The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1880-12-03

That COWS acknowledge individuality
among themselves is evident from the
lact that in every herd there is sure to be
one master cow who domineers over all
the rest. Watch the thirsty herd going
to drink at pool on q sultry summer
day, and you will see the master COW
enter first, unopposed by the others,
who, should the pool be small one,
will not presume to join her in it. but
will wait patiently on the bank till she
leaves the water, even though she may
choose 10 remain there, swishing her
tail at the flies and enjoying the cool
bath for her legs, for some time after she
has finished quenching her thirst. To
the human spectator il would seem that
she is selfishly and needlessly prolong-
ing the thirst of her friends; but they
do not resent her self-indulgence, nor
attempt, to hurry her. but only humbly
wait till it shall be her pleasure to make
room for them to 20 and drink. For is
not she their undisputed chief, and shall
not a chief have privilegesP
A contributor to an English journal
tells the following story of the "top
boss" in his herd, named Dulas: She is
neither the biggest, nor ile strongest,
nor Tile longest horned of the party, and
how she has acquired her supremacy we
know not, but we imagine that il must
be through sheer force of character and
will. We one day had an opportunity
of watching her lead her companions to
a place of mischief, which they ali quite
evidently knew to be against the laws
of their human superlors, and therefore
to be done on the sly. if possible. The
cows were in a field adjoining rick
yard, and in the rickyard was an out
house. wherein some mangels were
stored. The field was separated from
the rickyard by hedge, in which was
hurdle; and twice in one day had the
cows broken through the gap. got at
their beloved mangels, and been driven
out again ANONYMOUSLY. Undaurt ed
by this, they made third attack, and
we happened to arrive just in time to see
it done. While the men who had
driven them back to the field were still
near, the cows all pretended to be graz
ing in tranquility as though no higher
ambition than grass had ever entered
their innocent minds. But NO sooner
did the coast appear to be clear, than
off set Dulas toward the hurdle, with
quick and resolute step, shaking her
head with most defiant and jaunty air
as she walked. Instsntly every other
cow left of eating, and followed her, all
evidently perfectly aware of what she
meant to Go. Sticking her horns skill.
fully under a bar OF the hurdle, and
heaving up her head TO extract the hur-
die from the ground, she very soon man.
aged to remove the obstacle. and then
proceeded .triumphantly to the man.
gels, with all her companions at her
heels. Now, in this case, Dulas seems
to have used some reasoning. power; tor
there was no attempt made to batter
down the gate by brute force, and she
had discovered the necessity of lifting
it upward. She has talent for OPEN
ing gates with easy fastenings which is
rather troublesome, putting her horns
in and working head about until she
gets the fastenings undone. And in this,
also, she seems to show reason or OBJ.
servation, for else how would she know
which part of the gate 10 striker