NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



VOL. IV. 



Published by JOHN B. RUSSF.LL, at the corn er of Congress and Lindall SlrepK Po<t.vr. TITOM^? G. rr='"rM)KN'. T'nTTon. 



~" FRIDAY, SEPT EMBETi'2??, 1825. 



No. U. 



Frovi Ike .Imcrtcnn /'in/iHr. | 



PRSZS SSSA?. I 



[TliP Prpmiiim of a silver cnp, nf tliirty dr.ilnrs v.il- ; 

 lie, offend by tioRF.KT Oi.ivr.n, i.fi\. to llie aulhor of 

 the b<--'<t fs«ay on the natural hislnry of llie Mule, and 

 its value for the grtneral purposes of Ajiiculture, in , 

 fOmparison with horses, was awarded by a rommiltee 

 appointed by the Iruslees of the Maiyland Ap:rirul- [ 

 fural Society, to the author "f the following Essay :] I 



A DISSERTATION OTf THE MULE, 



JJ''ilh the Hrir nf prnmnling in ImyrnvtmevI in llif\ 

 breed ; nvd of dtmnnslTulin^ llie ti'ihhi rf fviployin^ j 

 him as n nibslilvlr I'liT Ike horse, »7i llie labours of\ 

 hxubandii/, cartalt, kr. 



By Samit-x Wyli-YS PoMERoy. 



" Opinion is Ihc queen of the ivorld ; it fives J 



motion to the springs nnd direction to the wheels of: 

 power." — Johri Quniry .fhlamt. 



" Knowledge is pow( r.'' — Jyaccn. 



Soon after (ho ar,rp='-ion nf Charlr' III. (oi 

 the rrnivn rif Spain, liij siilijccls note iiroli:-, 

 l)ilecl liy a severe pHict, from wonrinp: Jlappfdi 

 linis and Inng clna!;<i ; whirh raiiseil an iiisiinrc-l 

 lion lliat nhiipjed him In (lef from Madriil, a('ler| 

 >vilno??iins; llir ina«iirrp n( nparlv one liimdrpdl 

 of iii« Walloon tjtiards ; nnd miglil liave tnrmi- 

 naled in a rrvnlulinn. hut for a spcody revocn- 

 finn of llifi ndirl ami hani^ijimpnt of his minis- 

 lf>rs. An rminont writer intrndnrn= a liiilnry 

 of thn occnrrenre, by obfernnff, lliat " it is 

 easier to cotiqiior liall llip uorld ti>an IopiiIkIdp 

 n sintrle [irejodice or erroiir ; inost nations 

 liavinnf n snppr«lilione allachmeni (o those ha- 

 lp;',tidps nhirli Ihoy derive from llieir ancestors, 

 Hr.it seemed In rome along with them into llie 

 world, and with wliicli Ihc^ were nursed nnd 

 brought lip." 



Perlinps il maj- he deemed liy many qnile as 

 risionary or nhsnrd. lo allempt an inlrndnclion 

 of (he mule as a siihsiiutle lor the liot-se, for 

 (lie i>iir|>o*es of Ac;riciilliiro and hackney em- 

 plovmrnls. as was the project of the Spani-b 

 Itionarrh for cnrnpellins; bis subjects to wear 

 the French costume, to the exclusion of one they 

 had been so long; accustomed to lonk upon " as 

 n distinclirin whicii was the birlh right ofeveiy 

 true Spaniard ;''' and, as we may suppose, so 

 congenial lo the indolent habits for which thai 

 nation bad lonsf been proverbial. 



It must be acknowledged thai there are se- 

 rious, Ihoug^h I trust in this age of improve- 

 ment, not insurmountable impediments — for we 

 liave lo combat not only hereditary prejudices. 

 or. to speak more correctly, such as have pro- 

 ceeded from a deficiency of moans and want of 

 Icnowledge, to develope the valuable properlies 

 and to^ubdue propensities of a contrary charac- 

 ter in this hybrid race, but we are met at the 

 threshold by the same species of pride which 

 the Spaniards manit'esled in regard to their co«- 

 lume. founded on the enthusiastic. I may almost 

 say superstitious, allachment to the horse. 



It is believed that a vast portion of our fellow 

 citizens, and I may with propriety add the peo- 

 ple of Great Britain, from whom we have de- 

 Tived some inveterate prejudices as well as 

 Cbose illustrious esampleti that have had such a 



powerful influonre in leading our countiy to the 

 high destinies that await her, do not consider 

 'hat a fni//i', especially a well bred one, would 

 be in liimselfand in (heir view, one of (be lu'«t 

 formed and mo=t distinguished of animals, if 

 they had never seen a liorse ; — they must ad- 

 mit, however, that he holds the second rank 

 instead of the first — and it is principally fiom 

 Ibis circumstance that so lilllc allention has 

 been pafd (o him in both countries. Compari- 

 son is llie chief cause of his degradation — Ihey 

 look at and give Iheir opinion,"? not of himself, 

 but compar.itively with the hoise. The}' seem 

 not aware that lie is a vivie — that he has all the 

 qtiali(i<?s of his nadire, all Ihc gifts attached to 

 the r.ennccting and final link of two distinct spe- 

 cies, nnd (hink only of (he figure and more shin- 

 ing qunlilics rf the horse which are wanling in 

 birr, and (bat he ought not (o have; for he pos- 

 sesses those of more intrinsic value, which (he 

 supieme Author of na'iiie lias denied (o bo(h ol 

 bis parenls. 



