153 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
“HAPPY AS A KIN G.”— From a Painting by Walter Goodall. 
(Engraved for the American Agriculturist.) 
The Editor with his Young Readers. 
Happy as a King. 
All! little lads and lasses, kings and queens in 
their coaches might well envy you the happiness of 
your glorious ride on the old form gate. All the 
splendid carriages, and prancing horses with gilt 
harness, the richly clad servants, the brilliant uni¬ 
forms of soldiers, the jewels, and other magnificent 
show which kings possess, what are these compared 
with the glorious woods, the waving grass, the beau¬ 
tiful flowers, the bright blue sky, and the joys of 
youth ?-Do our young readers remember what 
the Great Teacher said about Solomon in all his 
glory ? A single lily of the field is decked with 
greater splendor than the richest king could boast. 
But even if one could dress himself as finely as the 
choicest flower, that alone could not make him 
happy. The little son of the Emperor Napoleon 
was one day observed to leave all his costly play¬ 
things and stand by the window, thoughtful and 
sad. Some one asked him “ Why are you unhappy, 
what are you thinking of?” “ Oh !” he replied, “if 
you will only take all my playthings, and let me run 
out and play with the boys there, I shall be so hap¬ 
py.” The children he envied were busy around 
a puddle, making dirt pies ! while he must be kept 
like a bird iu a gilt cage, because he was son of the 
Emperor. So you perceive that something more 
than what money can buy, is needed to give pleas¬ 
ure.-Happiness depends more on what is in 
us, than on what is around us. Health, activity, a 
quiet conscience, and contentment with one’s lot, 
will bring joy in almost any place. The children in 
the picture are not rich, as you can see by their 
tattered clothing and bare feet, but they are full of 
life, they have no anxiety for the future, and it is a 
pleasure to look at them. Even the little one who 
has caught a fall, is too happy to mind it, and the 
very dog enters into the spirit of the frolic. The 
old gate is strong and able to bear them, and they 
do not appear like children who are doing a for¬ 
bidden act, by swinging upon it. That would spoil 
all their enjoyment. We think the artist might 
well change the title of the picture, so as to read, 
“Happierthan any King.” 
“ I Didn’t Think.” 
So said George, when his father reproved him for 
neglect. He had been sent to drive the cows to a 
new pasture. The field next to the pasture was 
planted with corn, and George’s father had given 
him particular directions to see that the bars were 
put up between the two fields, so that the cattle 
could not pass through and destroy the corn. But 
on his way there he was thinking more of frolicking 
with his dog, than of doing his errand, and just as 
he had turned the cows into the lot, a red squirrel 
came running along the fence, and away went the 
boy and dog, in pursuit. They had quite an excit¬ 
ing race to an adjoining wood, where the squirrel 
sprang up into a tall hemlock tree, and was soon 
out of sight. By this time George had forgotten all 
about putting up the bars ; and having nothing else 
to do, he went down to the brook that ran through 
the woods and played for an hour or more before 
returning home. He had been there but a short 
time when a neighbor, who had just passed the corn¬ 
field, came in to say that the cows were there doing- 
much damage. Then George started and ran as 
quickly as possible to drive them out, but they had 
already destroyed more corn than he could have 
paid for by working a month. When his father repri¬ 
manded him severely, he replied “I didn’t think.” 
His father perceived that George endeavored to 
excuse himself on the plea of a poor memory, and 
resolved to teach him the lesson, that it was his 
duty to think —particularly when entrusted with a 
charge. The next day he visited the city, and 
George, who had long had the promise of a gun with 
which to shoot crows and-squirrels from the corn¬ 
field, begged him to get it then. On his return 
at night, George’s first question was, “ Have you 
bought the gun, father?” “Oh, I don’t think,” 
was the reply. Poor George was greatly disappoint¬ 
ed, but his father had said the words in such a way, 
that he saw what was meant, and he felt the reproof 
keenly, for he knew he deserved it. The following 
morning, he went to his father, when he was alone, 
and said softly, “ Father, I will think , hereafter,” 
“ I trust you will,” was the reply—“ but since you 
have learned the lesson I intended, I will now finish 
what I commenced saying last night. I broke off 
in the middle of the sentence, to set you to think¬ 
ing. The whole answer to your question whether 
I bought the gun, is, I didn’t think best to give it 
[May, 
to you, until you could give better heed to youl 
duty; you will find the gun in my bed-room.” 
George used often to say afterward, that every tima 
he fired the gun, it seemed to say to him, “ Think.” 
Speak Gently. 
A loud boisterous tone shows a want of good 
breeding. The first principle of politeness is to 
make those about you feel pleasant, and a rude 
coarse manner of speaking is annoying to most 
persons. A good anecdote is related of a man, who 
went by the name of “ Whispering John,” which 
was given to him in ridicule. People said he talk¬ 
ed as though he were brought up in a mill. One 
cold morning he walked into a public house, and 
called out in his usual thundering voice: 
“ Good morning, landlord, how are you ?” 
“ Very well, how do you do?” 
“ Oh, I’m well, but I’m so cold, I can hardly talk.” 
Just then a nervous traveler who was present, 
ran up to the landlord, exclaiming: “ Please have 
my horse brought as soon as possible.” 
“ Why, what is the matter ?” asked the landlord. 
“ Nothing,” replied the traveler, “ only I want 
to get away before that man thaws." 
An amusing Dog Lawsuit. 
Our young readers have probably all heard of the 
famous lawsuit about the cracked kettle, in which 
the defendant’s lawyer claimed : 1. That his client 
never had the kettle. 2. That it was cracked 
when he borrowed it; and 3., That it was whole when 
he returned it. The Ladies’ Repository gives a still 
stronger case : A fat old gentleman was bitten iu 
the calf of his leg by a dog. He rushed to a Justice 
of the Peace, and sued a man whom he supposed to 
be I lie owner of the offending cur. The defendant, 
who was somewhat of a wag, offered the following 
defence: 1. By testimony in favor of the general 
good character of my dog, I shall prove that noth¬ 
ing could make him so forgetful of his canine dig¬ 
nity as to bite a calf. 2. He is blind, and can not 
see to bite. 3. Even if he could see to bite, it would 
be utterly impossible for him to go out of his way 
to do so, on account of his severe lameness. 4. 
Granting his eyes to be good, he has no teeth. 5. 
My dog died six weeks ago. 6. I never had a dog. 
The Armadillo. 
During- the travels of our friend, Mr. A. O. Moore, 
in Central America, he obtained the skin or shell of 
one of these singular animals, which he kindly pre¬ 
sented to the office of the. American Agriculturist. 
It has been stuffed and placed on exhibition in our 
window, where it attracts no little attention. In 
shape the Armadillo resembles a pig with a long 
body, short legs and a long tail. The picture above; 
which we have sketched from him, is a fair likeness. 
He is covered, except a little of the underside, with- 
a complete coat of mail, composed of horny scales- 
overlapping each other like the shingles on a roof. 
These are united so as to form three complete buck¬ 
lers. The two bucklers covering the body, are con¬ 
nected together at the loins of the animal, by mova¬ 
ble plates made of the same horny material. This 
enables him to move about freely. The head is cov¬ 
ered with a separate buckler. 
The arrangement of the armor so nearly resem¬ 
bles that which was worn by soldiers before the in¬ 
vention of gunpowder, that one would suppose 
men had obtained their pattern for it from the ar¬ 
madillo, were it not that the creature is not an in¬ 
habitant of countries where such armor was worn 
