Farmers' gazette, and Cheraw advertiser. (Cheraw, S.C.) 1839-1843, May 19, 1841, Image 1
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VOLUME VI CHER AW, SOUTH-CAROLINA, WEDNESDAY. MAY 19 IMJ. NUMBER 37
By Iff. MAC LEAY.
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From the Boston Courier.
THR FOURTH AGRICULTURAL MKCTING.?
LIVR STOCK.
The fourth agricultural meeting was
held at the State House, on the evening
of the 4th inst., Hon. D. P. King in the '
chair. The subject of discussion was
live stock.
Mr. Colman introduced the subject by
^ a succinct account of the various breeds
which had been and were to be found in
the country; enumerating and describing
the native stock, the Devon, ihe Hereford,
the Yorkshire, the Holderness, the
Alderney, the improved Durham Short
Horn, the Ayrshire, and lastly a new
race, which, by the skill and perseverance
of a gentleman from whom the meeting
would hear presently, had been formed in
our vicinity; and in some respects was not
surpassed by any breed known among us,
or in the world, particularly for the rich.
?Ml 1 .1 .
ness 01 ineir mini uuu me umuuui ui uuiter
obtained from it.
He proceeded to speak of some remarkable
animals of our native breed which
had fallen under his observation. The
Oakescow, which in one instance made
7 \
18 1-4 lbs. butter per week; an average
of more than 16 lbs. per week for three
months in succession, and 484 lbs. from
the 1st of May to the 30lh of December
in one year, besides suckling a calf for
six weeks; of the Nourse cow, formerly
owned by Cob Pickering, from which
more than 14 lj>s. per week were obtained
for four successive months; of a cow at
Stockbridge, which, in three successive
years, made 900 lbs. of butter; of a cow
owned in Shelburn, which produced 335
lbs. of butter in one year; and a cow in
North-Adams, which produced 425 lbs.
of butter in one year.
These were extraordinary examples.
Others might be found. But they are individual
instances; and among our native
stock we have no established race of animals.
whose excellent qualities may be
pronounced fixed by always breeding from
the very best, unless it be in the case already
referred to.
a In England, great attention for more
than half a century had heen paid to this
subject, and by the highest skill and the
most determined perseverance, valuable
races had been formed. Bake well may
be said to have begun these improve
ments. The Messrs. uoiiins pursued it i
with distinguished ability and liberality.
The country patronized and encouraged
Ktich improvements by the most liberal
prices paid for the improved stock; 1000
guineas having been given at a public sale
for the Messrs. C'ollins's celebrated bull
Comet; and 400 and 600 guineas having
been sometimes given for a cow, and more
than 100 guineas for a calf.
Mr. Colman proceeded to say that no
permanent improvement can be made hut i
by intelligence of observation and long !
continued perseverance in selecting the
best from the best, and breeding animals
with a special reference to the most desirable
qualities. We have great advan- ?
tages in this country, inasmuch as we
can at once avail ourselves of the improvements
made in Creat lJritaiu; and
if the introduction of their stock would
be an advantage, the best animals could
be obtained at once.
Mr. Colman spoke of the various tm
portntions which had been mad 2 by dinerent
public.spirited individuals, many of
which he had had the pleasure nf seeing,
especially some of the splendid importa
lions made hv spirited citizens from 0'iio.
the beauty of which animals, their admirable
symmetry, and the perfection to
which art, guided bv the most philosophical
principles, had carried these improvements,
excited the highe t admiration.
He then proceeded to speak of the dis-1
tincyiiishcd lihr>ra!itv nf a o-nntlpm^n in !
the vicinity of Boston, who, with a view
to obtain the best milking stork known
9 i
abroad, had imported largely of the Ayr-1
* shire, a stock deemed abroad the best |
stock known for dairy purposes. This!
s*me gentleman, with his customary public
spirit, had given away many of these
animals with a view to the improvement
ofthe stock, and had in the most liberal
manner rendered these improvements accessible
to any farmers who chose to avail
themselves of them. The Massachusetts
Agricultural Society, with their usual liberality,
had done the same.
