11 



sight, and ere a quarter of the journey was performed by the steady old grey, 

 already had the youth put one-half the road behind him. Thus they journeyed 

 on, until at length the old man, on looking up, thought he discerned in the dis- 

 tance a dark, moving spot, which suggested to his mind the possibility of his 

 young friend having met with some accident, and had been compelled to mod- 

 erate his speed. As he progressed the dark spot became more distinct, until at 

 last it assumed the form and aspect of a horse and rider, which soon thereafter 

 resolved itself into what had been at the start his dashing companion ; bat alas, 

 how changed ! Where were now the the freshness, vigor, and impatient con- 

 fidence which characterized the outset ? Where the spirit, elegance, and proud 

 assurance of the start ? Gone ! all gone ! and in their stead, pallor, exhaustion 

 and dismay ! And so they both reached the appointed goal at the same in- 

 stant of time ; the black steed and its rider, broken, strained and weary ; and 

 the old man and his plodding servant, tired, it is true, but ready for a future 

 journey. 



So interwoven with and dependent on the brute creation is the prosperity, 

 and even life of mankind, that often the meanest insect and bird stands sentinel 

 over their property. It would astonish and confound an individual addicted to 

 the wanton destruction of little birds, for example, to learn the value to agri- 

 culture of these seemingly insignificant creatures. Permit me to cite an exam- 

 pie of the unappreciable utility of only one of them — the martin — a species of 

 sparrow. From the 15th of April to the 29th of August, eighteen of these birds 

 were once killed, in the stomachs of which were discovered not less than 8,690 

 insects, destructive to the produce of the farm ; which gives for each day and 

 bird a total of 483 insects destroyed. Even though the senseless butchery of 

 these feathered friends of man were done under the pretense of supplying food 

 for the table ; imagine, if you can, how many bushels of wheat, or barrels of 

 wine or bales of cotton are represented in each of these little victims ! Nor is 

 this war of extermination carried on alone by men, but children, of that age, 

 as La Fontaine says, "which is without pity," take part in this wanton savage- 

 ry by destroying the nests, and killing the helpless young of these unpaid ser- 

 vants of the tillers of the soil. The sight of a beautiful bird sporting among the 

 trees and flowers is regarded by these thoughtless idlers as a mere target, formed 

 by the Creator for them to mutilate and kill. But let us consider for a moment 

 what we protect when we defend the brute creatures. In 1860 there were in 

 the United States 9,000,000 of horses and mules, 29,000,000 of neat cattle, 

 2^,000,000 of sheep, 37,000,000 of swine. Their aggregate value was $1,000,- 

 000,000, having doubled in ten years. Their annual revenue, calculating 12,- 

 000,000 of working horses, mules, and y(^kes of oxen at 50 cents per day for 

 300 working days only, is one billion, eight hundred millions of dollars per an- 

 num ! To this must be added their flesh and other products of their bodies, 

 making a total revenue of over $2,000,000,000, almost as much as our national 

 debt ! That from fowl and fish is proportionally great. 



A few years ago the farmers of New England were unwise enough to kill 

 a certain race of birds which eat a little of their grain ; and the result of their 

 folly was that the entire hay crop of that season was destroyed ; and later still, 



