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THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



even five horsps yoked in length to a common plough. 

 It is infinitely preferable, where it can be adopted, to 

 work them in pairs, or abreast; mine are frequently 

 worked four-abreast, in various fallow v?ork ; most soils 

 can be ploughed with two good horses abreast. The 

 gearing should be light and simple, and the practice of 

 driving at plough should be got rid of generally ; a pair 

 of horses, guided by cither a single or double line, is quite 

 sufficient. The question of one-horse carts versus wag- 

 gons— of varieties in ploughs, snarifiers, harrows, and 

 rollers— will very pro()erly come info consideration in the 

 economical working of cart-horsf s ; but I cannot stay to 

 discuss it now, and shall merely notice the time of 

 working. It is customary in many parts of the kingdom 

 for the horses to be out at dawn during the winter 

 months, and at six o'clock in the summer, to return at 

 two o'clock, for the day's work. This is good; but it 

 is often attended with inconvenience in many seasons. 

 In fallow-time, it is re(|uisite that the turnip-sowing 

 and manuring. &c., should go on simultaneously. In 

 these months (hey should be rested at noon, and then 

 worked till five or six o'clock, as required. Many 

 prefer two yokings generally : this is a great loss of time 

 on many farms, where the farmstead is distant. I 

 cannot say I e.Yperie:ice much loss or inconvenience 

 from pursuing the practice of only one rather long 

 yoking of nearly eight hours, in summer, with a slight 

 rest at noon, and a mouthful or two of grass or clover, 

 and in the winter a yoking of seven hours, without 

 food ; but I do not recommend it. Great care should 

 be taken that the horses, when in work, should not be 

 allowed to stand too long exposed to cold or biting 

 winds. Most of the inflammatory diseases take their 

 rise from such exposure. They should be steadily 

 worked, and from their work be brought at once to the 

 stable, and their feeding and grooming at once proceeded 

 with. Practical Farmer. 



THE MANAGEMENT OF FARM HORSES. 



TO THE EDITOR OF THE MARK-LANE EXPRESS. 



Sir, — In the very excellent article which appeared in 

 your last week's paper upon the above subject, by a 

 " Practical Farmer," there are one or two points which 

 I can hardly agree with, although I am aware that they 

 are customs generally tolerated in this country, and will 

 be approved by many. The first point to which I will 

 allude, is " the stable or Biielter." Your correspon- 

 dent seems to sipprove of the plan of turning the 

 horses out into a yard after being fed in the stable. 

 Now, with the unsatisfactory state of many of our farm 

 buildings, this may be the more preferable of two evils; 

 for I am quite convinced that nothing could be worse 

 than to keep horses tied up all night in a low, close- 

 roofed stable, yet exposed to sharp draughts of air from 

 defective weather-boarding, not divided from one 

 another by stalls, and standing perhaps upon a whole 

 week's accumulation of their own muck ; but when we 

 find a high, we!l-ventilatcd, brick or stone-built stable 

 partitioned off into pr. per stalls for each horse (which 

 not only tend to prevent draughts, but to prevent the 

 animals from kicking or disturbing each other), with the 

 floor properly formed, with a eutter behind the bovses, 

 and the manure regularly cleared out every morning, I 

 thuik there can be no question of this being preferable 

 to turmng out into a yar.l, in the winter season, horses 

 that nave been heated to perspira'ion during the day. 

 I am aware that as much liberty as possible is natural, 

 and congenial to the disposition of every animal ; but 

 when we transgress the inclinations of nature, by sub- 



jecting the horse to the drudgery of work, a correspond- 

 ing regimen becomes requisite. Nature clothes every 

 animal according to the climate, and its natural require- 

 ments ; and I am jiersuaded that when a horse is every 

 night exposed to cold, that he becomes clothed with a 

 greater quantity of hair, and consequently more liable 

 to perspire when at work. I have also proved that by 

 keeping horses constantly tied up in such a stable as I 

 have described, that both accidents from each other, and 

 diseases, are much less frequent, and particularly acci- 

 dents, when new and strange horses are introduced 

 amongst them. The other point to which I would 

 allude, is the system of going one yoking a day, a 

 system which I very much disapprove, consider- 

 ing it to be quite inconsistent with justice to the 

 animals. The circumstances which I believe have 

 given rise to, and still tend to support the custom, 

 are inconveniently placed buildings, the unsuitable 

 distance of labourers' cottages generally from their 

 work, and the supposed saving of time, in not unyoking 

 and yoking in I he middle of the day. Now under the ex- 

 isting state of things, much of this reasoning may be 

 quite plausible ; but there is no reason why such things 

 should exist. I consider it as unnatural an act as one 

 can be guilty of to take out horses at six o'clock in the 

 morning and work them until two o'chck without 

 tasting food as many do ; but the truth is they do not 

 work ; and the fact is, they cannot work constantly all 

 that time, but when at plough, &c., stand at the ends 

 at least one-third of their time. When hor;>es are kept 

 constantly going — as when in harness they always ought 

 to be — there is less chance of their taking colds or being 

 exposed to inflammations. The men will tell you that 

 they plough an acre a day (which, however, they seldom 

 do), and that's enough, and that they cannot do more 

 by two yokings; but I know that however much is to 

 be done by one yoking, more is to be done by two, with 

 greater ease to the horses. Upon some lands from half- 

 an-acre to three-quarters will be a good day's work, 

 wherc'.s upon others an acre and-a-half can be done 

 with comfort. Men have just to consult their own 

 feelings in order to judge of those of horses, and know 

 whether more work is to be done in one yoking of 8 

 hours, without refreshment, or by working 9 or 9^^ 

 hours divided into two yokings, by 2 hours to feed and 

 rest ill the middle. Some will urge the loss of time 

 going to and fro, yoking, and unyoking, &c. I am 

 quite aware that th-re is much more time spent thus 

 than is required, simply on account of the unwillingness 

 of the men to fall in with tlie two-yoking system ; with 

 activity very little time need be wasted in harnessing 

 and yoking horses. Your correspondent very justly 

 remarks that two yokings are also much more con- 

 venient, the afternoon being frequently the best lime to 

 harrow for the destruction of weeds, &c. The stomach 

 of the horse, he also truly says, is small, and unfitted 

 for being overcharged with large quantities of food, at 

 long intervals ; and here again the propriety of the two- 

 yoking system. I have now only to add another re- 

 mark, and one of considerable importance. It is this — 

 that "custom is second nature;" and whether, with 

 regard to the question of " stable and shelter," or 

 that of " one or two yokings," custom will do a great 

 deal ; for we have often observed that by altering the 

 usual routine of treatment to, which animals are accus- 

 tomed they will for a time suffer from the efTecls of 

 the alteration, however advantageous it may afterwards 

 prove, so much arc wc all creatures of custom, and 

 particularly the lower animals, which are destitute of 

 reasoning faculties. There cannot be a question, ne-ver- 

 theiess, that however much custom may reconcile to any 

 particular plan, that can be no proof of the superiority 

 of the plan itself. Trial and observation have induced 