w. i _ i
:ur, i^uiiuuu iiitving pone 10 some ***tent
into the characteristics of the difftirent
breeds, from personal observation,
inquiry, and experiment, concluded by
saying that a gentleman present by his t
invitation, who was well skilled in the t<
subject now under discussion, and was ii
himself the founder of the race of animals n
to which he had referred, would detail u
fully his progress and success in forming v
this new race of animals; and would give r
them, before the meeting closed, an ocu- v
j lar demonstration of the superlative quali- p
j ty of their cream. h
Col. Samuel Jaques of Charlestown, !\
the well known superintendent of the e
Stock Farm at Ten Hills, then addressed 9
the meeting at some length, but with much s
good sense, and excellent humor. h
He had long personal experience in
this case. He deemed the improvement j r
of the live stock of our country a matter of p
the highest moment to the agricultural <1
and the whole community. There were v
several varieties of animals, as already re. ti
ferred to. He was particularly desirous d
of finding a race exactly suited to our soil p
and climate. n
We may, perhaps, fortn a breod bettor f
adapted to our purposes than any foreign ti
breed now known. But as any great t!
improvement could not be carried through F
I and established under half a century, it d
I would he wise to avail ourselves of what q
had been done abroad, us far as it might tl
meet our nut poses. e
In 1619, he gave $600 for a bull calf, b
in orde r to make a cross with some of our a
best cows. Much skill is requisite in se- d
lecting the cow, as well as the bull; hut a
out of a thousand brought to him, there n
was not one, which he found suitable. j
Ralph Haskins of Dorchester had obtained,
from a farmer's yard in Grolon, o
a cow distinguished for the extraordinary ii
richness of her milk. She was of a deep is
red; resembling, in some respects, the De- tl
von race; but not known to have any h
foreign blood in her. She had a capacious si
body, and fine silky tee!, i bis cow was a
crossed with Coelebs, an imported bull, h
of the Durham blood. Coelebs had pro. t<
duced some remarkable milkers. It was fi
in this way, Mr. Jaques thought, best to d
lay the foundation of an improved stock, h
His object was to obtain a stock eminent e
for their dairy properties. it
Having succeeded, according to his ex- Ii
pcctations, in producing a race distin- ti
guished for the richness of their milk, he r<
he chose to denominate it the Cream pot a
breed; and he had now proceeded as far ti
as the fifth generation, and had already e
sixty animals, more or less tinctured with ir
this blood. He went, as he said, for
blood, and whatever surprise it might ex- tl
cite, he was confident in saying, that he p<
would breed animals to order. He would n
proceed upon the same principle as that pi
on which the painter applies his lamp. i.
black to his white lead; and in respect to fr
cattle, as rumps of beef sold in market for s<
a shilling per pound, and shins for three T
cents, he would seek to make the rumps 'I
large, and the shins small.
Farmers admitted this principle of k
breeding, in respect to sheep; so they s<
would cross their Merino with their native, w
until, by successsive steps, they improved g
their wool from one half to three quarters e
and seven eighths grade. All farmers r<
would agree to make wool to order, if a
you would promise them one dollar per vs
pound. It is the same with cattle. Stock
on the Exchange may bo changed and t1
transferred at once. Live Stock is not o
disposed of so easily. It requires four 11!
years to produoea calf, and eight years i tr
a second, that is, before you can deter- ft
mine their properties. q
The racc-horse is not popular among j c
us. We want a horse hat will do all c
kinds of work. This was obtained by a p
cross of the full-blood race-horse with the. u
thorough bred Normandv. This colt s:
was given, by a gentleman in Canada, to j n
a Vermont farmer by the name of Mor- ! n
gan. Tuis was the foundation of a (lis- ! tl
tinguishcd breed. Tins horse would run ; n
eighty rods in fifteen s con?s, He could j o
j) ck out a Morgan hor-e, among a hun- j si
d e l. Tile eombination of two of the j w
best bloods. in this case, gave a general ' f<
character. This horse is of eminent en- ! ii
dura 11 *c. docile, obedient, rugged; and is a i tl
full hand for i he best whip. Ii
Cceiebs had no pedigree, but there was i 1
good reason to believe that lie was a direct J c
descendant from the stock of Messrs. | \i
Coilins. Ho waseonrident that by across fi
of Ceelelis witii a suitable native row, he fi
should succeed in his object of obtaining j i?
