The weekly Shasta courier., 1873-01-04
FARM AND GARDEN,

runaway horses, mucn easier indeed than to
put them In practice, we venture the follow
ing hints: If you are in wagon and the
horse takes fright and gets on the full Jump
before you can bring your strength to bear
on the bits, there is nothing for it but to
hold on and try your best to stop him
6 saving" if necessary on the bit Failing
in this, you can perhaps keep him in the
road till his wind gives out. or should
good opportunity occur you may turn him
against fence or the side of house, or in
fact against anything that will stop him.
This last Is dangerous recourse, but we
have seen it done with success. When a
span of horses are running, the difficulty is
increased, and more strength, more skill,
and better luck on the part of the driver
are very desirable qualities. A strong
hand and determined will will nearly al
ways suffice to stop runaways, if nothing
breaks. If the lines break or the bits give
way, an active person may, without much
difficulty, climb over the dashboard, get on
the animals back, and check him by grasp
ing his nose. Leaping from the carriage
while the horse is running is almost certain
to involve more or less injury. An active
person may do it safely, but it is the part of
pluck, and generally that of wisdom, to stay
by the carriage as long as the traces hold.
When the horse is fairly stopped, treat him
kindly, and, if possible, let him stand until
his nerves are quieted.
If a horse is running toward you, courage
and adroitness may enable you to stop him.
If you can secure hold on the reins, or one
of them, near the bits, you are all right.
Hold on, and within few rods at most the
horse will stop unless he is most extraor-
dlnary animal. In the case of span, if
you stop one horse the other must stop, too,
if nothing gives way. We can tell those
who have never tried it, that it is not a
pleasant pastime to stand by the roadside
and watch the approach of a frantic horse,
making calculation the while to catch some
part of the harness. Still it can be done,
and is done many times during every year.
A runaway was stopped in this city short
time ago by boy, who climbed nto the
wagon from behind, passed forward and
along the thills till he could reach the reins,
when he placed himself astride the animal
and stopped him within three squares.
An equestrian has a better chance every
Way to check his horse, than has the driver
of a vehicle. One trouble is, that the mo-
tion of the animal causes his name to stream
out and embarrass the riders hold on the
lines. This, however, is a minor difficulty,
and an equestrian who has firm seat ought
to be able either to check the horse or steer
him clear of all obstacles until he is glad to
stop.-ChriStian Union.
The UNIVERSAL ScRATcHER.-The time
honored story about the Rev. Sydney Smith
is always in season. He used to say +" |
am for all cheap luxuries, even for animals.
Now, all animals have passion for scratch
ing their back-bones; they break down
your gates and your palings to effect this.
| Look there is my universal scratcher--a
sharp-edged pole, resting on high and low
posts, adapted to every height, from horse
to lamb. You have no idea how popular
it is. have not had gate broken since l
put it up. l have it in all my fields"
LME.-Lime is of great efficiency in the
eradication of sorrel from sour land, and its
effects are usually very permanent. A
writer in the Journal Of the Royal Agri-
cultural Society, London, England, says
that he once knew field containing one
hundred and sixty-six acres, which formerly
grew nothing but heath. A good dressing
of lime was applied on the surface of the
sward, which has nearly doubled the value.
This was done several years ago, and to-
tally eradcated the heath The lime to this
day appears in full action; and its effects
annually testify, from the richness and
sweetness of the herbage, that the applca-
ton of the lime entirely changed its charac-
ter for the better.
A GERMAN agricultural paper prints a
plea for long burrows. The turning of the
plow and the commencement of new fur
row require more exertion in the plowman
and the team than continued work on a
straight line; and how great may really be
the loss of time from frequent Interruptions
in short turns may be shown from the fol-
lowing calculations In a field 225 feet
long, five and half hours out of ten are
used in re-directing the plow; with length
of SIS four hours are sufficient for the pur-
pose; and when the plow can proceed with
out interruption for 800 feet, only one and a
half hours of the daily working time are
consumed.
AN AWFUL LONESOME MAN.-In the
shanty which, in California's early days, did
duty as office for the banking, postal and
express business of Wells, Fargo & Co., in
Marysville, there sat, on Saturday evening.
a misanthropic and detected looking individ-
ual whose long and unkempt hair and beard,
cowhide boots and rough dress bespoke the
miner. For over an hour he sat there the
picture Of despair, with not word or look
for any one present. Miners came, left their
dust" took their coin in return and ex-
changed greeting with all present, save the
one morose man whose apathy nothing, it
seemed, could disturb. Finally there enter
ed young miner with beaming face, who,
after completing his business at the coun-
ter, turned to the agent in charge and remark
ed that on the previous Saturday he had
some dealings with the bank, and thought
that some mistake had been made in his ac-
count.
"Guess not" said the agent. "Our cash
was all right, and | reckon we keep our
books pretty straight"
But upon the request of the miner that
the account should be examined, the ac-
count was looked at, and it was found that,
through clerical error, the miner had been
paid Just $50 too much.
"1hat's just what | make it," said the
latter, " and here's your money" With this
he threw down the gold, and received the
thanks of the agent.
While the conversation was in progress
the misanthropic miner had preserved his
look of utter Indifference, but when he saw
the money actually returned, his face bright
ened up, he rose slowly, walked towards the
honest miner with slow and solid step, and
said !:
Young man, don't you feel awful lone
some in this country?"