The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-11-22
SHEEP RAISING IN FLORIDA.
There Seems to BE No Doubt That 1t
Would he Profitable,

Orlando, Fla, Nov 20-For years there
has been a lurking belief in the minds
of few men of this section, that sheep
would thrive and be profitable. An Eng
lish gentleman of wide experience, a man
who had Travelled extensively and had vast
opportunities for intelligent observation, a
few years ago declared that when the
orange growers of Florida would quit buy
ing commercial fertilizers, adopt the plan
of planting forage crops in their groves
or in sections of the groves, in succession,
so as to keep some portion in nutritious
pasturage throughout the year, and then
put a good flock of sheep among their
trees, they would begin to learn how to at
tain the highest degree of'success in fruit
culture at the lowest outlay of money.
This man was honest In his convictions,
and doubtless understood what he was
talking about. But it is hard to overthrow
prevailing theories or to induce men to
adopt methods counter to those in vogue
about them.
Other men, who had knowledge of sheep
in regions where clay soils prevailed, and
where the summer rainy season of Florida
Is unknown, held to the opinion that the
peninsular of Florida was too low and too
wet for sheep raising. They predicted that
foot rot would develop here and prove a
scourge which would be an insurmounta-
BILE obstacle In the way of profitable sheep
husbandry. The discussions went on, but
the matter never got beyond the stage Of
profitless discussion and the airing of the
cries based on an experience in some re-
mote section, where conditions were totally
unlike those prevailing here. From time TO
time few sheep were shipped into this
part of the state to supply a local demand
| for mutton. When turned loose upon the
wild range they throve wonderfully, and If
the range was flooded they waded in the
water gathering their own sustenance and
no case of foot rot or other disease made
its appearance among them.
Since the freeze the average Floridian
has been compelled to skirmish, to call
to his aid any scheme which would
| lengthen out his source of supplies and to
| DO a lot of thinking and planning in or
| der to put him on his feet again. A few
remembered how sheep had thriven In the
| few experiments made in former years,
| and were led to experiment on a larger
scale Some of the stockmen of OSceola
county made quite extensive purchases in
| Georgia and other states to the north of
us, shipped the animals down and turned
| them loose. The result has been alto
| gether satisfactory, so far as range sheep
| Is concerned. UP TO tnlS time they nave
not been tried in the orange groves. But
this will come soon, If the signs of the
! times do not fail.
One stockman on the Kissimmee river
| prairies is reported to have a thousand
| head, another three or four hundred, 9TH
] ers flocks of greater or less size. In every
! case where reports have been obtained,
! the animals are healthy, free from dis
| case, hold their wool well. and IL is claimed
| breed twice a year frequently and three
times occasionally, against once in the
north. Those who have sheep want more,
| while those who have none are getting
the fever, until 1t begins to look as If
| Florida is destined to become as famous
for sheep raising as for the production of
| oranges.
The most conspicuous venture i'm this
county is that of an Illinois gentleman
L. H. Ellison, who few months ago pur-
chased three sections of land in the lower
| portion of the county, which he proposes
| to convert into a sheep ranch. He has
! had it fenced had buildings and corrals
put up, and Is now out of the state for
sheep to stock his place. He is reputed
TO be man of much experience in the
business, who had thoroughly investigated
the focks already here before he invested
dollar. His enterprise may open up a
new industry for this section. Success to
him.