rich miik an-J excellent butter.properties, j ti
He had now i:i mi'k the third generation, I o
.and four quarts of h-r milk had made one o
pound of Suitor. Tim tuiiic conmins so j r
little thn? cannot he ma"!'' into buttei, that J r
in his belief one hundred pounds of her is
cream would produce ninety-live pounds j t
ofbuiter. J p
He had now twenty-eight rows and j v
heifers of tills stork; and at his pleasure !f
he could breed his stock with orange color i t
% !
<?r yellow round the eye, ol a mahogany |s
color, white hags and black teals, as might j t
be desired. This may seem incredible, t
but not more incredible than the present I
rate of travelling on railroads would have p
j seemed loan individual who lived a hun- j <
| dred years ago. I i:
Most cows which arc used bv the farm- i li
1 crs for breeders, lure no more claims for j c
I i i l.i i . _
mui u??|vm 111<i II <1 M\ i I U IV WOilHI I|iI VU? j n
He prefers, in selecting a suitable breed, j b
er, to trust bis bands more than bis eves. | t
He wants to have a silky, elastic feel, j c
The difference in the feel of animals, that . s
is, of their skin, is like the difference be- j r
ween a two dollar negro-cloth and a four,
een dollar broadcloth. The difference
a fatting animals arises from the thriftiiess
of their constitutions, so that while
ipon half a bushel of meal per day < neox
vould yield only seventy-five pounds of
ough tallovi, another, of a better kind,
rould produce a hundred and seventy-five
minds. He was told by one visiter that
ie had oiled his stock; nnd on a visit to
<Ir. Phinney's farm in Lexington, a farmr
who had been at his place found himr.If
able, among half a dozen calves, to
elect two of tho (Jreanr-pot breed, simply
V the feel.
The breeding of swine had been enried
to great perfection among us. Im
rovemcnts in neat stock few would unertake.
Sheep are very profitable stock,
fith an amount adapted to the size of
he farm. The Merino and Saxony are
eemed too tender for our climate, and
roduce mutton of small size f"
(Iftrlipf. I'tin ?>m J ia tr\r\ lino
)??9lOV?V * KV<?.\Wt! jr i'A' IIHV
or general use. fie had had the Leiceser,
the Lincolnshire, the new Leicester,
he Tunisian sheep, and the South-Down.
\>r profit, he upon the whole decidedly
referred the South-Down. They were
uiet, broad and flat in the back, full in
be twist, round in the thigh, and presentJ
a fine leg of mutton. The difference
etween a South-Down leg of mutton,
nd that of a common sheep, was the
iffcrenoe between the thigh of a goose
nd that of a dunghill fowl. Sheep give
valuable yearly return, but much deends
on the kind.
The Berkshire and the Mackay breed
f swine do not cost so much in the keep,
ig as the common breeds, but the return
i much greater. He insists much upon
le breed. You cannot make a raceorse
out of a Canadian runt, if you
hould have a groom at each leg; nor by
ny art bring him to run four miles at a
eat, and repeat. You might as well atempt
to produce upon a scrub-pear the
ruit of the St. Michael's. We cannot
o as we will, in many cases, because we
ave not the means. Most of our farmrs
have the talent, but few have the capal
wherewith to make improvements,
n England, capital is applied to ngriculjral
improvements with the utmost
?adines9, and with a success proportionte
to this liberality. Our own agriculjre
has received a generous impulse, and
very friend to his country mu9t wi9h it
jcreased success.
Mr. Putnam of Danvers then stated
rat he had seen a heifer of the Creamot
breed, in Southboro,' which he rccogised
by her silky feel, and her milking
ropertics promised well. She had been
ijured in two teats, but the milk taken
oin those two in one week produced
iven and three-fourths pounds of butter,
'he calf took the two uninjured teats,
'his was in October.
