highfit markct ratc. So wonld It !o with " Vermont Condcnsed
Milk." Ilcr pure water nnd IWMt pMtQrtt would impart to tliis
produot the Mtna nnrivaled exoellenoa fsvofable looal oonditioni
give licr sngar. Bnttcr and clieese wimld coaso to be tho sole re
Bonrcc of tlic dairv fariner. Th prcNencc of I condrnsed milk
factorv at Montpelier, for example, wonld add anotlicr strinjf to
the !'! of the l Irj Interesl thal oentari hsre, and the eapital of
the state ouglit to lead in tlir Introdnotion of thii Indostry Inta
Vermont. An old, wallesteblished and profltebls Indnatn dsc
where. it i.s new to the soil that ihonld have been tht Hrst to
noiirisli it. Tlic nrtiele inadc Iktc wonld carry in Itl naine a
vouoher that it is the unadnlterated prvdnot of tlic beet deiriea in
tlic conutrv, not a tilc iniitation, coiiipoiinded of eotton-sccd oil,
swill milk and sngar.
There are only six oondensed milk factoriea in tliis
country, and none of them is in New England. They
aro situatod nonr large business centcrs wherc farming
lands are many times the price of Vermont farm lands.
A faotorj' has, however, recently been atarted at Newport,
Mc. whiob, when oompleted, will require 46,000 quarta of
milk daily, or tho product of -1,0110 cows. It will nlso
give employment to 100 people
Oondenaed milk is the product of pure milk redueed
to about one-sixth its natnral bulk, preaerved with
sugar and hernietically sealcd. This product is used
largely on abip boardi in the army, on tho frontlen nnd
in mining oommunitles, and by many families in cities
and large towns whero pnre milk is not, easily obtainable.
Now, Vermont with Iter uneqttalled natural advantages,
with her eheap lands and with her abundant eapital so
abundant that milliona of her "surplus" havc been
dumped into al! sorts of wlld cat enterprises outside the
Stati presenta every conditlon, every advantage for the
BUCCessful prosecution of this industi v. In the manufac
tnre of condcnsed milk may lie fonnd the most advau-
tageoua siiiiile faotor in the solntion of the question of
the protitahle reelamation of her abandoned fnrins. her
fanns that are hetter adapted to pasturago than to tillage.
The value of the t'arms advcrtised in this work, wonld un
questionably he more than doubled by the building of a
condcnsed milk f'actory within a reasonable radlui of
their locality.
" There is a tido in the affairs of nian,
Whlohi tjiken at the Hood, leads 011 to fortune."
Let Vermont etnbark on this tide at its llood, and tloat
the favmer out of tlic '"shallows andmiserles" that bind
" the voyage of his life."
ablo price, and be almost certnin of raising a coltthat will
pay all the cost of raising and give a fair prospect of n
proflt It ahvays sectns wiso to prodnce what the public
demand, ifit 080 be donc at a protit; and there is, I helievc,
to-day no business in Vermont that in a limited or ex
tcnded seale will pay the protit that the breeding and fit
ting of the above desirable horses will return to tho in
vestor. While the draft horse lills only one want, while
tho small trottcr is of no valno if not fast, this class of
horses is adapted to all the abovo uses, execpt heavy
draft; and I helievo, in following tho above line of breed
ing, a fair proportion of colts will prove trottcrs and sell
for such.
Yon hear it said that horses are plenty and may be
bOUght low, and it is true of Western horses and a class
of oommon draft honei ; but let a man go out and at-
tempt to buy ono or more good drivers, not t'ast horses,
not trottcrs. bnt simply good road horses, and it is hard
to find ono over flvc years old. IIo will be compclled to
jo hoine without or take a four or live-year-old colt, and
at a price from two to threc hundrcd dollars.
Why is not tliis business a better onc than Western
larmtng, and ono that, would pay well for tho invcstnient
of eapital? It is, I believe, nn undeveloped soiuco of
wealth, and ono not likely to be ovordone ; for no other
COUntry has the natural advantages that aro fotind in the
stock at hand. the soil and climate, and the market at
one's own door. Buyers come here, are continually
through the horte Heetioiis of tlic State picking up every
iromising colt as soon as old enough,and oftcn eiigaing
tliem ahcad to be ccrtain of gctting theni.
