The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-04-15
HAREs AND GOATS.

HAREs AND QoAT0.
 The Columbia Breeze, takes issue with Tho Advertiser in commenting on a short paragraph in this paper about the Belgian says:
 The foregoing is not the first we have seen in The Advertiser tending to the disparagement of what will prove one of the most important small industries in this country. especially the South, and on account of the fact that our esteemed contemporary is always at the front of all moves for the encouragement of the production of everything except cotton, we must express our surprise At her posi- ton on this question. We gre not dis posed to enter into a lengthy discussion of the subject, as we have neither time nor space, but do feel constrained to say a few words for worthy cause.
 The Advertiser Is certainly ready at all times to help in the good work of advsnc- ing Anything that will benefit Alabama or the people of Alabama. The Breeze assures us that the craze or fad for Belgian hares is by no means a thing of the past, and states that there are several people in Columbia who are engaged in the business of raising the animals and are unable to supply the | demand.
 This Is news to us. for we have been pretty close reader Of the State papers | and have rarely seen Belgian hares men tioned in months past. Our remarks, however. were intended to refer to the country at large, and not to Alabama, for, SO far as we have noticed, there has not been any great excitement in this State over the animals. It was in the West that the craze ran riot. Less than one year ago the papers of Califor- mia, Nebraska and other Western and Pacific States abounded with advertise. l ments of Belgian hares, and both local and editorial columns bristled with "write-ups" in which the hafes were spoken of in a way to indicate that all other industries would give way to this and the Belgian hares would become the staple crop of the country. Now 1t Is an exceedingly rare thing to see any men ton made of them, either as advertising or otherwise. We are forced to con- clude that the craze has run it's course out there, or else all the people have as many of the animals as they want. If raising them will add anything to the good or the happiness or the prosperity of the people of Alabama. We will be glad to know it, and to know how we l can help it along.
 The Breeze thinks The Advertiser can render the people of Alabama great | service by assisting the introduction of Angora goats, and, speaking of goats
 especially the Ausora variety, we note | that a farmer in Montana claims that he was cured of consumption by drink. ing the milk of these animals, and he
 is out with long string of figures that line general Government should 50 into
 the business of establishing goat ranches in the interests of humanity He proves l to his own satisfaction that by going | into the business on an extensive scale l Uncle sam could cure ali the Gonsump- tives in the Union and could pay all the l expenses from the pronts from wool,
 hides and meat.
 This fellow really proves too much.
 Dead goats do not yield any milk, and
 if they are kept for their laeteAl accom- pllshmcnts. there viii be no hides or meat for sale.
 | If the man had confined his claims 10
 milk and hair, he would have made out
 d strong case, for there is real value
 in the latter product. From recent
 article on the subject we learn that the
 hair, or wool. of the Ankora iA very
 valuable. While the amount of wool procured from each animal is sometimes
 as low as only two or three pounds per annum, for ordinary or scrub" animals. we learn that from some of the finest Asiatic Angoras the annual crop some
 times reaches as high as 15 pounds to the animal. So highly do the Turks of Angora value these goats that $50 to
 $500 is not an uncommon price, and extra fine animals have sold for five times as
 much. There is no doubt about the
 Angoras being valuable goats, hut
 whether they can be profitably domesti- cated and raised in Alabama remains to be settled by experience. If they pos sess any of the nardihoOd and multiply ing powers of our ordinary goats, the farmers of he State would do well to
 make some intelligent and careful experi | mehts with them. IL !nigb. be neces-
 gary to get rid of some of the sSrelus
 dogs. but that would only bs an added reason for going into goat raising.
 We assure The Breeze that The Adysr-