Mr. Sheldon of W'lmington was then
ind enough to favor the meeting with
>me valuable remarks on the subject of
'orking oxen. [The authority of this
enlleman is undoubted, from his long
xperience. He took by contract the
sduction of Pemberton Hill, in Boston,
nd hnd at one time 118 yoke of oxen at
mrk there.]
The object of his remarks was to assist
le farmer in making a suitable selection
f oxen for work. If you desire to have
lose which would he free to travel and
i pull, take those with a long and lean
me. Those with short faces will start
nick hut soon forget the whip. He
hooscs oxen whose heads are long; whose
yes are sharp, hut at the same time
leasant. He thinks that we rnmct rely
pon black-eyed oxen. (Lord Byron
ivs you cannot relv upon grey-eyed
ten or women.?Reporter.) They are
ot docile. He would rclv as much upon
ic eye of an ox as upon that o'a man,
i making his preferences. He prefers
xen with full bosoms, as indicative of
trer.gth. In choosing cattle to travel
*cll, he would have their tors straight
T C n/^li /\llf II'O*'/]
?1 VlUiil* II Ult:> tin* ui? !I " w '
a travelling, the strain will crnie upon
Ikj inner claw, and they will become
oot-sore. If the toe is tnrnorl out, the
jg will be crooked, and turned in. A
looked stick will rot bear a weight >o
,'cl! as a straight one. He would avoid
ar travellers, oxen with long, pointed
et, and especially an ox whose ankle
? larger than his foot. He would have
lie hark straight; if a little concave, not
hjcciionnble, hut bv i;? means choose an
x with an arched hack. For the enurance
of hardship, he would have their
ibs rounded and projecting; and not so
c-t in, that when they run among the trees
hev would strike their hips. lie much
refers the early trained cattle to those
rhich are late trained. This training
an not he begun too soon, only pr<>j>orioning
the labor put upon thnni to their
trength. The Maine oxen formerly had
he preference over al! others, because
hey were put to the yoke when calves,
'owers of labor or endurance depend
jrea'.lv upon exorcise and exposure. A
ree, standing alone in a pasture, where it
s beat about by winds and storms, will
much more firmlv rontcd than one
;ro\vn in a forest, whe re it is sheltered
nd protected l?y others. Take twin
rotliers?bring tip one behind the Conner
of an English goods store, and put the
ither into a blacksmith's shop, and the
uperiority of muscular energy will not
emain doubtful. Very much depends
on the manner of using oxen. They may
suffer much f.om severe hardships, like a
tree tried by a hurricane.
He proceeded by remarking on the gen1
eral opinion, in which he did not concur,
that a high-lifed horse could not be propj
orly employed before oxen. He would
i never, in breaking n horse to this labor,
i tackle him in the afternoon. He would
j spend a day in coaxing him, and never
| allow him, under any circumstances, to
be struck. When he began with tackling
a colt, he would have a horse in sight,
towards whom he might be directed.
He would put him before oxen, hut ncver
with a load that it would be difficult to
draw; and in breaking a colt, he would
nevex try to drive him away from home.
Mr. Sheldon has since informed us.
that his oxen at work in Boston, averaged
19 miles travel per day; and that he wished
to have added some remarks on the
Shoeing Cf 6Xch, 'Z "'lien he thinks great
! errors are committed. For travelling on
! ihn rond. the shoe of nn oy i? nlmnat nl.
| ways made too short. It should comI
pletely cover the bottom of the h? el.
| Mr. Jones of West-Tisburv, being
| called on by the chair, joined in the discussion.
He deemed an agricultural life as highly
pleasant and respectable. The raising
of stock, as a branch of husbandry, had
many attractions. He had resided in
! the be9t agricultural districts of England
three years, and was familiar with their
operations. He had attended many of
their cattle shows. Much had been done
in this country, but from any thing ac
coinplished here, little idea could be formed
of what had been effected there.?
England scom9 to have carried the art of
! breeding to a high degree of perfection.
He considered that greater improvements
had been made in sheep than in cattle.
