66 THE COMPLETE FARMER 



raged ; and he hardly ever spoke to them louder than in a 

 low tone of common conversation. He would frequently 

 talk to them soothingly, and encourage them when he had a 

 hard job on hand, which was often the case. After making 

 a heavy pull he would sometimes pat them on the back, but 

 I rarely ever knew him to strike or worry his team. He 

 carried a slender goad with a short lash to guide them with, 

 and a mere swing of the whip was sufficient for his purposes. 

 I have known several such persons in my life, and I do not 

 hesitate to say that any person who so manages his team 

 will get more labor at less expense, and with more ease to 

 himself, than by the ordinary bawling, whipping method so 

 much practised in our country. All the difference with these 

 people is, that the one understands and studies the nature and 

 disposition of his animals, and the other does not. " An 

 even temper and a steady hand" ought to be the teamster's 

 motto, the world over.' 



The following valuable observations on the subject of 

 breaking steers and colts are extracted from a communication 

 written for the New England Farmer, by Mr. James Walker, 

 of Fryeburgh, Maine, and published in that paper, volume xii. 

 p. 113. 



' I call my young cattle cdves till they are one year old. 

 I have a little yoke made with a staple and ring in it. I 

 tell my little boys to yoke up their calves : a small boy can 

 do it, and it is quite a pastime to them; they being so 

 young, are not so strong but that he can manage them with 

 ease ; any small stick or twig answers to drive them with, 

 and there is no danger of the boy or steers being hurt. 

 When he can drive them where he wishes them to go, which 

 will soon be the case, he will hitch them to a small piece of 

 wood, or if in winter put them to a hand-sled, and drive 

 round with that ; they will soon become docile. There is 

 no trouble with them afterward, especially if they are yoked 

 a few times the second winter ; it makes them fond of their 

 mates. Oxen that are trained when young are much more 

 pliable and obedient, which adds much to their value : steers 

 that run till they are three or four years old are dangerous 

 animals to encounter with ; they are always running away 

 with the cart or sled whenever there is a chance for them, 

 and often serious injury is the result. I would not recom- 

 mend working steers hard wyie young, as it would prevent 

 their growth : there is a diherence between working them 

 and barely trailing them. 



