1870. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



49 



talk or lecturing would be an exception 'o the 

 general practice. In each of these, and all 

 other similar professions, it is customary to 

 put the proper tools of the craft into the 

 learner''s hands, and to set him at work. He 

 may be bungling and awkward at first, — he 

 may even spoil the tools and the stock put 

 into his hands, — but experience in these in- 

 dustries has demonstrated that such a course 

 is the only practicable way to secure profi- 

 ciency or to excite an interest in the business 

 on the part of the learner. 



Perhaps almost every one will say, "all this 

 is well enough and proper enough in the field 

 or in the shop, where two classes, men and 

 boys or journeymen and apprentices, are re- 

 cognized and provided for, but what has it to 

 do with our State Boards of Agriculture, or 

 with the formal meetings ot farmers ? The 

 idea of inducing ordinary farmers' boys to 

 take part in exercises conducted by men dis- 

 tinguished for learning and eloquence, — by 

 Governors, Congres.-men, Professors in col- 

 leges, &c., — is simply impracticable." 



Perhaps so. But is that the plan we are 

 recommending ? Is it the plan that was adopt- 

 ed by the Maine Board of Agriculture ? Did 

 these boys make a speech or read an essay ? 

 We believe they did nothing of the kind. 

 They merely recited their ordinary school les- 

 sons. And jet this simple exercise elevated 

 them to the dignity and the interest of actors, 

 or participators, in the proceedings of the day, 

 and gave the old heads more pleaisure than 

 any of their own performances. 



It is evident, then, that the managers of 

 these assemblages desire the attendance of the 

 young men and boys. With their "old men 

 for counsel," they need "the young men for 

 war," and deeply regret their absence. On 

 the other hand we believe the young men 

 really desire to attend, and that they would 

 be greatly benefited by an attendance under 

 such circumstances as would make them feel 

 that they were at home, and in their place. 

 Why then may not the desire of both be grati- 

 fied? Why may not these two classes be 

 brought together? "Where there's a will," 

 sajs the old adage, "there's a way." Who will 

 point out this way ? 



— An unmarried woman at Virden, 111., owns 

 sevea hundred acres of excellent laud which she 

 paid for by teaching school. 



CABDINQ THE WINTER STOCK. 



Every person who has long been confined 

 by sickness, or by a broken limb, can well ap- 

 preciate how grateful any gentle motion is, 

 that makes the surface all aglow and sends 

 the blood dancing through the veins. They 

 feel younger at once ; a new elasticity of 

 muscle and limb is imparted to them, and 

 with that a buoyancy of mind which brings 

 body and soul into pleasant harmony. 



John Hunter, the most celebrated physician, 

 probably, for many ages, when he told moth- 

 ers of the three cardinal things to be done for 

 infants, viz. : "plenty of milk, plenty of sleep, 

 and plenty of flannel," did not fail to add, 

 alsOj plenty of gentle friction. When his three 

 things have been supplied, nothing is obvi- 

 ously more grateful to the child than to have 

 the body gently exercised by friction. 



Our neat stock, in their winter quarters, are 

 helpless in this respect. They are tied by the 

 neck to a spot three by four feet, where they 

 are doomed to remain most of the time for 

 months in succession. They are provided with 

 a rasp on the tongue, which is intended to sub- 

 serve two or three purposes, one of which 

 is scratching themselves, when inclined to 

 do so. But in their confined position, they 

 are deprived of this luxury, during a large 

 portion of the time. How grateful the privi- 

 lege of licking is, is evident from the constant 

 application of this rasp to their sides and 

 limbs, during the time they are at liberty, 

 daily, in the yard. 



Use the card, then, at least once each day, 

 on every animal in your care, while confined 

 in its winter quarters. Use it gently, be- 

 cause a rough usage excoriates the skin and 

 tortures the beast. Use it generously, not in 

 a hasty and grudging manner, because it not 

 only affords comfort to the cattle, but tends to 

 Ml your oivn purse ! 



Carding tends to make beef, because it keeps 

 the skin sofc, loose and lively, and no animal 

 can fatten readily unless these conditions exist. 



Carding increases the flow of milk, because 

 when the bkin is healthy and active, the pro- 

 cesses of digestion are quicker and more per- 

 fect. 



Carding saves feed, because the better the 

 digestion is, the more nutrition is extracted 

 frora the food eaten, so that the time spent in 

 carding is spent economically. 