Those of us who have not seen them, can
form but a very imperfect idea of the
English flocks. He had seen large flocks
of the Lsicesters and the Teeswaters, not
one of which would weigh less than 150
pounds. In some districts, the long woolled
sheep are preferred. On the Downs,
the South Downs. He had seen Mr,
Coke's flock, which at that time consisted
of 5000. In some districts, the sheep
are all bred with yellow faces; in others,
with black faces, which illustrates the
principles of breeding laid down by Mr.
Jaques.
/N j M it n ii. T\
un our scanty sons tne ooum jltowiis
would undoubtedly pay the most profit.
Wo cannot grew the long wools to advantage.
That had better be left to Pennsylvania
and Delaware. We demand
much mutton for market. On this account
the South Downs are to be preferred
for us. The fine wools may be advantageously
cultivated where mutton is
not in so much demand.
We have now very good stocks foi animals
if we would be careful in the selection.
The Short Horns may answer for
many districts in our country; but he believed
the middling sized red cattle were
to be preferred for us. Our agriculture
is not pursued upon a sufficiently liberal
scale. We do not employ sufficient enpital.
He expressed his strong regret that
anv intention should have been manifested
for I be discontinuance of the Agricultural
Survey. He thought it had been
eminently serviceable, and great benefits
were to be expected from it. No measure
could I e adopted more conducive to the
I improvement and welfare of our agricttl!
hire. The Agricultural Surveys in Eng.
I land had been worth millions to that
i country; and he thought it a niggardly
| policy and unworthy of Massachusetts to
i hc'si'ate about a few thousands for the ad.
, vancement of this great and common in;
terest. It was matter of groat regret to
j him that any thoughts should be cn'cr
taincd of discontinuing the survey, which
had already received the most favorable
' notices abroad. The English Agvicul.
i ture was more improved than any nth r.
and the great impulse to immoveme."*
j was given hv the eminent labors of \r.
t thur Young in his agricultural too-s. He
; hoped that, in addition to the ?wrv?leM*m
!ofthe Agrioulfura! Survev. the i's
i the course of five vnars would have esrahlishod
a Board of Agriculture.
! Mr. Putnam made son" inquiries of
i Mr. Jaques on the point whether butter is
las good obtained from largo quantifiesas
I small quantities of milk, as on his father's
I farm, in the care of two cow3, on" giving
j 47 or 48 pounds milk per day. and one
; 33 pounds milk per day in June, and
! making each about thirteen pounds of
| butter per week, the quality of the butter
, from the coiv giving the largest quantity
J was superior to that from the. other,
i Mr. Jnques was unable to give a defi!
nite answer in this particular case. He
" . i* i l _1
; spoice again oi the importance 01 moon
.and preserving races pure. Our rattle
: had been much corrupted by intermix1
lures* With a view to test Iris principles
! he had entered largely into the breeding
! of rab its; and it had required the ninth
genera ion and four hundred rahhits to
reach the point at which he aimed. Excellent
stock were often exhibited at
Brig iton, hut a valuable race could not
ho obtained without much pains. It
| would require h.tlf a century in some
i cases to transfer the vigor of constitution
, of one race to another. The milk ofdif
I lerent cows flittered essentia My in its
richness. A cow exhibited at Brighton,
by Hou. William Gray, some years
since, gave thirty quarts of milk at a
milking, but the milk produced no crcam.!
Mr. Buckmin?ter, (always 9trongly in*
I clined to conservatism,) deemed the sub.
ject of discussion highly important, and
had listened with much approbation to
the remarks of Mr. Jaques. They agreed
with his own opinions. So long as the
imported foreign stock produced nothing
better than we already had, he saw no
use in importing. He thought we could
not improve our stock without stock farms.
Few persons are capahJe of judging accurately.
Any man could see the difference
between a large and a small hog,
hut other points were to be determined,
i He approves highly of Mr. Sheldon's no.
tionsof managing stock. He would banish
a whip from the farm and he would
have raitie and horses broken and managed
with all the gentleness possible.
The time of adjournment having nearly
I arrived, the mceiing were gratified with
; Mr. Jaques's exhibition of a pot of cream
from his celebrated stock. It was of
most extraordinary consistency, and was
i converted into butler by churning in a
bowl with a spoon, in the presence of the
meeting, in less than one minute, thus
completely verifying the declarations
which he had made.
