The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1906-07-05
Sheep Industry Of
The Central West

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quot below some Of the most frnToFs
Etant paragraphs.
Under the Central West We in
.clude western Pennsy lyania, West.
virginia. Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana
Illinois and Michigan, what was and
lis known as the center Of the fine.
wool industry The native sheep we're
undoubtedly brought into this section
Of the country from virginia and the;
New England states The introduce
ton of the Spanish Meltno MARKS
the beginning OF the greatest epoch
III the sheep industry IN this region,
The farmers throughout this section
are thrifty, energetic and careful and
the A1erfno fell into good hands.
What is the status Of the industry
at present in the Central West? First
let me present a few statistics and
while L am cognizant of The fact that
statistics are, not always tnfallible
USUALLY what the people make
them) they are the best means of
gaining the desired information.
Here we have food for hard, sol
Ina thinking. We find that Penn
sylvania has been increasing the
plumber of her sheep OF late, West
Virginia has also made an increase
as well as Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois
and Michigan, while Ohio alone has
continued to go down. Why is it,?
The great sheep State of Ohio, with
her beautiful hilsfdes has shepherds
no. none will Dispute, know their bus
mess and know it well. Have they
really and truly found better way3
have given this ssubject constdera-
BILE attention, and have studied it not
at distance but among the shepz
herds and upon the hillsides. While
Others may present reasons for the
falling of of sheep in Ohio somewhat
different from mine, yet, we must
always remember that in differing
and I'm giving our reasons why, we
sometimes arrive at advanced
ground. I name three chief Obstacles
to success: Tariff tinkering, dogs
roaming at large, and haste to sell
crops unfed. i. If 1t were at all pos
sible to choke off this eternal con
troversy over political wool, compel
our political speakers to talk OF some
thing else (ff they must TALK, OF
life insurance, railway rebates, stand
ard oil. beef packers. etc. for in
st-nce, and divorce once and forever
the sheep industry and politics and
let it grow upon its own intrinsic.
merits we would be better OF in
every way. 9. If some member Of
the next legislature in advocating
dog law could muster up the courage
of "Horatius at the Bridge" in IN
cient Rome, If he could do this, and.
make a decided stand and coura-
geously battling for right makes
might and once and forever strike
death blow to the dog nuisance in
Ohio, he would render to the farmers
and the sheep industry great and
everlasting benefit, one that should
never be forgotten. have found this
upon actual investigation among the
heaviest sheep owners in the sheep
section of Ohio to be great and ac-
heaviest sheep owners in the sheep
actually causing men to entirely
abandon this industry. The Depart
ment of Agriculture Of the state OF
Ohio furnishes me the following sta
tisticss as the latest obtainable:
Number of sheep in Ohio in
1903 -. .......,1, 1852, III
Number of sheep killed by 4
dogs in Ohio in 190S..... 1858
Number of sheep shipped by
dogs in Ohio in 1908 -. 10,41S
Value of sheep killed and In
jured by dogs in 1903 !. -. $S4.t13
Now take your pencil and figure
and you will find that dogs either
kill or fnjure L sheep in every 81
plus in single year int Ohio; $S4,113
equals part bill for dog feed in 1908.
Add to this the injury caused by chas-
ing and worrying and of which no ac-
count is taken in above sum and you
have figures that are simply amaz-
ing, an outrage upon long suffering
industry.