No. 1. 



TJie Treatment of sick Animals. 



21 



then he went to work with his figuring to 

 show me the quantity of capital mould he had 

 obtained, merely by digging ; multiplying to- 

 gether, as he called it, the length and breadth 

 by the height, and turning the whole into 

 loads, without ever loading a bit of it — I de- 

 clare it made me feel all-over-like to see him 

 go from Dan to Beersheba in about a whistle ! 

 But there was a machine in a shed at the 

 end of the house, that was a caution to me ; 

 it was a large grindstone set upon rollers, so 

 true, that with a single finger it might be set 

 off as though it would go for a month ; now 

 that was a tool which I had promised to get 

 for the last ten years, but never found time to 

 do it, although it has cost me hundreds of 

 hours, and something more than time, to go 

 to the tavern a mile off, every time we want 

 to grind a scythe, or hook, or axe, and operate 

 upon an old, worn-out, rickety thing, about as 

 emooth as the back of my hand, a quality 

 ■which it never before struck me was chosen 

 by the owner and tenant of the tavern, for 

 the purpose of keeping the noses of his cus- 

 tomers so long at the grindstone, as to bring 

 on a desire for drink ; and, now I think of it, it 

 is placed in the nine-pin-alley I I would have 

 passed without noticing it, but my young 

 friend remarked, " here is the cheapest article 

 I ever bought; it is large and cuts so readily, 

 that it is no labour to use it ; I guess it has 

 saved me about the amount of a rent already ; 

 all our tools, from the knives of the table to 

 the hoes, spades, shovels, and pick-axes, are 

 kept sharp, and it is a pleasure to work with 

 them ; at haytime and harvest we generally 

 give our scythes a touch every morning, 

 which saves hours in the day and many a 

 weary back, besides cutting the crops closer 

 and cleaner ; I cannot calculate the value of 

 such a convenience, because I have never 

 been without one :" but I thought / could, 

 and from that moment determined to get one 

 right away. He had many other strange 

 things about him, the knowledge of which he 

 told me he had obtained from'books ; but as 

 I must have tired you by this time, I shall 

 reserve a farther description of them for an- 

 other opportunity. 



One of the old School. 

 P. S. He had also what he termed a course 

 of crops, different from ours, which I must 

 notice in my next. 



For the Farmers' Cabinet, 

 The Treatment of sick Animals. 

 There are so many erroneous notions pre- 

 valent in the community, respecting injured 

 or diseased domestic animals, and such unna- 

 tural and injurious practices as a consequence 

 of these incorrect views, that no apology is 

 necessary for an attempt to subserve the cause 



and interests of these useful creatures, who, 

 if they had tongues to speak, would tell sad 

 tales of the wrongs to which they have been, 

 and still are, too often subjected. 



We do not propose to give an essay on the 

 particular cases that require attention — our 

 object is rather, very briefly to ask the own- 

 ers of domestic animals to be guided by a few 

 correct principles, which are applicable to 

 nearly all cases, and which will at least pre- 

 vent our doing harm, where we are not able 

 to effect much good. 



In the first place, then, we would insist, 

 that when an animal is well he never requires 

 any medicine — and when he is sick, we would 

 protest against his being dosed with articles 

 that are said to be " good" for a particular 

 disease, without any reference to its violence 

 or the symptoms, as common sense would dic- 

 tate; that remedies the most opposite in their 

 character and effects, may be equally advan- 

 tageous in different periods of a case. 



Always distrust the man and the remedy, 

 when your friend declares that an article is 

 always "good^^ or a " certain cure''' for a dis- 

 ease, without reference to its symptoms — pre- 

 scribing for the name of the disease, rather 

 than the disease itself — this is the very es- 

 sence of quackery, in man or beast. 



A large proportion of the diseases of ani- 

 mals closely resemble those of the human 

 family, and require a treatment conducted 

 upon the same general principles — with some 

 variations and some peculiarities, it is true, 

 but none of those outrageous departures from 

 common sense, which are too frequently wit- 

 nessed. 



A horse with pleurisy, or inflammation of 

 the lungs, or apoplexy, requires a widely dif- 

 ferent treatment from one with colic or with 

 worms. There is no more mystery about the 

 diseases of a horse or an ox than about those 

 of a man, and a violation of natural laws is 

 as productive of pain and injury in one as 

 the other. 



There is too great a propensity, every- 

 where, to resort to active treatment in all 

 cases — a feeling that is encouraged by the 

 ignorant or designing for selfish purposes. — 

 An adviser in sickness is often most useful, 

 and shows most skill where he only tells what 

 is to be avoided, and waits for indications for 

 more active measures — doing little more than 

 preventing ignorant but well-meaning per- 

 sons from interfering with the salutary changes 

 that may be going on. 



Remember, that there is a restorative power 

 in nature, to which it is always better to 

 trust, than to direct active remedies without 

 knowing for what particular purpose they are 

 given. 



There is never occasion for the adminis- 

 tration of the disgusting combinations which 