C. M. WIN8L0W.
SHEEP
HORSES.
TIIERK is no State that has greater natural advantages
for tlic production of horses than Vermont. L)e
spite the hap-hazard and unbusiness-like way it has ahvays
been nianaged, she stands to day at the head for the pro
duction of serviceable driving horses, and it would seeru
wise for all farmera who have horses to raise a few for the
market.
There is something about the soil and climate that pro-
duces naturally a tough, hardy horse, of enduring
strength. There is in the foundation stock of the Stato
one of the bcst families of horses in the world. There is
i -i s v. l i i i i e
U- IV :iIKl IKiri mrii H'illfi iill IMiMI I II ini 1'IIKlllll 1U
UHl UK! iiuisl's nv niv iiiiuiy, nuu ;it guuu pi leers. xiieie
s less riwk in the production of this class than in anv
,i : ii ii . i . , i i
" , !J - t-j i
THK raising of sliec) has ahvays occupicd a promi
nent place in Vermont farming. In fortner times it
was the on: source upon which the farmer depended for
eash return s, his other produets being subjects of barter
and trade at the country store or among his neigbbors.
The product of the flock was then wool.but little account
being taken of HlUtton, and there was little indueenient to
grow mutton, as it was little sought for in our inarkets,
and all surplus shcep were wanted to build up other
rlocks. At the present timc thccondition of the business
has changed ; other lines of farming have been developed.
Dairying and the rearing of horses havc largely in
creased and becomo rival industries. The markets have
undergone marked changes ; while the price of wool
ranges lower, the price of mutton rules higher, and the
demand for breeding stock eontinuea good. And while in
former times the Vermont shepherd was mabily anxious
to havc wool sell at a high price, to-day tho product of
wool is of secondary importance, The price of mutton,
or the demand for thoroughbred breeding stock, is first in
importance. We may say, perhaps, that sheep raising in
Vermont to-day is conduetcd upon two distinct lines,
though there are sonic who takc a middie course : but the
successful sheep men of tho State are, as a rule, breeding
for mutton or for thoroughbred Merinos.
pply of cheap food to enab!e us to raise draft boiaea
oompete with tlic West, nor oan we uac, as a rule, a
n i (liail idi'si' ni I . i i 1 1 1 si .ii in. I i, iiim-i tr nnr i
i require them to draw our produoe to market.
The production of trottcrs is too risky ; it requirea too
ge an outiay ol eapital tor tlic ordinary taniicr. and
There is a class of horses frequently found in Vermont,
d that COUld easily be prodnced from tho foundation
j ..t.r.j .
Ii lL ..t Al 1 i , . 1
v n i (jr ii i c nii'i-. nn wiiti ii w irhi
1 market, Qad ready buyera at paying pricoa.
rho horse that I bellGVfl is m the bcst demand to dnv.
,
1 from which may be rcalized the moat protit, is the so-
lcd neiitlcmaii s dnvcr or lmht carnaop horse. Thev
st stand from Ifij to 10 banda high, weigh from 1,000
1,200 pounda, of any darkcolor, Including aorrel or
ht ohesttrat, handaoma abape and stylish looking, able
trot in about four minutea, and do it in a bold man
with ratber high knee and hock action. Horses of
s class readily UOmmand good prices ranging from two
ndred upwarda, aooording to quality. The native
jrgaii stock has all the above rjualities exccpt si.e,
J M 1.. - lli.L - Im 1m1j.i. m 11 Hl-
11 it UJ11Y m'l ilh H 1 IL1C IIlOM' l iliu III rii-i iiiiii, .1 lllllt;
ter leoi ni1 w icii voiino. to incrcnsc u iic v l ne liiiinhcr
horses of tliis class.
