Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-05-03
STORY OF THE ANGCRA.
Interesting Account of Their Intre-
duction Into This Country.

Interesting Account of Their Intre-
duction Into This Country.
When it is said that the mohair in
dustry is looking up in this country, It
is equivalent to saying that the Angora
goat industry is looking up. Now, the
Angora goat history in the United
States is rather an interesting one. 1t
was during the administration of Pres
ident Polk that it began. The sultan of
Turkey had to do with the introduction
of the Angora goat into this country.
He requested President Polk to recon-
mend some one who would experiment
with cotton culture in Turkey, and
President Polk suggested DR.. James 3.
Davis of Columbia, S. C. DR.. Davis
accordingly was invited to Turkey by
the sultan and went there, with the re-
suit that his cotton experiments so
pleased the sultan that when he re-
turned to America he brought with
him nine Angora goats, the gift to him
of the sultan.
These goats were frequently exhibit
ed at fairs and attracted much atten-
ton. 1t was thought at the time that
they were the Cashmere breed, from
the fiber of which the costly cashmere
shawls are made. This mistake proved
to be unfortunate, for everything that
was known about the Cashmeres was
said for these goats, with the final re-
suit that there was such disappoint-
ment that it gave serious setback to
the Angora goat industry at its very
outset. An Angora goat can no more
serve the purposes of Cashmere than
purposes of the finest Jersey stock
Yet, all the same, the Angora is very
valuable animal, and this early disap-
pointment in the sultan's gift had q
tendency to blind people for q long
time to the fact.
In 1858 the Davis flock of goats,
consisting of seven does and two
bucks, was purchased by Colonel Rich
ard Peters of Atlanta, Ga, with the
exception of one owned by Colonel
Wade Hampton of South Carolina and
one by Mr.. Davenport of Virginia and
one by Mr.. Osborne of New York. Lat
er Colonel Peters imported others, and,
although they did not prove satisfacto-
ry, he is nevertheless regarded as the
real founder of the Angora goat indus
try in this country.
His first importation was followed
by others up to as late as 1876, when
the sultan became alarmed at what he
fancied was the development of an in
dustry which threatened the same line
in Turkey. In 1876 he issued an edict
absolutely prohibiting the expectation
Of Angoras, and this edict is still in
force. Notwithstanding the edict DR..
w. C. Bailey of San Jose, Cal, went
to Asia Minor in 1901 and succeeded in
shipping four goats, which finally ar
rived at their new home in California.
From these importations, supple
mented by few goats brought from
South Africa, have come all the herds
that now are found in nearly every
state in the Union. At the close Of the
civil war about all the goats Of the
Angora breed that remained in the
country We're in the southwestern
states and territories, principally in
Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and Cali
forna. Within the last few years they
have gone into Oregon in large num-
bers, and quite recently several thou
sand have been taken into Iowa and
Missouri. There is now manifested an
interest in the animal such as was nev'
err known before since its arrival away
back in President Folks time, and it is
believed that this interest will result
and that before very long, in estab
fishing permanently an industry which
will extend to every part of the coun,
try.