Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1915-08-20
OHIO LIVE STOCK
Increases and Decreases IN Various
Kinds of Live Stock in Ohio for
1915-Signifcance of Decrease in
Sheep to The State-Fulton Coun-
ty Increases and Decreases.

has just completed the table of live
stock statistics of the lightweight
counties of the state for 1915, as re-
ported by the district assessors.
there are increases over 1914 in cat
tie, mules and asses, and decreases in
horses, sheep and hogs.
There are 891,24O horses in the
state, decrease of 1887 over 1914.
In 1914 there was an increase of 90
S57 over 1913. AS usual Darke Coun-
ty leads with 20,913 and Vinton is
lowest with 2,788.
The total number of cattle in Ohio
is 1,583,878, an increase of 94,9O2
over 1914. There was an increase in
1914 of 228,895 over 1913. last year
Astabula led in cattle. This year
Licking with 30,949 is first, Trum-
bull with 3O,684 is second and Ashta-
bula with 28,843 is third. Pike still
stands at the foot of the list with g.
I'll.
There are now 36,581 mules and
asses in Ohio, gain of 1928 over
1914. The increase in 1914 over 1918
was 133. Hamilton county leads in
these long cared beasts of burden
with 1,747. Ottawa still seems to
ostracise the mule, as she has but
35. There are very few mules in
most northern Ohio couniest.
There are 260,461 fewer sheep in
Ohio today than 1914, the total num-
ber listed this year being 1,627 ,9O4.
Last year there was decrease of
"a, ,628 from 1913. Knox still retains
the lead with 85, ,5S7 and Harrison
with 82,922 is second. Scioto with
1853 is the only county with less than
one thousand sheep.
The number of hogs listed in the
state in 1915 is almost identical with
1914, the decrease being only 141.
The total this year is 1,972,645 Hogs
in 1914 increased 4o9,911 over 1918.
Darke is still far in the lead with
62,O98. There are four other coun-
ties with over $4,000 hogs each-Fay-
cite. Hancock, Preble and Clinton
Vinton with 2,976 hogs and Cuyhoga
with 1856 rank lowest.
The decline in the number of sheep
during the past half century is Ohio IS
most serious agricultural loss. The
nigh prices of wool during and fol
lowing the Civil War caused the mum.
ber OF sheep in the state to increase
from 3,368174 in 1860 to 7,688,845 il
1868. At that time there were 2E
counties with over one hundre,
thousand sheep in each, and as latt
as 1885 there were fifteen with ovel
one thousand each, and one, Licking
with 227,604. In 1885 there We're ter
counties with more sheep than tn,
total today in the Lightweight coun
ties. There is not a single county il
Ohio today that has one hundre'
thousand sheep. This decline in tn
number of sheep is a serious loss tt
the hill counties of Ohio, and the de
crease is not justified by the recen
price Of wool. With wool above 2
cents per pound, there ought to b
not less than four million sheep il
the state, and that number at tn
present average weight per fieec
would produce a larger number O
pounds of wool than were shorn fror
the 7,688,845 sheep in Ohio in 1868.
It will be of interest to readers Q
the Tribune to consider the figure
from the State Auditors table 9
statistics for Fulton county: Their
is a slight increase in the number c
horses in the county; in 1914 ther
4 were 10, ,144, in 1915, 1925. Gait
j show an increase of 1913 head owe
last year when 19007 head were re
ported, the figure for 1915 is 20,52
There are lat mules in the count
this year, last year there were IL
The number of sheep fell from 83s
in 1914 to $500 in 1915, decrease {
1471. There was also a marked d,
Icrease in hogs. In 1914 the asse
sors reported 26S09 hogs in tn
county: this year there were 238!
reported, a decrease of 1919.