The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-03-06

Stock raising in Alabama Is attracting attention just at this time and the Ques- tion of live stock as an industry is being widely agitated.
 It has been made so plain, of late, by facts and figures as to the natural and business advantages of stock raising that there need be no surprise if there is a large increase in that most notable and worthy enterprise in the present year in this State.
 It is fact that the natural advantages for raising cattle and hogs and sheep and goats in Alabama and even horses and mules, are unsurpassed by those of any State in the Union. The boundless and inexhaustible supply of cane and grasses all the year round, the hickory nuts and scaly parks and beech and hazle nuts which make the maintenance of live stock almost a minimum cost, make 1t certain that sooner or later 1t will be taken advantage of and with such fa- yorable climate Alabama will yet be a meat producing State, not only enough for home consumption, but to spare.
 Before many years 1t Is believed this State will compete with Tennessee and Kentucky in these lines. Alabama has one great advantage-that of climate. It Is not cold enough here to require hous- Ing except perhaps 1t be for short time in the worst weather of February or March.
 No argument Is necessary to convince any thinking man that stock can be raised profitably in Alabama, and 1t Is equally as certain that it will be done.
 Thinking of the matter recently I was persuaded to study to some extent. the f,,f ofA nd tn how the live stock shows up In the State at present, and how 1t Is distributed as to locality.
 Cattle.
 I find that there were, according to the assessment for last year 2O25s6 cattle in the State at a total valuation of S1.675,- 341. This, of course, includes all bulls, | COWS, calves and beef cattle, and the | average value per head is about a.10. There are not many persons who know that Baldwin County leads the list with 13,313 cattle. This is a very large County | having an area of 1620 square miles, said to be larger than the entire State oi Rhode Island. Owing to its unlimited pasturage facilities the County Is so vel adapted to raising live stock. they need | ing nothing more than the herbage crop ped through the forests summer and | winter, that the industry has been fol | lowed to a limited extent.
 The stock raisers pen their stock onc' | a year and brand them and give then little attention afterwards. until they ar' herded and driven to market, always be | ing in good condition for beef.
 Washington County comes next witl 9,SS7; Choctaw, 7376; Wilcox, 6,96s; Maren go, 6,s71; Jefferson, 6,47o. Monroe. 5,44S Montgomery, 4O3S: Autauga 367O; Bull lock, 3.4O3; Conecuh. 3,242; DeKalb, 3.s58 Geneva, 3,514; Lauderdale, 3,2s6; Chiffon 2,s57: Colbert, 2.e35; Dallas. 2,65s; Etowah 2,S6S; Fayette. 2S13: Lawrence. 256S I.owndes 2.sO2: Madison. 2.9S3; Marion 2,sS6; Morgan, 2.3O4; Shelby. 2,524. St ; Clair, 2,744: Tallapoosa. 2,554; Walker, 2,sSi The other counties range all the wa |, from near the two thousand mark t 1.O4s in Cleburne the smallest number o all.
 Horses.
 Very few horses are raised in Alabama Here and there blooded stock are bred but it is very rare that horses are raise
 as a business.
 The figures show that there are 112.7t horses in the State valued at $5267.97S.
 per capita of about $46. The public wi