The meeting was exceedingly well at.
tended. The interest in these discissions
increases, and with that a genera)
and strong conviction of their utility.
H. C.
Comparative Value of IIobsks,
Mules &. Oxen.
Messrs. Gaylord if Tucker?An apology
is due to the N. Y. State agricultural
Society, for omitting to report on the
subject they have twice assigned to me,
hut it having been inconvenient to attend
the annual meeting when the appointment
was made, they were not sufficiently
impressed on my mind to draw my attention
to the subject in time for their
meeting the present month. Indeed, in
consequence of the press of other matters,
it was not till now, that it occurred to me
th.it this duty was to be performed., So
far, however, as their object is the publication
of the different reports, it may be
accomplished by the insertion of this
communication, but with this serious i
abatement of its usefulness, that it cannot
receive that revision and sane ion of the
intelligent members of the board, that
would so materially add to its correctness
and authority.
The cornpartive value of horsc9 and
oxen for agricultural purposes, has so
often been the subject of discussion, and
the arguments so very correctly and
sufficiently stated in your own paper so
lately as March last, that it would hardly
seem necessary to repeal them here. But
there are some considerations connected
with this subject, not hitherto treated of
to much extent, that I will submit to the
public, for the purpose of eliciting hereafter,
such observations and discussion as
may lead to highly important results.
In a country so varied as ours in climate,
soil, surface, tillage, crops, extent
y. f m rv, r. i* /i V r nuiot T\ AOflfl T I _
! Ill till 111^, VJCV. IIICIC muni iitv^Kiii ! I
ly be sufficient difference in circumstan- |
ces, tojustify the use of both horses and j
oxen, not only m contiguous, but even on j
the same premises. This assertion will
appear conclusive, by simply stating the
universally acknowledged merits of each.
These arc summarily stated by assigni ng 1
such labor to the hors^, as is nquir;d to
J much extent during the hot season, where
| active movements are wanted, and when
i a load is to be removed a considerable
distance over a good road. This seems
i to i?e the exfent of superiority claimed
j tor the "noble beast." The claims of his j
j more humble, but on the whole, much 1
j more useful competitor, are the smaller j
J amount required to purchase them, the j
i economy arid simplicity of tackle, the j
; easiness and cheapness of keep, less Iiabil- j
' i<y io diseav, dociiUy in managing, con- j
is::iut improvement till thrv have attained
! fi hi!! growth, and ultimate value w eu j
' they i'-uvi outl.vod their working charnc- j
! ter. These are the generally distinguish- !
I ed charactertics between the two races ; i
1 j
| though it not unfrequently happens that i
/? i a 1 I
I i n<l! v :<?u::iy or eacn approach ana even
| cross tiiC line of demarcation, the horse !
j sometimes falling below the average j
?i standard of ox endurance and speed,}
while the latter if truly bred and properly
trained, boldly pushes his way into the
foremost ranks of his prouder rival. That i
a great improvment may result from a }
strict observation of the capabilities and j
requirements of each, liicre cannot be a |
doubt. Let us see the position they re- ;
spectively occupy at the present time.?
The horses in this and the Northern
Slates generally are very well adapted to
the service they have to perform. If we
? it _ 11 i
I except the rrenennors^, us ne i? t?ncu i
(deriving hrs name probably, from his!
having been almost ootiuly used by the
French Canadians,) which is a cross of a
very good European horse on the Indian
poney ; and is in deservcdl) high reputa.
tion as a hardy,, serviceable animal, and !
i is very extensively used along 4he State's
, side of the Canada line; we have no well
defined or distinctive breecfcuof h<.rsrs, but.
