1858. 



NEW ENGLAND ARMER. 



287 



and to our minds is no extraordinary display of 

 reason on the part of a dog. But it brought to 

 my mind forcibly the somewhat prevalent belief 

 that the chief difference between man and the an- 

 imals is, that while the former has reason, the 

 latter has not. I think that facts in regard to an- 

 imals, and their halnts, have come within the ob- 

 servation of most persons, that ought to convince 

 them that in respect to reason, men, and some 

 animals, at least, are alike. As there is evident- 

 ly a radical difference between them, I think it 

 may be wholly accounted for, by the theory that 

 animals have no conception of virtue or vice ; 

 that they have not the power to know moral 

 right or wrong. To them the moral world has 

 no existence. The fear of man will account for 

 many exhibitions by the domestic animals, M'hich 

 are analogous to contrition or repentance in man. 

 This instance of the man and his dog does not 

 so much suggest these thoughts, as the fact that 

 I recently heard the statement, "that animals do 

 not possess reason," stated by a public speaker 

 to an audience, in such a manner, that, in his 

 opinion, at least, it admitted of no doubt. L. 



EVENING HOUKS FOB MECHANICS. 



One of the best editors the Westminister Re- 

 view could ever boast, and one of the most bril- 

 liant writers of the passing hour, was a cooper in 

 Aberdeen. One of the editors of the London 

 TiaSXy Journal was a baker in Elgin ; perhaps the 

 best reporter of the London Times was a weaver 

 in Edinburgh ; the editor of the Witness was a 

 stone mason. One of the ablest ministers in 

 London was a blacksmith in Dundee ; and anoth- 

 er was a watchmaker in Banff. The late Dr. 

 ]\lilne, of China, was a herd-boy in Rhyne. The 

 principal of the London Missionary Society's 

 College at Hong Kong was a saddler in Huntley ; 

 and one of the best missionaries that ever went 

 to India was a tailor in Keith. The leading ma- 

 chinist on the London and Birmingham Railway, 

 with £700 pounds a year, was a mechanic in 

 Glasgow ; and perhaps the very richest iron 

 founder in England was a working-man in Mo- 

 rap. Sir James Clark, her Majesty's physician, 

 ■was a druggist in Banff. Joseph Hume was a 

 sailor first, and tlien a laborer at the mortar and 

 pestle in ]Montrose ; Mr. McGregor, the member 

 from Glasgow, was a poor boy in Rosshire. Jas. 

 Wilson, the member from Westbury, was a plow- 

 man in Haddington, and Arthur Anderson, the 

 member from Orkney, earned his bread by the 

 sweat of his brow in the Ultima Thule. — Maine 

 Farmer. 



FACTS ABOUT PHOSPHORUS. 



It is now just two hundred years since phos- 

 phorus was first obtained by Brand, of Hamburg. 

 So wonderful was the discovery then considered, 

 that Kraft, an eminent philosopher of the day, 

 gave Brand $300 for the secret of its preparation. 

 Kraft then travelled, and visited nearly all the 

 courts of Europe, exhibiting. Phosphorus resem- 

 bles bees-wax ; but it is more transparent, ap- 

 proaching to the color of amber. Its name, which 

 is derived from the Greek, signifies "light-bearer," 

 and is indicative of its most distinguishing qual- 

 ity, being self-luminous. Phosphorus, when ex 



posed to the air, shines like a star, giving out a 

 beautiful, lambent, greenish light. Phosphorus 

 dissolves in warm sweet oil. If this phosphorized 

 oil be rubbed over the face in the dark, the fea- 

 tures assume a ghastly appearance, and the ex- 

 perimentalist looks like a veritable living Will- 

 o'-the-Wisp. The origin of phosphorus is the 

 most singular fact concerning it. Every other 

 substance with which we are acquainted, can be 

 traced to either earth or air ; but phosphorus 

 seems to be of animal origin. Of all animals, 

 man yields the most ; and of the various parts of 

 the body, the brain yields, by analysis, more 

 phosphorus than any other. This fact is of no 

 little moment. Every thought has, perhaps, a 

 phosphoric source. It is certain that the most in- 

 tellectual beings contain the most phosphorus. 

 It generally happens that when a singular dis- 

 covery is made, many years elapse before any ap- 

 plication of it is made to the welfare and happi- 

 ness of man. This remark applies to phosphorus. 

 — Johnsioii's Chemistry. 



THE FLESH OF EXTBA FAT CATTLE. 



There is a very general desire among raisers of 

 stock-beeves, hogs, pigs, sheep, &c., for the 

 shambles, to produce animals that will greatly 

 surpass the average of their fellows in the accu- 

 mulation of flesh or fat. They take peculiar 

 pleasure in stuffing an animal with rich food un- 

 til it becomes such a mass of fat as almost to lose 

 the use of its limbs, when it is duly weighed and 

 its enormous ponderosity is heralded as an espe- 

 cial recommendation of the creature for table use. 

 Nothing is more frequent than to meet wiih com- 

 mendatory notices of such monstrosities in the 

 newspapers. Oxen weighing a ton, hogs of six 

 or eight hundred pounds, and calves as heavy as 

 the parent cows, seem to be among the legitimate 

 marvels which the pi'ess is bound to notice. This 

 tendency to secure excessive weight and corpu- 

 lence in animals, is also observable in the fat cat- 

 tle offered for prizes at agricultural exhibitions, 

 though not to so great an extent, perhaps, as 

 above indicated. 



The opinion seem to follow, too, that these 

 gross accretions of animal matter are of superior 

 quality for consumption. But if the same rule 

 was applied to them that is applied by experienced 

 judges to other articles of food, they would rate 

 below instead of above par in the provision mar- 

 ket. Every judicious housewife knows that ex- 

 cessively fat poultry is but poor eating ; that 

 mammoth squashes and pumpkins are not of so 

 good a quality as those of moderate size ; that ex- 

 tra large vegetables of all kinds are really inferi- 

 or ; and that even in the matter of fish, in regard 

 to which there is usually very little discrimina- 

 tion practiced, those medium in size and flesh are 

 the best for the table. There is a certain medi- 

 um in all articles used for food, the nearer to 

 which the production of them is kept, the more 

 wholesome and nutritious they are. 



This is not only the lesson of experience, but 

 it is borne out by the researches of science. Mr. 

 Frederick J. Gant, late surgeon to the military 

 hospital in the Crimea, has recently made a very 

 interesting investigation respecting the whole- 

 someness of the flesh of fat prize cattle as an ar- 

 ticle of food, which fully establishes the unfitness 



