The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-07-27
NEW ENGLAND's VANISHED SHEEP.
Raising of Them Is Nearly Lost Art
for Various Reasons.

Can sheep.raising in New England
come back"i Statistical evidence an
swers steadily in the negative. The
decade to 1910 saw the New England
sheep flock cut in half. At present the
count is some 100000 comparing with
1862 900 in 1880, with 100000 in the
forties. Still there are those who hope.
Such an optimist is j. NJ. Jones, animal
hlisbandman at the New Hampshire ag-
ricultural experiment station who con-
siders the question in The Field. New
England sheep, this writer urges, have
not had a square deal. Methods OF
breeding and handling have been care
less; focks have been allowed to dete-
riorate, and the small value of these
run down breeds has served as basis OF
Judgment. Moreover, there is no cost
accounting. The farmer who asserts
with finality that his sheep don't pay
can give no figures, for example, as to
the cost of their winter feed, since the
animals are all fed together.
In contrast to this hit-or miss method
there is cited the case of young Mas
saehusetts farmer who attacked the
problem in scientific fashion. This grow
err became interested first in relative
labor cost. He compared the cost in
yolved in sheep-raising with that of
cows, the latter including two daily
milkings, and decided in favor OF sheep.
Together with high-bred stock, he ac-
quired at small cost what flocks We're
left in the neighborhood, and by careful
breeding and busnesslike methods OF
marketing wool and lambs has been en-
abled TO pay off a mortgage and con
stantly increase his flock. While this in
stance is in many ways unique, the evil
denee is cited by the New Hampshire
advocate to show that what one can do
in large way perhaps others can do in
a smaller way, ii only disposed toward a
more thorough study Of sheep-breeding
and willing to give the proposal a tar
trial. A point in favor even of the very
small flock is its value as a source of
home food supply; factor OF Impor-
lance in view of the constant difficulty
in some country regions of obtaining
fresh meat in sufficient variety.
So attractive, on the whole, is the pic
ture of our sheep-raislng possibilities as
Mr.. Jones presents it that one might
wish to accept il as definite contribu-
ton to efforts in the direction of our
agricultural bctterment. Unhappiiy,
there are to be found in other quarters
of high authority views much less favor
able The adverse argument, as well as
the more hopeful one, covers so many
phases as TO indicate chiefly to the lay
man the surprising eomplexity OF agri-
cultural questions under modern meth
DDS OF analysis. But certain points may
be cited. For example, IT is noted that
large areas of rough, rocky land for
merly kept in grass and moved with
the old fashioned hand seythe have been
allowed in late years to grow up TO mis-
cellaneous vegetation, including much
valuable timber, and thus some good
sheep pasturage has been lost. With
this difficulty goes that of the high cost
of fencing, or, equally, the cost of high
fencing, If sheep are to be kept on the
better land. From the standpoint of
these nimble animals, stone walls do not
prison make; only high and tight
wire fence will restrain their wandering
tendencies, and the rising cost of labor
and materials makes such fencing more
and more of a problem.
The growing value of hay is another
poiut. A man who was formerly the
largest sheep owner in Vermont, and
whose farm is already well fenced, has
reduced his flock in a few years from
yearly thousand 10 one hundred head,
declaring that he can make more money
simply by selling hay. Yet in the face
of such evidence we may hope, perhaps,
that a few enthusiasts at least will con-
Time 10 show that sheep culture in New
England is not quite lost art; end
there are chances of new conditions aris-
ING. never wholly to be. overlooked
Boston Transcript.