FACT NUMBER ONE. 17 



separable from the nature of things and the relation of the 

 animal system to the earth. 



Where any doubt has existed, or where thought has been 

 exerted on the subject, all has been referred to some peculi- 

 arity in the character of our country, — the nature of our soil 

 or our climate, — the breed of our milch stock, or the immedi- 

 ate effect of sin in our world ; and, therefore, in any case 

 there could be no remedy except patient endurance and be- 

 coming submission. 



In the end, however, observation first opened the way to 

 enquiry ; this led to experiment, and experiment soon tram- 

 pled all vague suppositions under foot, placing the whole sub- 

 ject under the easy and absolute control of every man who 

 sees fit to exert his senses or employ his wits. 



Experiments have proved, beyond all controversy, that the 

 Slobber Grass acts upon the cow very much as calomel ope- 

 rates upon the human system, though the slobbering does 

 not appear so abundant as in the case of the horse. It is 

 found to create a fever, followed by a loss of energy; to viti- 

 ate the blood; diminish the quantity and debase the quality 

 of the milk ; run into the butter, giving it the appearance and 

 even the taste of hog's lard; and into the butter-milk, giving 

 it a watery consitency and an impoverished taste. It is 

 also believed to sensibly impair the health of those who, in 

 that condition of the cow, use her milk in any way, inducing 

 probably the disease called the Milk Sickness. 



At all events, the disease soon runs the animal into the 

 Scowers, the same as the horse, and then into the Yellow 

 Water, or the overflow of the gaul, which generally termi- 



3 