. . i . i i . i i.i i i
i i 1 1 i A a i. il. e i
ec venih uiu iiirv i 1 iv o o iu u um ou 1 1 1 1- nti in i 11
ide to pay their way until sold. While lnbor on the
m mi"lii iniurc a tnittitr nml nrnvent his winniii'r a
U v . O
1 1 i .. ' l L . 1.1 1
,0 Ijy l BW UHU Ul LWU, U 111 IIO VrMJ UIIIIIM 111111 1111
rlitli roml lioi'MC oc i , .i r i .. I , i . nliilitv In nnll n riii-rintrit
a spanking galt A few years ago there was experi-
ped a diiliculty in findlng italllona of good quality and
C LU liuna wiii 'tyjij .hjijiiii iuujt;n, UU II ! UUI no
Antr ,,ri,i 'll,TT flO'init wllll llUU II i.,,, ,! 111 'll'i, Uklltlll I. i i , , I
d resolute, may easily Qnd a proper mate, at a reatou-
KERIN0 lliGBP.
The llistory of the intiodiicti n, iiiipioveinent. and
suecess. of the .Mci ino shei p in Vermont is too locg to be
reportcd here. It is sullicicnt to say that they caine hcic
from Spain, and found a soil. a cliniato, and men lllited
to take them and carry them forward to their greatcst
perfection and in coinpetition with the world. Vermont
stands Qrat in this class of stock, and to-dav lindsmaikct
for surplus stock througbout the great aheep raising sec
tions of our newer States and Torritories, in Australia.
in South Amerioa, and is now making an attempt to build
up a trade in Bouthern Afrioa. The price reoeived for
this stock variea with the year and quality of the anl
maia, but baa bardly ever been sd low, for any length of
time, as to not pay a fair return for rearing. and somc
times has oommanded pricea almost fabulous. .Many
fortunes have been made and somc lost in tliis business,
and whatever migbt be said as to individual sncccss or
fallure, it is undoubtedly true that no business. employ
ing anytbing like the aame oapital, has ever brougbt as
muoh nioney into tho State as has the .Mcrino aheep,
This business is mainly oonflned to one County in tho
State, Addison, though breedera are found acattered
through Rutland, Windsor, and Orange Oouiltiea, and
somc others. The men engaged in breeding this stock
are few in number and generally havc followed the imsi-
ncss for nianv years, and though this business migbt be
enlarged with proflt, there are oomparatively few who
bave a taate for it, aa the returna laok lomewhat of the
element of oertainty. Whatever may be laoldng in tho
way of a steadv and ready market in the tlioroughbrod
Uerino, buaineaa is made good to the growerof
HUTTOM BHIIP,
No buaineaa in the state has enjored ao iteady and
remunerative market as this branch oi aheep huabandry,
and tho increasing demand ofour New Englaud citii s and
large tOWOI for nlce mutton is giving an iinpctus to this
busmess that bids fair to restook all our available lands.
Muoh attention is being given to tho raising of niutton
lamba that are ready for market in MayandJune. Our
M I II I ! II I I I III
i t lrn.sit t.c
IMPROVED MERINO RAM.
nearnesa to market, oheap lands, and sweet grasses are
advantages that ensure suecess in this work. The op
portunityfor extending this business is almost unlimited.
Very niany of our cheap fanns are particularly adapt
ed to this business, as in many instances pasture land is
too far away from the tillage to be fitted for dairying, or
too rOUgb to be sal'e for young horses or colts, but abounds
in sweet and nutritious grasses that especially adapt them
to growing the linest mutton or the haidiest sheep that
oan be produced.
MAPLE SUGAR PRODUCTION.
OF tlic industries peculiarly adapted to Vermont, per
haps none takes the pre-eminent position occupied
by our production of maple sugar. With our small area
this product excceds that of any other State. While
this is true, it is also a faot that this industry is capablo
of great extcnsion, and instead of a product of. fifteen
mlllion pounds it is easily possible to increaae to twentv
five or thirty mlllion pounds. or double our present pro
duction. The manufacture of this product dates back to
the earliest settlemcnt of our State, and few industries
present a more striking illustration of tho improved
methoda of the present as eompared with the past than
this onc. Tlic farmer of tifty ears ago was boiling sap in
a flve pn.il iron kettle hung npon a pole over a rire of
green wood, making fifteen to twenty pounds of inferior
sugar per day, tapping his trces with an axc and catch
ing the sap in troughs dug from bass wood logs, storing
his sap in old hogs heails or barrels, and producing a
oombination of obarcoal and sugar. Compared with the
sugar-makcr of to-day, with good sugar housc, modern
evaporators, tin or pine buekets with covcrs, with storage
tubs clean and nlce enough to set milk in, producing from
one hundrcd to two hundrcd pounds of sugar per day
for each evaporator used. as striking a contrast between
the past and present is presented as is oftcn seen.
