76 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



in one short month, to enable them to do the work which they 

 set for themselves, within the walls of shop and office, during 

 the remaining eleven months of the year. 



The bulls, in far too many of our herds, lead such lives of 

 confinement and idleness as to render them unfit to contribute 

 such constitution and vigor to their highly organized daughters 

 as will enable them to milk deeply, reproduce themselves in their 

 offspring, and last a reasonable lifetime. Dairy-bred bulls are 

 bright animals and they do a good deal of thinking when given 

 an opportunity to develop their senses. They are nervous and 

 highly organized and when closely confined, fret for freedom, 

 even though they did not have much of it in their calfhood days. 

 They are erratic, of changeful moods, and at their best should 

 never be trusted. I can mention half a dozen men in this State 

 who were killed by their stock bulls. To shut them up by them- 

 selves, away from the rest of the herd, is the very worst thing to 

 do. We cannot allow them football and golf, but we should 

 try to substitute for them. 



In our bull pen, which is ioxi8 feet in size, we have an inch 

 and a quarter steel rod lo feet long, running along one side of 

 the pen, three feet above the floor, and far enough away from 

 the wall to allow a ring to slide from end to end of it. as the 

 animal walks back and forth, he being attached to the sliding 

 ring by two light chains which snap into the ring in his nose. 

 He walks back and forth a great deal and gets considerable 

 exercise. He is able to look across to the cows in the tieup. 

 through his open door at all times. It is a very helpful arrange- 

 ment and not expensive. 



The best scheme I have seen in practice is that at the Billings 

 Farm in \'"ermont, where a five-eighths inch wire cable 75 feet 

 long is anchored at both ends and stretched about six feet above 

 the ground. A sliding pulley permits the animal to walk or 

 run 75 feet and return as many times as he cares to. The four 

 mature bulls were given exercise in this way, in relays, everv 

 day. It is strongly constructed and no animal is likely to tear 

 it down when attached to it by his ring. Qamps are bolted to 

 the cable, far enough away from the ends to prevent the crea- 

 tures from getting at the posts, at the ends. One of the bulls 

 required two men with staffs to lead him out from his stall, but 



