Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1883-05-23
THE WIDOWS COW.
GREAT SPEECH OF SENATOR
GREER ON THE Cow
QUESTION:"
His Opinion About Fences and
the Fence Law.

When the bill relative to the fence
laws of this State was under discussion
in our State Senate we find the follow
ing among the proceedings
From the Harrisburg Legislative Record.
Senator Wallace policy of the
State has also been to permit the agri-
cultural Iaborer, the miner and the poor
man to have his cow run at large. The
fence was to keep his cow out. If the
fence was not in condition to turn the
animal, under this statute the man
committing a trespass upon the cattle
by injuring them had to pay damages.
| am not ready to change that policy.
I believe in letting the poor mans and
the widows cow run at large.
Senator Greer-So far as the running
at large of cows is concerned, it is not
to the advantage of the owners. L
know there is one man in my nelghbor-
hood that keeps eleven cows running
at large, and / do not believe the
whole eleven cows will give one bucket
full of milk any one day of the year,
and there is one old cow there that can
stand on the other side of the street
and open my front gate, her horns have
got 80 long, and it is the hardest thing
in the world to milk her.
A cow that runs at large in Penn
sylvania has very poor feed; and the
first thing she learns is how to open
gates, and the next thing she learns is
how to climb over fence and get into
a corn field and stay there. You may
let down the bars and try to drive her
out with two or three Newfoundland
dogs and you cannot do it. She is
apparently blind to the open place in
the fence and goes in the other direction
every time, and if you have good corn
or nice garden, that cow will be into
it. If you keep cow regularly in
good pasture she will not jump a fence
three feet high; but if you get one of
these widows or miners cows, who
knows what it is to root, hog, or die, "
and turn her out to grass where there
is no grass, turn her out to pasture
where there is no pasture, and turn her
out to trespass upon other peoples
rights and other peoples gardens and
other peoples corn-felds, and you will
find a cow that is not worth driving
home, with horns like my arms, as
long at least, though perhaps not quite
so thick; and the very cow that will
jump any fence in the country, that is
not worth driving home in the evening,
and that is not worth milking, and in
stead of those children, poor widows
children, getting milk and cream and
butter from that COW, all those children
get is a little exercise, hunting that
cow in The evening.
1t requires $40 rods of fence to en-
close an ordinary farm of 160 acres Of
land-more than two miles of fence,
and you cannot build a board fence for
less thrn 50 rod That will come to
$3.50 that the farmer must take out Of
his pocket to build an outside fence
around his farm. Why? To keep
out some widows cow 1t seems to
me the farmer could better afford to
furnish the widow with cream and but
ter all the year round, and save money
by it every year. Why, the interest
on this money, MIR. President. will
come to $75 a year. He might buy
the widows COW, furnish the widow
with cream, and give the widow milk
and butter every Saturday, and both
the widow and the farmer be o good
deal better Off"
The above is the greatest effort our
Senator has yet made. 1t was in fact
the greatest effort of his life." His
constituents here at home are perfectly
delighted with it; and they rejoice
that question finally arose in the
Senate that enabled him to display
those vast but hidden powers of intel
lect that he is known to possess. To
grapple with great question requires
a great mind and great craftsmanship.
But the theme was grand no less q
one than that of "cows running at
large" Our Senator proved himself
equal to the occasion, and the widows
cows went flying in every direction.
What just the widows and the poor
man, owning cow, may think of this
war upon the poor privilege Of their
running at large, is another question.
Our Senator appears to have an an
tipathy to the cow. They seem 10
have been annoying him opening his
gate from across the street, etc. Then,
there is "man in his neighborhood
that keeps eleven cows running at large
that do not give one bucketfnl of milk
any one day of the year" This should
be looked into and that man brought to
public account. The Senator seems
familiar with tie cows of his neighbor-
hood-says one is "hard to milk"
How did he come to know that fact ?
Being raised among COWS, and familiar
with them, we can only account for his
hostility to them on the supposition,
that at some time in his life he may
have been mistaken by some cow for a
green think-a pumpkin perhaps.
But we cannot do justice 10 this sub
iect. Let all read this great speech of
Senator Greer's. 1t glistens with
bright thoughts, has rare elegance OF
diction, clothed in fact in the purest
AddsoniaR English. On reading it,
Virgll's Bucolics are recalled, in which
the lowing OF the herds in those
pastoral poems is so we'll described,
but all sadly out of harmony with this
present onslaught on the "poor widows