The age-herald., 1901-09-29
ANgOra SOats Rve PvOfNahAe
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BY WILLIAM RYAN.

in the Cincinnati Packer letters from three Mississippi farmers who have been raising Angora goats for several years and each one was enthusiastic over the financial success that had followed his efforts in this industry.
 Angoras never fail to thrive iii hilly country, There are now thousands of 1 them in Northern Alabama, and the num- Der of farmers experimenting with them will increase steadily. A. M. Hinds, prosperous farmer of Blount county, told me this week that he had between sev- enty-nve and hundred Angora goats and that they were a source of large profit to him. He crosses some of them With the common goat because the latter makes faster breeding. The pure bred Angora only breeds about once A year. while the common goat has kids every four months. Mir. Hinds said he found the goat that was three-quarters Angora ana one-quarter common was a fairly good mixture for mutton. But the fleece was neither so heavy nor so fine as was that of the pure bred
 He told me that he found Birmingham a good market for Angora fleece belts and mutton. He got 70 cents a pound for mohair from pure bred animals, four to four and half pounds to the goat, and $2 for mutton. The meat Is ex- ceedingly nutricious and toothsome and is preferred by many persons to sheep mutton. As a commercial proposition the Angora as food beats the common goat four to one. for the latter breed brings only 50 cents
 Among other Blount county farmers who raise Angora goats on a profitable scale are Thomas F. Johnson, Buck Johnson Richard Stephens, Charles Bibb and R. D. Griffith. They have large herds.
 Going back to the bureau publication, the editor says that tine weignt of the fleece Is always a subject of inquiry and Is a difficult question to answer, because of the controlling circumstances-such as climate, feed. care, and, above all, the degree of Angora blood in the animal The brfefest answer, and probably the best one that can be made in a general way, he says, Is that of Mir. c. P. Bailey, and Is as follows
 'Half-breed goats scarcely shear enough to pay for the shearing; three fourths-bred goats shear l to 1h pounds. worth Is to 20 cents; ven-eighths- bred goats shear to pounds, worth 20 to 30 cents; teen-sixteenths- bred goats shear to 5 pounds, worth 30 to 40 cents"
 He adds the important statement that the fourth cross, or fifteen-six teenths Is the lowest grade that he would use ex- clusively for mohair
 
 it's fleece and flesh, it is highly est eemed as pet The pure bred kind Is singular ly graceful, and It's beautiful shaped body and fine silky hair make 1t won derfully attractive. There is no animal, except possibly the horse, that is more beautiful than these goats. and no ani- nal Is more cleanly in it's habits. As pets for children then they are very pop ular, if they can be kept where they will be harmless to vegetation and anything made of cloth. They have all the pro- pensities of the common goat for destroy ing fruit trees and chewing any kind of cloth and of climbing upon roofs. All kinds of goats are frightfully mischiev- ous. The Angoras are tractable and are often harnessed to carts as are common goats, and their beauty makes them more desirable for this purpose.
 Goats require a great amount of exer- else, much more than sheep. The one is by nature a browser and the other a grazer, and the browsing habit naturally requires more activity on the part of the goats. They are sensitive to restraint and do better if not herded. but of course herding is often a necessity, and there fore should be done under as favorable circumstances as possible. An authority says: "So far as possible goats should not be allowed to feel their restraint. If constant attendance Is necessary, the herder should be of quiet disposition. The next best thing to the freedom of a range is a large pasture where the goats may have oversight, but not constant attend ance. Such pastures are considered the cheapest method of keeping these goats. They can easily be trained to come home by feeding little and salting regularly at home"
 Since the success of the Angora indus try means so much to this country in the way of adding to its wealth, the de- pertinent of agriculture Is to be com mended for the work it is doing in the publication of goat literature.