they are a mixed usee, mode up fro
good stallions imported from time to time*
on our former stock of mares; and irt
New York and Jersey especially* thera
has been a high cross from the very
choicest imported bloods, and to such extent
hn8this been carried, that in many
sections of these States, and several of
the others, it will be almost impossible to
hod a native animal now, that is jiot
deeply in the blood. By choicest, it
should not be uncjorstood, the dandy ra-- #
ccrs of their day, that will run against a
streak of lightning provided they have
little weight to carry, btit the strong, serviceable,
enduring animal, whose progeny
is as well suited to the raid and plow, as
their sires-Were to the turf.^Smn1?. of
which were Post Boy, Messenger, Menw
briho, Du oc, E I pse and Bellfounder,
whose descendants may be found pretty
extensively distributed over the north,
, . : I...LL :
ana consuiuie nn invuiunuie iiiipruvciiitru*
to the former respectable stock. Tnis
improvement, if universal, would probably
be all that would be requisite in horse
flesh. But there still remain a great
number not tempered by noble blood*
with ungainly heads, long sway backs
rough haired, coarse jointed brutes,
whose bones scarcely possess more
strength or density than a corn cob;
and with muscles more resembling a tan^
ned sheep skin, than the wiry sinews of
the well bred beast, and if these could
be at once spayed and castrated* we
should secure a double benefit, in breeding
fjw horses and those of the best
kind.
Thi que.* t 01 has been much'roooted of
late in Kentucky and elsewhere at the
South, (where they have in this extensive
seetion, hut two kinds of horses, one
good for racing, and the other good for
nothing,) as to the kind of animal re*
quired to improve their agricultural horsesand
wisely discarding the notion of inrw
porting some of the old varieties of Europe
that were formerly held in considerable
repute, such as the Suffolk Punch,
the Cleveland Bay, the Black cart horse*
and others that have much degenerated
of late, whether positively or relatively
I cannot say, others having been vastly
improved by the infusion of better blood;
and they have with much good sense ordered
some of the best stallions from Long
Island and elsewhere, from the stock we
! se largely possess, and from them they will'
soon acquire a valuable race. We of the*
north, require no importation *o secure*
for us better horses than can be found in
the world for our purposes. We have
only to select judiciously with more show'
or substance, according to the fa cy of
of breeders ; and from these we can produce
nil that is required.
But we object to the number of horse*
kept among us. They are too expensive
a luxury. Food enough is consumed hy
the surplus horses in this country and1
England, to make every individual in
them hoth, entirely comfortable. From
the earliest days after the flood to the
present time, they have a prominent object
of pride, as well as engine of conquest,
plunder and devastation, by every
tyrant and robber frr m Ninirod to Napoleon.
We cannot wonder then, they
were so emphatically interdicted to the
Israelitish shepherds, hy the express command
of Jehovah himself, for how could
the narrow valleys of their limited Canaan,
have contented them, or supplied
half iheirswarining population with food
had they possessed the proportion of horses
we think essentia! to our necessities?
And no sooner did Solomon commence
his career of glory and conquest, accompanied
by the introduction of an extensive
royal stud, imitated no doubt by the
nobles ano grandees of tlie land, than the
nation passed under an intolerable opprcssinn,
tiiat resulted in the revolt of ten
twelfths of the people, and soon after, in
the subjugation and captivity of all.
We have no hesitation in venturing the'
assertion, that were our present stock
of horses reduced to one fourth their preS'nt
number, and the places of another
fmirfh tnrmlipA hii vnnlps. nn.H enrh Vllt to
J .... ... ...rr?- 7 t ?
their required duties, the remaining labor
of the country <> ould be vastly more advantageously
performed by oxen. But fir.it of
mules.
It would appear on even a very s'ight
reflection, that in excluding the services
of this humble, but hardy and useful animal,
we are annually sustaining an immense
lo?s. Probably it would not be
overs;ating the case, to say that with
little grooming, half the attention and
feed, and no disease, they will outlive the
laboring lives of horses, and do the whole
work of each. But that there is great
disparity in favor of the former, in the
amount of labor rendered for the quantity
of expense bestowed on each, those who
have tested both are prompt to testify.?
They are the only beast of labor that can
be trusted by their masters in the hands
of the slaves at the South, their hardiness
enabling them to live under a usage
that would kill horses almost as fast as
jjarnpsscd. They are easily and cheaply
roared, idror.^fbr thoir u?ight, hardy, reIf