AGRICULTURAL MUSEUM 15^1 



farm xn'i^ht furnish. In the winter, they should be kep.t 

 ill a yard, wilh the same sort of shed for them to run in- 

 to at pleasure, and here they should have plenty of bar* 

 ley or oat straw, and offal turnips, and in the days of 

 working, cut hay and s'raw, mixed in equal proportions^ 

 instead of straw, and turUips besides. In this manner, 

 they will, in general, do extremely well, and will, at all 

 events, earn as much as the value of their keep, so that 

 their work will be had for nothing. Another great ad 

 vantage is, that in case of falling lame, there is no diminu- 

 tion, by that means, in their value, for if their shoulders 

 do not return a profit, their ribs will ; but if a horse falls 

 lame, at least half his value is lost. So far I have descri* 

 bed the advantage of the ox to his employer — but to the 

 public, the advantage is superlatively striking. — The ox, 

 when labouring, does not consume so much corn as the 

 horse, for, according to my plan, he would not consume 

 any ; and when his labour is done, his body goes to the 

 nourishment of men — but the body of the other is good 

 for nothing but to feed dogs. 



" The more the number of horses can be lessened, the 

 better for all ranks of people. The consumption by hor- 

 ses, especially horses of pleasure, and luxury, is astonish- 

 tng ; for though a horse in agriculture, does not consume 

 above three acres of the fruits of the earth in a year, a 

 horse kept upon the road, eats yearly, in hay and oats, 

 the full produce of five acres of land. A man, allowing 

 him a pound of bread, and a pound of meat a day, or in 

 that proportion, not quite an acre and a quarter ; and as 

 the poor eat but very Httle meat- it cannot be put at more 

 than an acre to them: so that one of those horses eats 

 jiearly as much as five men. The more, therefore, we 

 reduce our number of horses, the more plentiful will be 

 tjje fruits of the earth for man." 



[To be continued.} 