It is little wonder that people familiar with tho methode
of thirty or forty years ago ahould pronounce the tine
product of the present to be an iniitation article, because
lacking in the high color and oharcoal taste of former
days. As conduetcd at the present day, the manufacture
of maple sugar is one of the most prontable industries of
the Stato. The work cotnes at a time when the farmer
has little clse that be oan do ; this product is being
sought for througliout the country as an article of luxury
and the best sells at good pricea.
The maple syrup or honey usually sclls at "o ccnts to
11.25 per gallon. and nicc tub sugar or cakes at eight to
fifteen cents per pound. The great obstacle for the Ver
mont sugar produccr to overcome at present is the com
petition of tho adulterated and iniitation maple sugar
with which the markets are tlooded. Probably ten
pounds of so-called maple sugar and syrup is sold to
every pound of pure that is produced. Chicago is said
to produoe several times as muoh maple sugar as Ver
mont, most of which is labelled Pure Vermont syrup or
sugar." This obstacle is being met to some cxtent by
our maple sugar excbange, located at Brattleboro, which
handles only pure goods, and by individual farmera who
have established a trade for their own product. It is
coniing to be generally praotioed by consumcrs of maple
sugar to give their orders direct to' producers ancl in this
way be assured of a pure article at a fair price. The
farmera of Vermont havc little cause to fear an over-pro-duotion
in this line. Let them atrlve to give the jicople of
the country, who ask for the product of the maple, a su
perior article which, once used, will be sullicicnt to show
to the ouatomer the difference between the pure andapur
ious. Were the people of the country who imagine them-
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Beivea lO DO ealin' manle siiL'ar deiiendent iiniiii the
maplea for their aupply, every maple we havc would be
insufflcient to furnlah it. We may reaaonably cxpect
that as the people beooine better eduoatt l in this produot
that the demand for the gcnuine w ill largely inercase, and
the buaineaa of producing maple sugar will unlarge and
beoome more profltable with each auoceedlng year.
THK F1SH AND GAME SUPPLY OF VERMONT,
UNITED states Commiaaionei UoDonald, baving
ocoaaion to look into tbe leaaea of somc bootch
riverit reported that tbe Tay alone rented for 40,000,
It is said that 8110,001) of this rcprescnts rod priv llegea.
While our lishing is in a broad sciise free. this state-
meut llluatratea to what axtent Bahermen w ill loosm their
purse atringi for tho enjoyment of this Invigorating sport.
We have no river Tay stockcd with salmon, but nestling
among our green bills aro between four and tive hundreil
ponds and lakes with a total area of some 126,000 acres.
As tributariea or outlets to these bodies of water, we have
innumerable moantau atreama which broaden into rivera
as they tiow into and through the valloys fcrtilized by
them.
The maiority of these waters are the native haunte of
the speckled trout. In addition to tho trout many ofour
waters aboond in a great variety offlah, the leading ones
being bass, land-lockcd salmon, aalmon trout, pike, pike
percli, and pickcrcl.
On our western border. and more than half of it within
our liniits. is biatorio bake Champlain, noted foritsbeauty
and remarkable for its varieties of fish. .Many aportamen
are attraeted to its shores by the abundance of aquatio
birda in the vioinity. This may be said also of Lake
Memphremagog on our northerii,horder. For the hunter,
partridgea will always be tho gamc which givcs the most
sport and the best rcsults as a food supply. Noarly all
the large game native to our forests has becoine extinct,
but deer are increasing rapidly, as evidenced by the fre
quent reporta of their being seen in our niral districts.
Under the wise law enacted by our last Legislature. their
lirotcction from slaughter has been contiuucd until No
vember 1, 1U00. At present they are very tame, and it is
a question whetber it will not be advisablo to continuQ
their protection for an Indeflnite period, as they would ba
quiokly cxtermiuated if the fostering care of the State
were withdrawn.
