The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1892-05-25
The Sgerala aaa 5e1l'*a
GOLDEN FIERCE cE THE SHEEP.
Col. JAS. II. Ricc's Visit to an AbDevil.c
Farmer who Raises Sheep Success
faily-Conclusive Proof of the
Profit Of the Industry.

raily-ConcIusive Proof of the
Profit Of the Industry.
From the Press and Banner
You are 9 farmer anu stock facmer. I
viii not call you husbandman, oe-
cause you detest puns, and this eGuivo-
cal word may make bachelor trembie.
But yod are certainly deeply interested
in agriculture, as your paper has long
shown, and remember a year ago ag-
riculture took large Interest in you
and your paper.
I spent the afternoon Of April 18th
with our friend, Eld1ed S. Addison,
walking and riding over his magnltl-
cent farm. It is three miles from Nine
ty-Si1, in Edgefeld County, Lying on
Beaver Dam and Ninety-Six creeks, in
the heart Of the famous Cambridge
lands-the most fertile uplands in the
State. The plantation co'tains SUI
acres, is beautiful for situation, abund-
antly watered, thoroughly fenced with
wire and plank and shows everywhere
the hand of master. I have no time
for detail, and besides, the owner is a
modest man who stays at home and
successfully handles and drives MS own
business. I am intent to tell you and
your readers about his sheep and incl
dentally other things.
Mr.. Addison carried $50 sheep
through the winter. March oath, he
sold to an Augusta butcher wethers
and IA lambs, averaging 60 pounds, for
6 cents gross. He has now II lambs
very many of which will weigh 50
pounds and probably none as low as 81.
They are all ready for the table and l
really believe would compare favorably
with an equal number from any farm
in the Union. They would create a
furore in Fulton market, and tempt
the most fastidinus palate in any land.
He will keep. some OF the finest for his
own use-table and flock. Will sell
many for fancy prices to men who de-
sire to improve their flocks, and the
balance 60 to the butcher. But for this
he could marked every lamb to-day for
So per head for the table.
am facing the important question,
does sheep farming pay here in our
country? Mr.. Addison thinks it does,
and presents the proof. Some years
ago he bought this place badly run
down from cotton culture and unwise
tillage and grazing. He has at least
doubled its value, and although he has a
reputation for fine horses, keeps large
herd of cattle and many hogs, and has
sold pure red oats throughout the
State, he believes the prime factor IN
this development is tho sheep.
First his present flock are penned
nightly, and with them alone he an
nually makes very rich acres OF land
moving his pens about every ten days.
The money value of this land cannot
be estimated. Every farmer knows
what a COW pen means, and sheep drop
pings are richer than cows. 1t means
heavy crops Of barley, which can only
be made to perfection on penned land,
oats, rye, clover, and turnips, and is
good for life time, if properly graded
and TILED.
Hissheep are large and heavy wooled,
as you can judge from the crosses
named. He began with grade Merinos
and Cotswoid ewes, breeding them to
the best Broad Tailed rams he could
buy in the country. They combine
size, wool and mutton flavor to perfec-
ton. His flock of old sheep will prob
ably shear six pounds per head. They
are large, very fat and having con-
stantly cleaned his pastures his wool
will command the highest prices.
Sheep give annually three returns
when properly managed-wool, NUT
ton, lands enriched. They are close
feeders, destroy noxious weeds and give
US the only chance to redeem the bald
red hills of our splendid country, gutted
by a century Of cotton culture, and
scalded by blazing suns on lands with
out covering. We need sheep on every
farm. We covered thousands once and
now have pens, and these left to the
tender mercies of weather and dogs.
Not the darkey, for he does not love
mutton-his affections are centered on
the pig.
Its very remarkable that the only
book on sheep husbandry in the South,
and particularly in South Carolina,
was written by Mr.. Randall, famous
sheep farmer from New York. Visit
ing Gov. Aston, he was so impressed
with the superiority Of our soil, climate
and natural range for sheep that he
published q book which will be a reve-
lation to every reader. I can only say
that he declares that a line from
Georgetown to Memphis is the diane
ter of the finest sheep range IN the
world-America, Europe or Asia.
Read it. This industry is peculiarly
suited to white people. From the
birth Of the sheep to his death he needs
such constant care as only a white man
can and will give. The lambling, the
watching in pasture, the careful tend
ing and penning, the shearing, the
fine art of butchering, and I shall
never omit the cookin, and eating OF
them, is emphatically 9 privilege and
duty o. the white race. 4 is easily
first of meats for health or Psure III
a hot climate. Roasted, boiled, enops
most savory and barbecued, Mr.. Will
son, is dish for the gods. But I am
not writing a treatise on gastronomy
+boucf, tho contamination even is most