Litchfield enquirer., 1857-08-20
Letter from Timcthv Bunker, Esq.

Letter from Timothy Bunker, Esq.
 HIS VIEWS OF PAsTURIsG CATTLE IN THE ROAD.
 MR. EDITOR You see I was so busy last
 month, planting, and getting things started
 for the Summer, that l didn't find minutes
 tune to Write to any body, and hardly to be polite to my neighbcrs l wish all my neigh
 DOTS had been as busy, and as slack on polite ness as myself But no sooner had the grass
 begun to start in the Spring, than some of them began to send along their compliments by their cattle, as much as to say, By your leave, MT. Bunker, will keep your lawn in l front of the house we'll cut and shaven, and won't ask you any thing for the job" counted on Saturday, at least dozen animals in the road There was Jake Frink's horse and colt, and Bill Bottoms drove of yearlings and uncle Jonathan Sparrowgrasss two cows besides two or three other folks COWS that should not like to mention ill the same con- pany.
 Now you see, MT. Editor, if mans going to be polite at all, it is always best to attend to 1t n person. This sending along civilities by stray cattle is rather doubtful courtesy. It might happen, you know, that the shaving of ones lawn down to the roots, would not be acceptable and if it were, a second civility ill the shape of the hogs to turn tie sod of the lawn bottom side up might be little too much of good thing. (You see I have learn to say "la~ns" since have commenced read ing the rapers.)
 Now 1 don't like to say word against my neighbors in general, or the Hookertown peo- pie in particular. But this turning cattle into the street is a piece of bad morals, that is disgrace to any community. It is against the law, and every man has a right to put stray animals in the pound and make the owners pay damages But if one enforces the law, it always makes trouble, and the man who finds his cattle impouuded, always feels aggrieved, and lays up gr'ldse against his coH p.inilg ncighbor. He does not consider that he has himself beer. an offender first, and violated the law. It is clear case, that when streets were laid out, they ceased 10 be private prop ertv and were hencetorth to be held for the public good, to serve simply the purposes of travel. If a man tnrns his cattle into tic highways to feed, he violates the rights of his nelIhbor, as much as if he tErned them into 1 his neighbours pasture. He aprrorrates to his own nSe what belongs to another He not only trespaSscs upon the public domain, but lis cattle become nuisance to the whole neghborhooa. They enter every open gate and yard and frequently become unruly, leap fences and destroy crops at this season of the year The loss of temper from these constant ly recurring rrovocatjons is v,ry great. think Job himself would lave frcttcd some, to have walked up in tue morning, and found dozen cows in Ais corn field
 It is q harbarons practice, and costs the ! community hundred-fo more than all the grass in tue world is worth. We have to make a great deal more fenc" than we should ! need, if every body confined their cattle to their c2rn pastures. Now, every man has to fence all his lands by the road, not for his own conTcnlcnce, but to give few nenurious people the privilege of pasturing their cattle in the 1 road
 You see, Mir. Editor, I em not going to stand this nuisance any longer I shall give Jake Frink and Bl Bottom one fair warning l and after that, if thcir cattle are found in the road, they will 20 to the pound. This kind 0: po!iteness costs too much entirely What do you think of it