THE NEW AGRICULTURE. 159 



the excrement and vegetable matter that could be imagined, slowly 

 putrifying and throwing off noxious gasses and vapors. The cows 

 were confined in stables that had no means of ventilation save the 

 door, and one window, opening out upon this pool of fiUh. 



The food they got came from this hogshead of malt grains and 

 other garbage in a high state of fermentation. This reeking mass 

 of stuff was given to support life and make milk. The smell at a 

 distance of ten feet was enough to turn any stomach. 



This is a graphic but true pen picture of the home life of these cows. 

 Now the cows are sick and ailing. They must be taken out to pas- 

 ture. Mark the keen sarcasm, unintentional it is true, these ani- 

 mals gain one thing by the change, sunlight. They must eat of 

 the rank marsh grass and drink of the fetid marsh water. I no- 

 ticed fish in the sluices; but in this marsh water there are none. 

 It's pretty bad water that a catfish won't swim in. 



Now taking the character of their food, the air and water into 

 consideration, is it any wonder that these cattle should have dis- 

 eases of the throat and lungs ? It is a wonder that they have any 

 healthy organs at all, and I doubt if they have. 



Mark the ignorant way in which the State Inspector does his 

 work. Did he do as we did ? Did he look for a cause upon the 

 premises ? No, he contented himself by asking the nearly as ig- 

 norant " farmer," " "What made your cows sick ?" and upon receiv- 

 ing the reply caught at the pretext, Ah! that is it, you got them 

 from the stock yard. Yes, yes, she brought the infection with her. 



Upon looking up the matter it is impossible to find that any of 

 the stock at the stock yard was sick with this disease either before 

 or after this cow was purchased. Now, is it likely that the so- 

 called infection was brought from the stock yard? Is it not a 

 hundred times more likely that the bad air, bad water, and bad 

 feed at the farm induced this disease ? 



