380 



NEW E N G L A N D F A R M E R . - 



MAV 13 t<4' 



MISCELLANEOUS 



THE PARMER. 



A farmer's liTe if llie lifr Trir mf>, 



I own I love it dearly ; 

 And every season full of glee, 

 I take its labors cheerly — 



To plough or sow, 



To reap or mow, 

 Or in the ham to thresh, sir. 



All 's one to me, 



I plainly see 

 'T will bring me health and cish, sir. 



The lawyer leads a harrass'd life, 



Much like the hunted otter; 

 And 'tween his own and others' strife, 

 He 's alwavs in hot water — 



For foe or friend, 



A cause defend, 

 However wrong it be, sir, 



]n reason's spite, 



Maintain 't is right— 

 And dearly earn hie fee, sir- 



The doctor 's styled a gentleman, 

 But this I hold but humming ; 

 For, like a tavern-wiiiing man. 

 To every call '* he 's coming" — 

 Now here, now there, 

 Must he repair, 

 Or starve, sir, by denying — 

 Ijike death liimself, 

 Unhappy elf, 

 He lives by others' dying 



A farmer's life, then, let me live, 



Obtaining, while F lead it. 

 Enough for self, and some to give. 

 To such poor souls as need it. 



T '11 drain and fence. 



Nor grudare expense. 

 To give my land good dressing 



I 'II plough and sow," 



Or drill in row, 

 And hope from heaven a blessing. 



ENCOUNTER WITH A BLIND BUFFALO. 



A writer of some very intere.sting papers in the 

 New Orleans Picayune, entitled 'Piairie Sketches,' 

 gives the following account of killing a blind Btif- 

 falo : — 



" These animals, althoug'h numerous, are seldom 

 seen by the travellers, and their strange peculiarity 

 ofrunningina circle is but little krvown. Old 

 hunters, who were with us when we happened to 

 cro.'ss one, declared that it was the first they had 

 ever seen, and their fright was as great as the tnost 

 ine.xperienced among us, when the huge beast sud- 

 denly left its circle and dashed headlong towards us. 



It was soon after commencing 'Oiir afternoon trav- 

 el, one warm day in August, tirat we discovered 

 one of these singular creatures, directly in our 

 path. When it first appeared we were much per- 

 plexed to determine what it could be, seeming in 

 tlie distance no larger than a wolf or an antelope, 

 yet being so deeply black we concluded it must 

 be some other animal. As we approached, how- 

 ever, we soon distinguished the enormous hump 

 and peculiar motion of the buffalo. Still we knew 

 not how to account for the creature's running so 



continually in a circle, and we supposed it must be 

 battling with wolves that wore seeking to slay and 

 devour it. Six of us rode forward, and when about 

 two miles in advance of the caravan we were suffi- 

 ciently near the buffalo to perceive that there was 

 no other animal, small or large, in siglit. We now 

 slackened om- pace and advanced slowly, wonder- 

 ing at tlie extraordinary fancy wliich seemed to 

 have entered the linge noddle of this wild monarch 

 of the wilderness. 



We approached to within three or four hundred 

 yards oflhc brute, and our surprise still increased 

 at finding that it did not run from us, but all heed- 

 less of our presence, kept on coursing and widen- 

 ing its circle. The curious siglit caused much 

 merriment among us, and, cracking jokes (ipon the 

 poor beast, we continued to advance, wondering 

 how near his eminence would suffer us to approach 

 before he would take to his heels. 



Our jests continued until within less tlian a hun- 

 dred yards of the solitary old bull, and then our 

 merriment was suddenly changed to utter cmister- 

 nation; for tlie beast made a quick pause in its cir- 

 cular race, gave the peculiar blow with its nostrils, 

 and then, instead of taking to flight as we antici- 

 pated, it broke from the circle and came running 

 towards us, with its wild, fiendish looking head bent 

 downwards, ready to gore with its short tliick horn, 

 any object in its path. Our little party, riding so 

 compactly together, was instantly scattered farand 

 wide, and the enraged beast, when it could no long- 

 er snuff our presence, resumed its circle as before. 



The old travellers who were with us, now re- 

 membered the stories they had heard of the blind 

 buffalo, and it was very evident that the creature 

 before us was in this condition, by which its singu- 

 lar conduct was accounted for. The animal was 

 old, its meat was not good, we did not want its skin, 

 and were tired of the game of killing the poor 

 beasts for mere sport; yet the wagons were ad- 

 vancing, and should the furious beast rush among 

 the mules, great mischief might ensue, so that it 

 became imperative upon us to kill the old blind 

 bull in self-defence. This, however, we found to 

 be a more diificult task than any we had yet under- 

 taken in the way of hunting, for though we could 

 without danger, get sufficiently near the animal to 

 strike it with our balls, yet its movements were so 

 uncertain that a dozen shots were lodged in other 

 parts of its body before we planted one in its liver, 

 the most vulnerable spot about the buffalo, and that 

 at which the arrow of the Indian and the ritle of 

 the American is always aimed. 



The thick blood gushed from the bull's mouth, 

 and we gathered near to see the poor brute die. 