There are few subjcc(s of animaied nature 

 (ha( have engaged the n((en(inn of (he moat 

 euiinenl natnralisls, more than the genus /Jiyin/i 

 (o ivbich the horse and as«. with their hyhrid 

 otTspring. are assigned. Limurii.'!, with a view 

 to c'lablisb. by new arguments, jiis doctrine or 

 theory of the sexvnl s}j.itcm of plants, which 

 Sjinlliinziini had attempted to overturn, illiis- 

 I rated their generation by pursuing the chain 

 nf nature from the animal lo the vegetable king- 

 dom ; and has taken prominent examples from 

 the two dillerent productions of mules. lie 

 says, " from the mare and male ass proceed* 

 the mule, properly so called, which in its na- 

 ture, that is. in its medullary sub-lance, nervous 

 system, and what .Meilpighi calls ibe keel, (^cari- 

 na, hollnia in sportsmen's language,) is la(cn( 

 in, and derived from the mare. I!ui in its cor 

 lical substance and outward form, in its mane 

 and (ail. resembles (he ass. Between (he fe- 

 male a-s and (he horse, the other kind of mnle 

 is engendered, whose nature or medullary sub- 

 stance, resembles that of (he as.« ; but ils out- 

 ward form and cottical structure, or vascular 

 system, that of the horse."* 



The latter kind was called Uinniis by (he an- 

 cien(5 ; hence (he modern name Hinny. Tbwy 

 were not held in much estimation by the Rn 

 man». according to Pliny, who describes thein 

 as didicult to manage, and so slow that little 

 service could be derived from them. Bu(j'nn 

 hiis noticed this animal, which he says 

 " is smaller than the mule, as it preserves 

 the diminutive stadire of (he ass." Hinny,- 

 were seldom propagated ; bu( it is said that a 

 number have lately been bred in Spain, pro- 

 bably in consequence of the <!rslruc(ion of 

 mares in the peninsular war, and are repre- 

 sented of good size and more beaiititui than the 

 mule ; that is, they resemble the horse much 

 more. 1 understand a few have been bred up- 



* Pee " A Dissertation on the Sexes of Plants," by 

 Sir Charles Linnasns — read before the Imperial Acad- 

 emy of Scien'-es at St. Petersbnrjh, Sept. G, 1760. 

 and which obtained the premium of one hundred du- 

 cats. 



I nn (lie Spanish Main, no doubt from a similar 

 ! cause thai led lo the system in S[>nin ; and if 

 ; my inl'oriualion is correct, some ha«'e been ro. 

 i cenlly shipped lo (bo West India ishmd-", but 

 lare !iy no means esteemed so hardy, or valua- 

 . ble for service, as mules. 



I Nolwilhsl.inding mules have a disposition (o 

 I propagate, (here have been but two or three 

 ' well authenticated instances recorded of their 

 'having hrcd ; and llioso productions were con- 

 ! sidered monster". /J;;^rm was indefaligable in 

 jhis researches on the siihj.'c! ; and although ho 

 j admits that it is possible lor both males and fe- 

 males to propagate, be is contident that their 

 parents are of a speci(,'s distinct from each 

 other. He says '' the ass is imt ii horse degen- 

 erated," as .some had supposed, " he is nei- 

 ther a stranger, an intruder, nor a baslaril — he 

 has, like other animals, his I'amily, his species, 

 and his rank ; his blood is pure and untainted, 

 and allhniigh bis race is less noble, yel it ii 

 equally good, equally ancient as that of the 

 horse." This profound naturalist continues a 

 very minute and eloquent comparison belvveeii 

 the horse and the as« — some ol bis exjiressioo!^ 

 I have taken Ibe liberty to apply lo (be mvli: 

 and the horse in a preceding iiaragrapb. 



Il may promote the object in view lo cnler 

 extensively upon the history of the ass ; and 

 we commence with llie supposition, that when 

 men became so far civilized as to have burdens 

 In earn/, or ro(|uired lo be carried themselves, 

 Ibis animal was ihe first domesticaled for thai 

 purpose — and it is reasonable to infer that those 

 nf llie lea.t s;)iy!( and most tractable, were put 

 in requisition in the first instance ; when by 

 breedin!!: in and in, without any care in the se- 

 lection of ji're or f/fi/n, became in jirocess of 

 lime degenerated to a very inferior srade. ]3e 

 Ibis as it may, it is an unquestionable fact that 

 difiereni races of Ihe ass now exist, possessing 

 properties as distinct as are found in (he species 

 of cninel. For instance, the Bnctriiin or single 

 hunched camel, called the dromedary, by tar 

 the most numerous race, being ligblly formed, 

 exhibits great activity, and is able to traverse 

 vast tracts with Ihe speed of a higli mettled race 

 liorse. The .'Jroi/an camel, with two protube- 

 rances on his back, is considerably laiger, of 

 much stronger form, (ravels at a pace seldom 

 exceeding three miles an hour, and is capable 

 nf conveying such burdens, that Ihe Arabs sly I© 

 him, emphatically, Ihe ship of ihe desert ; yet 

 (hey are of the same species — a cross between 

 them breed and constilute another varietj', 

 which multiply, and according to IhilTon, have 

 the most vigour, and are preferred to all others. 

 Ancient writers recognize three or lour dis- 

 tinct varieties of the ass. According to -the 

 learned Dr. Harris, four different races are in- 

 dicated in Ihe original Hebrew scriptures, viz : 

 Para, Chamof, Alon, and Onid* 



* Se.e the " Natural History ef the Bible, by Thad- 

 dens Mason Harris, D. D. 1 vol. Cvo, Wells and 

 Lilly, fioslnn." A work I would earnestly recommend 

 to those readers of the sacred rolnme, who are desi- 

 rous to be better acquainted with many allusions to 

 snbjfct" of natural history, founded on tlieir nature, 

 habits and cbacacteriatic qualities, developing beau- 



