The weekly standard. (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1865-1867, 1866-05-05
My Farming Experience.
Letter from A. Ward.
New YeRK, March, 1866.

knowledge the receipt OF your letter OF
the 9Th instant, III which you invite me
to deliver an address before your ex-
cellent agricultural society.
feel fattered, and I think I will
/ come.
Perhaps, meanwhile, brief history
of my experience as an agriculturist
will be acceptable; and as that history
no doubt contains suggestions of value
to the entire agricultural community,
[ have concluded to write you through
the press.
I have been an honest old farmer for
some four years.
My farm is in the interior of Maine.
Unfortunately, my lands are eleven
miles from the railroad. Eleven miles
is quite distance to haul immense
quantities of wheat, corn, rye and oats;
but as I haven't any to haul, do not,
after all, suffer, much on that account.
Ny farm is more especially grass
farm.
My neighbors told me so at first,
and, as an evidence that they were sin
cere in their opinion, they turned their
COWS on to it the moment I went off
Occurring"
| The COWS are now quite fat I take
pride in those cows, in fact, and am
glad | own grass farm.
Two years ago tried sheep raising.
I bought fifty lambs, and turned
them loose on my broad and beautiful
acres.
1t was pleasant on bright mornings
to stroll leisurely out on the farm in
my dressing gown, with cigar in my
mouth, and watch these innocent little
creatures as they danced gaily DER the
hillside. Watching their saucy capers
reminded me of caper sauce, and it
occurred to me / should have some very
. fine eating when they grew up to be
''muttons"
My gentle shepherd, Mr.. Eli Per-
kins, said,
eve must have shepherd dogs"
/ had no precise ideas as to what
shepherd dogs were, but I assumed a
rather profound look, and said:
|, eve must, Eli, I spoke to you about
this some time ago"
I wrote to my old friend, DR.. Dexter
Ell. Follet, of Boston, for two shepherd
dogs. He kindly farsook more impor-
tant business to accommodate me, and
the Gogs came foathwith. They were
splendid creatures snuff ooiored, ha-
zel-eyed, long-tailed and sharp-jawed
! We led them proudly to the field.
"Turn them in, Eli" I said.
Eli turned them in.
They "went in" at once, and killed
twenty of my best lambs in about foul
minutes and a half
My friend had made a trifing mis-.
take in the breed of those dogs.
9 Those dogs were not partial to sheep
Eli Pereins was astonished and OBJ.
;, served:
r "Well, did you ever!"
I certainly never did.
: There were pools of blood on the
D green sward, and fragments of WOO
t and raw lamb chops lay around in con-
t fused heaps.
: The dogs would have been sent back
Q to Boston that night had they not
/, rather suddenly died the same after,
9 ternoon of throat distemper. Il
) wasn't swelling of the throat. Il
d wasn't diptheria. 1t was violent
o opening of the esophagus, extending
e from ear to ear
e Thus closed their life stories. Thus
n ended their interesting tails.
!, failed as raiser of lambs. AS 8
sheepist I was not success.
Last summer MIR. Perkins said
"I think we'd better cut some grass
y this season, sir.
: We cut some grass.
IL To me the new-mown hay is very
5 sweet and nice. The brilliant Georg'
is Arnold sings about it, in beautiful
le verse, down in Jersey, every summer
g so does the brilliant Aldrich, at Ports
le N. II. And yet I doubt if Ell
those know the price of a tol
al to-day But new-mown hay
fine thing. 1t is good for ma
ans I.
Il $50 FL I'd four honest farmers to as
sis. .l ] led them ga'ly to th
ss ing to NOW myself.
BE sturdy peasants go roun
= ee afs apped my flashing scytf
cen grass.
be ~ 54 resdy?a said E. Perkins