ANIMAL AND MENTAL FORCE, &C. 



273 



of a man was sufficient for cutting and caiTjing 

 tlie grass, and witli the aid of a pony and cart, 

 wlien the place from vvliicli he had to cany the 

 food became distant. He also supplied the cows 

 with straw and water, and carried out the dung, 

 and he dressed the cows once a day, with a 

 whalebone brush." 



The question here suggests, itself— whether 

 the same work would not occupy the whole 

 time, and even more than the time of one labor- 

 er, slave or hired man, iu our country ? When 

 Mr. Colman expressed the belief that a laboring 

 man in England ■' does not accomplish nearly as 

 much as an American laborer," he adds, in way 

 of explanation — " I speak of cases in which the 

 American is working for himself, the English- 

 man for another. In cases where work is taken 

 by the piece or job, as in harvest, for example, 

 there seems to be no want of application or suc- 

 ces.s, on the part of the English laborer." 



This is probably the true solution of the suc- 

 cess of the Eastern farmers, who on very small 

 fanns, are seen to rear their families in comfort 

 and credit. The work is mostly done by the 

 farmer himself, or his family ; all of whom feel 

 a common interest in the result. Bv^ for hired 

 free labor in this country, left to itself, and un- 

 accompanied and unobserved by the emploj'er. 

 we much doubt whether the performance is 

 equal to that of European laborers. It is diffi- 

 cult, in fact, to find American hirelings. Eveiy 

 man, happily, is setting up for himself — few that 

 do n't aspire to, and few who do not succeed in 

 getting freeholds for themselves. On the Indian 

 Hill farm, where management, industiy and 

 sagacity go hand in hand, preference is given to 

 Scotch laborers. For interesting remarks on the 

 difference between animal and mental force, and 

 a comparison of the physical strength of men of 

 different nations, see the chapter on these sub- 

 jects, in this number of the Farmers' Library. 



In the summer of 1841, a dairy of 20 cows, 

 consisting of part Ayrshire breed, and part a 

 cross from Aj-rshire cows and a short-horned 

 bull, were separated into two lots of 10 each, se- 

 lected to be as equal as possible, in point of car- 

 cass, condition, and milking quality. The one 

 lot was, about the beginning of May. put to pas- 

 ture in the usual manner, going to the field about 

 seven in the morning, after having been milked, 

 again being brought home to be milked about 

 one o'clock, and again being driven out at two 

 •o'clock to the field ; and at seven in the evening 

 again being brought home to be milked, and re- 

 maining in the hou.se all night, having some tur- 

 neps and straw, during the first few weeks, and 

 thereafter cut grass. Towards midsummer they 

 were put out all night, and kept in the house 

 from twelve till four, getting cut grass, vetches, 

 and a little straw ; and from 1st September, be- 

 ing again kept in all night, getting cut grass, 

 vetches, and straw. The cow a of the other lot 

 were tied up in a vioodeu hou.se, erected for the 

 purpose, in a field of sown grass, from which 



Ltliey were to be fed, near a field of vetches. The 

 (573) 18 



byre was constructed to hold five cows at each 

 end, with boards to open iu front of each cow, 

 to let die grass be put into thoir stall.s, and to ad- 

 mit an abundance of fresh air during the day. 

 There was a large tun or cask sunk in the 

 ground outside the house, to receive the urine 

 flowing from the cows ; near this tank the dung 

 from the cows was placed in layers on the sur- 

 face of the ground, and the water was occasion- 

 ally taken from the tank in buckets, and thrown 

 over the dung to keep it moist, and to promote 

 its decomposition, channels being formed in the 

 ground round the dung-heap to conduct such flu- 

 id as might flow from the heap into the tank. 

 The cow-water being so repeatedly passed 

 through the dung-heap, whilst it promoted its 

 conversion to well-made dung, became itself en- 

 riched, and was iu a fit state for being applied 

 to the surface of the ground as a liquid manure. 

 These cows were fed with cut gi-ass from the 

 field in which the house was placed and, to- 

 wards the latter part of the season, with a pro- 

 portion of vetches cut from an adjoining field. 

 About one-fourth part of the labor of a man was 

 sufficient for cutting and cariying the grass, and 

 with the aid of a pony and a cart, when the 

 place from which he had to carry the food be- 

 came di-stant. He also supplied the cows with 

 straw and water, and carried out the dung, and 

 he dressed the cows once a daj' with a whale- 

 bone brush. The cows were never removed 

 from their stakes from the time they were put 

 up until the 1st of November, when they were 

 taken back to the daiiy, to be tied up for the 

 winter with the other cow.s, excepting when 

 they had to be taken to receive the bull. It re- 

 quired some care on the part of the keeper to 

 observe when they came into condition for that 

 process. The cows thus treated were milked 

 three times a day, as the others were — they 

 gave their milk more uniformly and more plen- 

 tifull}', and continued throughout in excellent 

 health and improved in condition from SOs. to 

 40s. per head over those at pasture. When re- 

 moved to the dairy they still continued in ex- 

 cellent health and condition during the winter, 

 and had their calves in spring in proper time, 

 and of large and healthy frame. "The manure 

 made was of value, considerably above the ex- 

 tra charge for management ; and the cows were 

 kept in summer on three quarters of a statute 

 acre each. Those on pasture required only one 

 and a quarter acre of pasture, and nearly a quar- 

 ter acre for cut gra.ss and vetches ; so that, upon 

 the whole, about one-half of the extent of ground 

 necessaiy for the summer keep of cows at pas- 

 ture was sufficient for those kept in the house. 

 [Ayrshire Agriculturist. 



ANIMAL AND MENTAL FORCE. 



Difference between them — Strength of men of 



different Nations compared. 



In every industrial occupation there are actu- 

 ally involved two totally distinct offices, which 

 are paid for in very different degrees. These 

 are the animal force, and the mental exertion 

 which directs it. The question of relative 

 cheapness or dearness of labor altogether de- 

 pends on the relative proportions we want of 

 those, and the proportions in which they are 

 possessed by the man we hire. Now, owing 

 to the general absence of industrial activity in 

 this country, the mental power is not at all so 

 universal as in Britain. It is hence dearer in 



