1853.. THE CULTIVATOR. 221 
f< Ten Thousand,” a French Merino Sheep, owned by S. TV. Jewett and H. S. Morse, of Vermont. 
This wonderful Earn is the admiration of all who behold him; he is only a yearling, and weighs 224 lbs., with 
a thick coat of wool, as you see, standing all over him. He has fairly drawn the wool over his own eyes. Is 
owned by S. TV. Jewett and H. S. Morse, and may be seen at the World’s Fair in the city of New-York. S. W. J 
Training Steers. 
A subscriber inquires what is the best way to break 
steers? To this interrogatory, we say, in the first place, 
w r e do not like the term, unless, as is often the ease, in 
bringing animals to the yoke, he wishes to break their 
necks. In that case, we would recommend to have 
them grow as wild as possible, until they are two or 
three years old, and then, by a sudden and powerful 
effort, try to accustom them to the yoke in the most 
wild, harem sc-arem manner possible. In this way, the 
chances are ten to one that they will soon be broke final¬ 
ly and effectually. 
Freak steers , is an old and very common phrase, we 
are aware ; but as time-honored as it is, and as often as 
our friends and fathers have used it, and as kindly as 
they have transmitted it down to us, we do not like it. 
Breaking boys ! What an expression that would be in an 
age of refinement, when the fact in the case assured us, 
that the wholesome process gone through with, simply 
meant to educate them. To teach them to forsake what 
is wrong, and practice what is right for its own pure 
sake. So we consider the process which accustoms the 
animal to enter the stall, and the steer to submit to 
the yoke and practice the operations peculiar to oxen, 
a system of education and nothing else. 
Then we would say of animals as well as men, if you 
would thoroughly and easily educate them, commence 
while they are young. In both cases, if this matter is 
delayed, both animals, the biped and the quadruped, 
grow wild and less approachable, bad habits are apt to 
insihuate themselves, indolence becomes characteristic, 
insubordination takes deep root. 
So then, we suppose, and our experience goes to es¬ 
tablish the theory, that the earlier steers are trained to 
the yoke and the habits they are to exercise when grown 
to oxen, the more useful, valuable animals they will 
become. We have seen steers accustomed to the yoke, 
learned to draw light burthens on small sleds, and on 
the ground—indeed to perform all the feats that old and 
w r ell educated dignified oxen are expected to perform, 
the winter before they were a year old. It looks like 
small business, we know, to be teaching so young ani¬ 
mals to haw and gee, to back, turn round and go for¬ 
ward at your pleasure. But it is light, easy labor, to 
learn them these things then—a great saving of manual 
labor from what it is ever after. They are more tractable, 
.and submit to teaching without the fear which comes of 
age; and then, they acquire habits of gentleness, which 
will ever after operate to their benefit. These first 
teachings are never forgotten. If initiated in these 
things in calf-hood, they will remember them in steer 
and ox-hood, will always be better and more valuable 
animals, frequently of larger size than if left to run 
wild until the age of two or three years. This is shown, 
from the fact that the more domestic and docile an ani¬ 
mal is, the less food it will consume to acquire a given 
amount of weight. Who ever saw a wild, bellowing 
animal, the fear of all who approached it, and afraid of 
coming into near approach of civilized man or beast un¬ 
less it were in token of warfare, well clad with flesh— 
of fine and silky hair? 
When we were in the habit of raising steers, it was 
our first practice to learn them to lead by a rope, fas¬ 
tened loosely around their horns. Having them thus 
equipped with the rope in one hand, and a light switch 
in the other, we indoctrinated them in the act of going 
and stopping—hawing and geeing when we pleased, and 
what was more, of teaching them by kindness, that 
they had nothing to fear but much to hope from us, for 
we always gave them a good lock of sweet hay when 
the lessons of the day w T ere over. After one or two les¬ 
sons of one or two hours each, in this way, we yoked 
them, and with the rope still on the horns of the near 
steer, learned them to act together—accustoming them 
to the chain and neap as circumstances dictated. A few 
lessons, which must be a mere pastime for boys to give, 
inculcated in this w^ay, will settle the matter with them 
forever. They will come to you more readily when you 
visit their pasture through the grazing season, and the 
next winter they will come to the yoke, almost without 
labor or any of the risks to your own life and limbs, or 
danger to themselves, which would be consequent on a 
wild stout pair. 
The habit of learning all horned animals to lead, 
while young, we consider one cf great importance to the 
farmer, for if once learned they will never forget it. 
It renders them much more docile, and often in the hurry 
of a busy season, it may save the strength and labor of 
one or two men, running and foaming to remove them 
from one place to another, while a single boy may lead 
them leisurely and easily along. Yours truly, TV. B. 