Weak and choked with blood, it would pause an 

 instant, start again and run a few steps, stagger, 

 strike at the air with its horns, drop upon its fore 

 knees, and then again rise and dash furiously at 

 tlie hunter who had ventured nearest. This beast 

 died harder than any that we had killed during the 

 whole journey. It lived full half an hour after the 

 blood spouted from its moutli, and would have lived 

 longer but that we determined to end its sufferings 

 with another shot. A rifle was levelled at the spot 

 directly beneath the shoulder blade, another about 

 four inches from the bone, and almost instantaneous- 

 ly with the report, the jioor bull gave a short blow 

 from his nostrils and fell, boring its horns into the 

 ground and tearing up the earth in great fury. We 

 dismounted to examine more nearly the sightless 

 orbs of the beast. The head of no other creature 

 that the writer ever saw, resembled so nearly the 



idea that we are apt fo conceive of his Satanic maj- 

 esty. Short, thick, curling horns, almost hidden in 

 masses of black wool, eyes that glare like balls of 

 polished ebony, whose very want of expression ex- 

 cites fearful ipiaginings : i:nd added to this the 

 desolate region wiiich is its habitation, where it 

 seems neither to herd or have sympathy with any 

 other creature of Qod's creation. The eyes of this 

 old bull were not black, but while and sightless, 

 and issuing humors which seemed to us like tears, 

 as the poor beast lay upon its side, stietching out 

 its limbs in death, and yielding its last sigh to the 

 green prairie that it was leaving forever. 



But. — Some people always have a hut which they 

 put in tiie way of every thing. Inquiring of such 

 a one the character of his neighbor, he replied — 

 " Why, he is a pooty fair, clever sort of a man — but 

 — hem!" But what? "Why^ — a — liein — why he 

 feeds his darn'd old horse on punkins 1 



SIIV\ SIliK WORMS EGGS. 



The Esgs of the celchiatcd Siaa Silk Worm, now offered 

 for sale, were raised in 133ii by M. Camillc Heanvais, super- 

 intcnilint of the experimental silk lano, cslai.lished near 

 Pans. Iiy the goveranicnt of l''rance. '^I'lic Sina Silk Worm 

 was iniroduf-ed to France from China hy Louis XVI. in 

 1784, ami has been proved by M. Beauvais lo be supe- 

 rior m all oiher silk worms. They arc also stated lo , 

 noss»ss Ihc precious properly of lialching simultaneously. 

 Just received, by the snhscriher, from the Chevalier ijodiii, 

 who is the only agent for their sale in France. 



Each sheet contains an ounce and is signed " Camille 

 Beauvais."v Price S8. 



WILLIAM KENRICK, Newton, 



Or apply to JOSEPH BRF.CK & CO. 



March liS. eptf 



AGRlCUtTt/'RAIi AND HORTICUL.- 

 TURAL. T<»01l,S. 



Just received, at the New Entjlaiid Agricultur il Ware- 

 house and Seed Store, No. 51 and .52 North Market Street, 

 per Ship Chatam, from England, a splendid assortment 

 of Agricultural and Horticultural Implements, viz. 

 mo dozen best Cast Steel Sickles. 

 50 " stout Cast Steel Briur Hooks. 

 25 " Breaking np Hoes. 

 5 " Pruning Chisels with Saws. 

 20 " pair Grass Shears. 

 25 " pair Pr'jtiuig Shears, with slides. 

 25 " pair Ladies Ivory handle do. do. 

 25 " pair Ladies Coco do. do. 



5 " Large Hedge Sliears. 

 25 " Wakefield's Pruning Shears, with slides. 

 10 " Vine Shears. 

 50 '' Large Pruning Knives. 

 25 " Budding do do 

 M " Cast Steel Edging do. 



5 " .'■ " HaV do. 

 40 " " " Garden Trowels. 



20 " Bill Hooks. 

 10 " Furze Bills. 

 10 " Gentleinens Bright Bills. 

 S " '' Horticultural Hatchets. 



SO " Dutch Hoes. 

 April 1. JOSEPH BRECK & COj 



BROUSSA MULBERRY SEED. 



We have recently received 50 Ihs. fresh Broussa Mulberry 

 Seed, which we offer by the ounce or pound. 



March It JOSEPH BRECK & CO. 



FOR SALE HRrjsxCHANGE. 



A valuable farm in Harvard, County of Worcester, the 

 well known Bromfield Place; an excellant dairy farm, well 

 wooded, the house spacious, filled for two di<.iiiict families. 

 The situation among Ihe mosi pleasant to he found, especially 

 lor a|)rivate or High School. Bordering a part of the farm is a 

 heauUful sheet of water, containing; Iwo islands heiouging lo 

 the estate. Inquire of the Suhscntier at South Nalick. 



March 4, 1840. I. H. T. BLANCHARD. 



THE NEW ENGLAND PAliMF.18 



Is published every Wednesday Evening, at S3 per annum 

 payable at the end of the year — hut ihose who pay wilhm 

 sixty days from the time of subscribing are entitled to a re- 

 duction of 50 cents. 



