Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 23, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 February 1875 — Unruly Stock. [ARTICLE]

Unruly Stock.

It will bp now but a short time till the growth of the spring grass will make a sweet morsel for the animals that all winter long have been kept upon dry food- And since prudent farmers generally shut off' their stock from the main pastures in the spring till the grass is fairly started, the scanty pickings that afforded in their limited range will hardlj r fail to have the effect of whetting rather, than satisfying the growing appetite. Then are laid the foundations of those habits which, later in the season, bring devastation to the growing wheat and destruction to the young corn, habits against which even Tine fences are nut proof, and which breed quarrels and unpleasantness between adjoining farms. A day spent now by vray of precaution may prevent serious annoyance and avoid injury to valuable crops. ' We are stating what is almost a selfevident proposition in saying that we believe poor and insufficient fences ate the prime cause of unruly stock. Domestic animals are generally quiet by habit and instinct —the result of generations of undisturbed and unhafassed captivity. A young horse ie at first very chary of his powers of jumping, as anyone may readily discover if he chooses. But the same animal, as soon as he has learned his powers, gains confidence very rapidly, and soon astonishes even himself. The farmer who has a bit of low fence in the spring, with a young horse on one side and a piece of green wheat on the other, has taken the best possible means to -teach The-animal to become a jumper, and he will be a very dull colt which does not profit by the lesson. Having once begun to jump, the horse soon learns to get through and over any ordinary barrier, till nothing but an eightrail fence with stake and rider will stop him. Very much like his two-legged friend, the horse is an imitative animal, and this fact is one that should be observed. An old horse which has acquired bad habits, if possible, should be excluded from the range of younger animals. With a leader to take the initiative, the rest soon learn to foil* w. A breachy cow, if there be one in a herd, may find her way akme into an adjacent corn-field, but the chances are ten to one the second time she goes that she will make a way for all the others. We know of no animal that has more cunning in mischief than an old sin-hardened cow; and where such an animal is found, unless she be a remarkable milker, the best and safest way is to take the first convenient opportunity of preparing her for the butcher. Nothing but death can cure her of such propensity, once established. • There is another point that must not be overlooked. If the good qualities of stock may be transmitted by careful breeding, As is unquestionably the case, the bad ones are equally susceptible of inheritance. We know that there are so many other considerations of superior importance that this can hardly claim much weight when anything else stands in its way. But, so far as praoticable, we believe that every farmer and stcckraiser should avoid the perpetuation of the evil qualities of his stock. We have said nothing in this article regarding the various mechanical devices, patented and otherwise, which are designed to break up the habit of jumping and pushing fences after it is already formed. Such contrivances arc not without their uses, but we would have our farmers go farther back than this and devote their attention to prevention, a very . little of which is credited with going a great deal farther than many times the amount of cure.— American Farm Journal. The fashionable color for children in New York this winter is dark brown. It u., odd at first to see wee, toddling thins,, -rayed in this somber tint, but one soon uecomes accustomed to a prevailing style, fortunately, and to see any other-than a brown-clad infant is to see a sad, unfashionable sight. Brown velvet, Norman cap, fitting closeiy around The face and tied under with heavy brown ribbons, brown velvet or velveteen cloak, reaching to the bottom of the dress,and confined at the waist with a sash, huge, rich and brown, of course, and brown woolen or velveteen .leggings. Such ie the only, admissible street toilet for the newest generation. —N. T. Cor. Chicago Tribune.