Woodcock fumieh as good sport as in other States of
NewEngland. Quail have been introduced several times,
but it appears doubtful if they can endure tlic severity of
our winters.
English pheaaanta have reoently been introduced by
Dr. Webb at his Shelburne fanns, and the rcsult of hfs
experiment is watohed with tntereat. Many new varieties
of gamc birda would undoubtedly thrivo in Vermont, and
any eit'orts in this dircetion should receive tho hearty en
dorsement of everyone. Babbita and squirrels, though
decreasing in numbers, are still abundant, and are a
source of muoh sport to the hunter.
I have attempted to briefly state our resourees in the
way of tish and gamc supply. It has been asserted by
the authoritiea in the Fish Commis8ion and Geological
Survey of the United States. that within a century the
waters of this country will aupply as much food aa the
land produecs, and by that time water farms will have
beoome as plentiful as land fanns. Water farming is far
more protitahle even now. for a given area. than the till
ing of the most fertile soil. Were it possible to obtain
an aceurate report of the lish and game taken in Vermont
during onc season, tho value as a food supply would
tloiibtlcss be aurpriaing. The obief value to our State,
howevcr, is not in the tish and game themselves, either for
the market or oonanmption as food. It is in the attrac
tion atforded not only to residents ofour State, but to the
thouaanda of aummer viaitora who flock to our lakes and
hills every season. that our fish and game supply is be-
ooming such an Important factor in the eoonomy of every
rural oommunity.
With the efforta being put forth by the railroad compa
nies, and very gencrallyby the inhabitants, to call outside
attention to the attractions of Vermont, it is but natural
to expect aummer tourists in greater numbers each year.
If we would retain our bold upon this desirable element
in the eoonomy of our State. we mU8t keep U)i our at
tractions. Farmera are not wlthcut some reason when they make
some such remark as "Fiahermen are a nuiaanceanyway."
But they muat admit when taking a broad view of the
question, that theflshermen patronize the lailroada, and
eause better accomniodations for everybody. They cause
hotela to be built, and bring their families. They hire
boats and guides, and patronize the country stores. Last
but not least, they buy our muoh abused abandoned
nillaide farms," and make aummer honies of them. The
farmer sells his obickens, egga, butter, lambs, eto., and
gets a better iirice at bome than fornierly at a distant
and unoertaln market, It is the Qaherman or aummer
tourist who oreates the demand for w hat he raises, and
he gets his pay in hard cash.
C'lubs are being foniicd in various parts of the State.
whoae memberalnp is made up largely of non-reaidenta.
These olubs are buying up land for tish and game pre-
serves. Bydamming the brooka toform ponds ora seriei
of pools, many of our abandoned fanns can be turned
into tish and game preservcs, indii'cctly more produetive
to the wcalth of the State than many more fertile fanns
now under a state of oultivation.
It has been demonstrated in other states that artlfioial
propagation will do much towarda reatoring dopleted
watera to their former oonditiou. The NewYorkCom-
misaioners in a reoent report say that there is better lish
ing to-day than when the Commission was organized
some twenty yi-ars ago. There is nowherc a more prac
tical illustration of tbe effeota of restoeking strcanis,
perhaps. than in Rutland Couiity. whcre some twelve
years ago a few thousand ralnbow trout escaped from a
private pond into Fast Creek, About one in three trout
now taken ttOXD this strcain aro the rainbow variety.
Prevloua to this event tho rainbow trout was unknown
to our looal flsbermen. Beveral havc been taken this year
ranging in weight from one to threc pounds. There is
probably no State in New Kngland in which so little practi
cal attention has been paid either to proserving what tish
and game we have. or to restoeking our woodsand waters,
as in Vermont. The Legislature has never niadc any appro-
priationa which would permit a oommtaaion to devoie its
time to the aubiect ot tish and game preservation and
propagation, At the last session, however. iu addition
to the ' regnlar allowanos to tho coinniission. an appropri-
atiou was made sullicicnt to provide for tbe oonstruotion
and mainteuanoe of a batobery. U is boped that this
will soou be hatched," that we may lose no time in re-
plenlabing our depleted waters, and introduoe new varie
ties for .vhich our itreama are so well adapted.