Year: 1859

J. ofS


sheep and Wool Growing.


As this is truly great branch of Agriculture and
very far behind IN America, L hope TO be INDUCED


in few personsl remarks connected with its origin
! ana history in Tennessee


Ny Father, John Cockrill, together with Gen Rob-
ertson and few others came TO the place where Nash
| vile now stands. which was then a wilderness
iu the year lTTa, and there remained without
| bread un il the next summer-near six months
| when they raised crop of corn. By hard labor
and economy he was enabled TO leave ne at his
death 200 acres Of land being part of the track
where was born, and known as the CoOkrill Spring
! tract. In 1914 having determined tc turn nv at
teutiou to wool growing pursuit, and being
| without other means, sold my patrimony and COM
menced the business. Some Of the oldest and most
respectable men Of my aequsibtanee treated my pro-
jecl with derisOn, and even went SO far as to say
! had fooled away my land and would never again be
the owner of such another tract This only stmula-
ted me TO strive to increase my skill and TO exert
myself to the utmost to falsify their predictions
| DID, experienced men should well understand what
they attempt to counsel others about, aud particu
l4ry before they make them the subjects Of deris-
| y In this great matter of producing the Golden
Fleece was acting in opposition to the opinions of
many experienced men, and had to go it solitary
and alone" For, it wss long believed that no
CCupTy DuI " Opalu CVutu grow Tue DeautEul
wool from which was made the fine cloth 80 much in
demand for the use Of the noble and the wealthy.
not only persevered, however, but have done every
thing in my power to induce the Agriculturisis of
Tennessee and of the Southern States generally to
make this branch Of their pursuits. l am sorry
to say my efforts have met with very little success
Should general war break out in Europe-st pre-
sent not q very improbable event-We should soon
be made to see the great error we have committed
in negecting it. especially in this wide spread
sparsely eetiled region Of country. That we shall
ultimately be driven into the business. is as certain
that the wool-groWing countries Of the old world
can no longer spare for Pastrng purposes he lands
that have become indispeDsably necessary for the
cultivation of breadstufs, from want Of an abund
snt supply Of which, they are even pOw suffering.
But whether a European war takes place Dow or
not the United States is destined to become a
a wool growing and wool exporting Country
In view of that fact l may be allowed 10
say that my lifelong lsbors in that pursuit, will
have resulted in pubc good. For have sue
ceeded in establishing most exclusively and undeni
ably the fact, that wool Of the finest qualiiy-eGua
to any in the World-can be produee1 in low attitudes
even as low down the Both degree North l
have shown beyond all question, that with skill on
the part of the grower, and proper blood in the
imal. as fine and perfect sample Of wool may be !
produced 10 the coten regions of the United States,
be produced in any other part Of the hsbits
bic globe In establishing this important truth !





with. The opinion had every where prevailed, and
writers every where set it down as "a fixed fact'
that wool grew coarse in low lattudes. This have
demonstrated to be all mistake, with regard to
teupera,e e climates where and animals thrive /
well. Succulent food all the year round the best
possible food for the production of WOOL and yields
the most perfec. fleece that be grown. As con-
elusive evidence that the Cotton States peculiar
ly adapted TO wOo growing, will state that my
flock hsd been several years in latitude 324 degrees
North; that in the Spring of 1885 drove them 10
Lexington, Kentucky, at distance Of about 900 /
miles, aud shortly sfer their arrival exhibited them
at the Fair there against all Kentucky having to
compete with sheep carefully selected by the late
Hon. Henry Clay, throughout the Northern States, /!
as well the best focks of that stale But my
Southern flock bore off the palm from all of them.
The came fail, drove them back TO Nashyille-ma-
king IN a straight line travel of 800 miles,
during the whole Of which they were never fed ups
any thing save the grass and heIbage upon which
they grazed along the line of travel The flock con-
sisted of about 900 head A large portion of the
journey upon reads where the dust was three or
tour inches deep Could there possibly be any bet~
ter proof that they possessed extraordinary de-
gree Of sound and hardy constitutions? l must be
allowed TO add here, that the finest fleece of wool
have ever seen was produced from this flock in Mis-
sissppi.


1t cannot be difficult to see that low ATTITUDES
where hebage for sheep is to re had all the time,
can bear down opposition from these latiudes where
they have to be housed four five months in the
year, and fed upon dear food, as is the case in
great portion of the wool growing countries of the
Old World Why then, should remain depend
ent upon either for the material, the manu-
factured article? Why, in particular, should we
not furnish our own manufacturers with our own /
wOcl, and stop the importation of the article from
abroad?


1t will, perhaps, be thought strange by our Ten
nessee farmers and stocrasers that those superior
oh rbrso al Gr,,c a1of he
made should be selling at the rate of $500 to
$500 for single Buck Why will they not lay
down more Of their attention to mixed stock bus
ness and thus reap and fertiliEe at the same time?
A proper stock business viii greatly increase the
land capital of the country and result in general
good-adding to the general prosperity, and render
ing all landhoders better satisfied with their homes
The old habit which prevails among Tennessee
farmers of wearing out their lands by long aud
tinued tillage, must ultimately bring about the ne
eessty of either alb sndonipg or Of renovatiBg them
by an expensive process of buying making and
hauling manure Now, mixed stock business is
peculiarly desirable and proper, because The differ
ent varieties of plants the land proc uces and are
always likely TO find good market because adapted
TO the varied wants of man. Under proper sys-
tenn Of Bool-GroWlng, judicious maDager may
render his land fertile as desirable, and all the
time do profitable business.


Another great advantage in this pursuit is, that
lands unfit for the plow can be made good and
profitable use Of vast proportion Of this quality
of land in our country is now idle, and subj ect to
taxation, while we importing annually from IF
teen to thirty millions Of pounds of "a WOOL and
ten or fifteen millions of dollars worth Of woolen
goods Now, brother Farmers, is this right?
think not l think, also, that The National and
State legislatures should do all that they constitu-
tionaly can, to encourage this particular branch of
Agriculture.


To return in conclusion, to the subject of the
production Of fine wool in this and adjacent laii-
tudts.


have labeled and filed away a sample of wool
from my stock Bucks, from my first commencement of
the business down to this date l have samples
from all the most noted hocks of Europe, aud very
many from the best hoeks in the United States /
can, therefore, sit in ny own room, ard pretty vel
determine what has been done in the growth Of wool
in large part of the world. And with this nfOr-
nation and with the long experience have in the
business, say most confidently, that the soil and
climate of Middle and East Tennessee are better
suited for the stock business than for any other.
say further that more money can be made By Il
from the lands in these sections Of the State, than
by any other culture of these lands, and the
~ he at tha firno