Graham guardian., 1908-02-21
THE ANGORA GOAT INDUSTRY
From a Paper Read Before the Ma
tionaI Wool Growers Ass0cia-
ton.

Though historically true An
CORA goats were first introduced
in the United States nearly half a
century ago, it is only within
quite recent years that they have
attracted much attention. The
progress in this industry since
1900 has been much greater than
during the preceding period in
which Apgoras have been known
in this country, recent years, hav'
ing indeed introduced new era
in American Angora husbandry.
The now wide distribution OF
Angoras throughout the United
States will eventually determine
the localities possessing best con
ditions for Augora husbandry,
though the success enjoyed by the
breeders of Texas and the South.
west is being we'll repeated by the
breeders of Oregon and the Nor
thern States. Numerous focks
are found throughout the Rocky
Mountain districts of Montana,
Idaho, Wyoming and Colorado,
and, too, throughout the "stump,
age" districts of Michigan and
Wisconsin, where the Angoras are
converting the cutover lands from
brushy wastes to remarkably fine
grass and clover pastures. Sup
plementing the profitable yield de-
rived from the valuable fleece,
meat and pelt of the Angora, ad.
vantage is being taken of the
browsing characteristics of these
animals in other sections of the
country, and In the few Missouri
counties about Kansas City it is
safe to say their work in reclaim
ing brushy tracts has added fully
a quarter of a million dollars to
the assessed valuation of the land
on which they have been kept,
Many focks of Angoras are now
to be found in New England, the
Middle States and throughout the
Mississippi and Missouri valleys,
as we'll as in Kansas, Nebraska,
Arizona and throughout the South
ern States.
The prevailing prices of domes-
tic mohair have been steadily in
creasing in the last few years, due,
no doubt, to the improvement in
the quality of the American clip
and the increasing consumption
and use of this material, A large
quantl,y of Texas hair of six
months growth, which ordinarily
commands fiom % to 27 cents,
was sold late last season at 30
cents pound at the railroad ship.
ping points. Many Northern
clips Of full years growth hair
commanded prices ranging from
So to 40 cents pound.
The edibility of Angora mutton
is becoming more generally un-
and its use is increasing,
as is shown by the large numbers
of Apgoras slaughtered annually |
at the principal markets, 5S,lS3
having been handled at Kansas
City alone in 1907 at bnt slightly |
below the current prices for NUT
ton sheep.
The unsupplied aud increasing |
demand for Angora products well
warrants the keen interest mani
tested in this industry and we'll
justifies the action of the annually |
increasing number of American
farmers now adding Angoras to
their present livestock. They are
found TO be extremely profitable
animals, beneficial 20 the average
pasture and in no way detrimen-
ial to other stock. In the aggre-
gate many additional thousands
of Angora goats will be so kept,
as will also a much greater num-
Der on the Western ranges, and
thus will make possible the sub
stantlal development of live
stock industry in the United
States that veritably returns gold
from the bushes.-Jobn W. Fulton
10 N. Y. Tribune Farmer.