36 Old Bays on the Farm 



FAVOURITE NAMES FOR COWS 



The women of the farmer's household quite 

 naturally looked upon the cow with favour and 

 there wasn't any name in fiction or poetry so 

 sacred or sweet sounding that it might not be be- 

 stowed on the milking herd. Eose, Spot, Light- 

 foot, Betsey, Mary, Chloe, Phyllis were in common 

 use, and I recall that a merry milkmaid I once 

 knew, called her favourite, Queenie. She'd been 

 reading Mary J. Holmes's or Miss Braddon's lus- 

 cious love tales, I guess. 



A RUSTIC LOVE SCENE 



'Just here allow me to interpose a burlesque on 

 a rustic love scene: 



He met her in the pasture lot 



Just as the sun was setting red; 

 He wore a home-made, big straw hat, 



She'd nothing on her shapely head — 

 They walked together up the lane, 



They didn't smile or say a word — 

 The beating of their own glad hearts 



Was, maybe, all the sound they heard ; 

 He didn't help her o'er the stile. 



Instead he let down all the bars. 

 Her mild eyes, meantime, fixed on him 



As iridescent as the stars — 

 Nor thanks she spake, nor kiss she gave, 



In fact, I doubt if she knew how — 

 He was a simple country lad 



And she — a dark-red muley cow. 



