THE HOME FARM. 145 



sons, each of whom has his allotted share of duty to per- 

 form in the service of his farm stock. Stalls are cleansed, 

 feeding and drinking vessels scoured and washed, 

 cattle groomed, and food suitable to the taste and re- 

 quirement of each prepared ; and everything is perform- 

 ed in a most cheerful spirit and in a business-like way 

 without fuss or talk. Grooming a cow or bull sounds 

 unusual, as we are not accustomed to see it practised ; 

 but Rajaram assured me that it is very good for the 

 cattle, as it keeps their skin and coat clean and healthy, 

 and improves their appearance. 1 ani perfectly con- 

 vinced of this; a finer herd of cattle than those owned 

 by Rajaram perhaps does not exist anywhere in Bengal. 

 They are quite different from the small-boned miser- 

 able creatures we see everywhere about us. 



As a suitable tribute to his great kindness towards 

 them, the cows make him a good return in large quantities 

 of rich milk, and the bullocks in labour. Rajaram has 

 been the indirect means of creating a spirit of healthy 

 emulation among the agricultural community of Basanta- 

 pore and its neighbourhood, and many have begun to 

 appreciate his way of treating cattle and farmstock, and 

 imitate him in setting apart pasture lands and raising 

 fodder plants for them. Even the apathetic and cynical 

 have now been convinced of the importance and 

 benefit of cleanliness, liberal food, and good treatment 

 in general in the management of dairy and farmstock. 

 It has been brought about thus. A wide-spread cattle 

 disease broke out last year in Basuuapore and the 



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