Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1881-08-17
The Human Nature Of Animals.

There is good deal of human nature
about our horned animals. Whether they
have acquired it by being cared for by
man, or whether man sprung from the
lower animals, according to Darwin, is
more than any one can tell.
Let us mention some of the human
traits of animals and then of man, and see
how they compare: Turn down bushel
of potatoes to herd of cattle, and the
nearest one will come up and go to eat
ing, and the next one that comes up will
hook him away, but in going away he is
always sure to run over the pile and
destroy as many as possible. The second
one is hooked away by the third, and he.
also, runs over the pile and destroys as
many as possible, and so goes the whole
herd, until finally one of the meanest
looking animals on the earth, slab-sided,
unruly, ugly old brute that has hooked
them, and kicked them, and snorted at
them, comes up and goes to eating; then
they all stop fighting, stand back and let
him eat They are all perfectly reconciled
and willing to let him have the whole.
This is all very human-like.
Let one of their number get his foot
caught, and he will pull and yank until
he finds that he cannot get away, and then
he will commence believing, and the
whole herd will run for him. and nineteen
out of every twenty will commence to
hook him. and unless the one that does
not wish to hook is able to drive the rest
away. they will hook him until he dies.
Paint your black COW white, or your
white COW black, and the rest of the flock
will chase her and hook her three times
as much rs they would a strange COW.
Let one of them do anything that horned
cattle are not accustomed to do, and the
rest of them will begin to paw and below
and soon they will begin to chase him and
hook him. If the peculiar one has the
strength and courage to turn and fight II
is all right. First one will get it into his
head that it is shame to hurt the poor
fellow, and soon the whole herd will think
it is very wrong to hook. What can be
more human.like than all thisp
In giving the traits of character of man
it can best be done by following boy
from childhood to manhood. For conven.
ience we will call the boy Zachariah
Zachariah was a generous boy but he hat
to wear old Clothes to school, and to say,
a few shillings here and there. so as t,
help reduce his fathers big debts as mucl
as possible. He curtailed his own expense
in every possible way, and even wen
barefoot during the summer seasons unit
long after he was man-grown,
Generosity with old clothes always fare
hard in crowd, and it so happened here
J The other school boys would hide hi
books, cut up his slate frame and tear u
his hat; and they would call him a COW
, ard, fool, a greenhorn and gawky
, Not one of them, of course, ventured an
VloleuCo W hih oJ NhihS hOiu Vi ulu
; for Zachariah was very stout boy; bu
r every day some OF them would thro,
something that was very hard with grea
force against him. and then turn it off i
| laugh. Zachariah endured all this for
Q number of winters without ever once RI
:. taliating, or even speaking one unkin
9 word in self defense; but, in the course {
/. time, they carried it little too far. eve
If for Zachariah. The straw that broke ii
e camers back was thrown on, and Zachi
!, riah gave one of them blow in the fac
j. and made his nose bleed a little. That,
10 course, put an end to such kind of trea
G ment at once and forever. They said th