
yet comparatively little corr is eaten
boro Tho Coo+obDooo roo,oJ ~ ~