Woodville Republican. (Woodville, Miss.) 185?-current, 1889-03-02
HoUTHRRN AGRICULTURAL


Farwgrs and Fast Horses.
There Is a constautly-growiag craze
among farmers for fast horses. This
g not confined to farmers Of means,
who have time and money to indulge
the taste without seriously impairing
tneir working capital; but, like most
crazes, it infests all classes, from the
richest to the poorest. The farmer who
is able to keep but one team must often
have them speedy, and will speed them.
too, no matter how much hard work
they have to do. He can put up with
their ineficiency as work horses, pro-
vided they are able to make their mile |
in the required number of minutes and
seconds.
There are more farm horses killed
by fast driving than by hard work.
Horses will stand great deal OF
steady hard work on the farm. They
will last many years longer at this
work than If put into livery stable
and driven irregularly, as such horses
usually are. But when you work
horse hard in the fields, and drive
him hard on the roads too, on every
possible occasion, he can't in the
natural order OF things, stand the
pressure very long time. A good
share OF foundered, wind-broken,
and otherwise used-up horses Of the
country, result directly from this
treatment.
It is not in the nature Of the average
american to allow any thing to go by
him on the road If he can possibly help
it No one wants to go crawling along
the road at snairs pace, while at the
same time it looks Unfortunately foolish
TO see the usually staid, easy-going
farmer flying along on ordinary oc-
casions at a three-minute gait.
When our old men, who ought to
have something better to occupy their
heads and hands, will spend good
share of their time indulging this taste
for fast horse-hesh, what can you ex-
pect of the young men and boysP
1t is getting so that farmer
boy is considered smart in pro-
portion to his knowledge of the
good points and capabilities of horse.
The consequence is that he often COM
mences at a very tender age to affect
Jockey manners and show marked
fondness for "horse talk" He soor
acquires the jockey style OF address,
wears his hair in the latest jockey
style, and looks knowingly out from
under jockey cap. Heis encouraged
in these precocious manifestations by
his indulgent and admiring elders, unit
he is firmly anchored in the belief tina
to be good horseman is the height o
earthly ambition. He may take par
an the ordinary avocatiOns OF the farm
but he can hardly think to tall
of any thing besides "horse." Hi
reading is chiefly confined to tn,
sporting papers, and he knows to tn,
fraction of second the time of ever,
horse that has made record since tn
earliest days Of horse trOtting II
probably doesn't know a decimal iron
common fraction-and why shoul
he, so long as he can reckon on sto
watchP
A love of well-bred animals shout
be encouraged, for it will surely wor
about an improvement in our farI
animals; but we are neglectiag othe
departments in this craze after tn
horse, and more especially on the fas
horse question? Why not max
the well-formed, well-bred, activ
work-horse and roadster the desidel
alum for awhilep 1t would certain
ly be a welcome and beneficial change
And by degrees, if it can't be done I
once, let us transfer little of OF
pride and attention to other farm stOc
that now languish in neglect.
The mania among farmers for ia
horses is certainly resulting in loi
financially A man who goes in f,
this sort of thing is never satisfied,
there is any show for q barter I
trade wherein there seems to be
ahance to get faster stopper T
win leave any kind of work in ord,
to push a trade through. Consta
iockeying of this kind does not tend
,levate a mans moral sentiment
The confirmed horse-trader will {
ways try to hide the defects of
trading stock, if, indeed, he does n
resort to downright lying. Such
atmosphere must certainly be q
inoralizing to the rising generation.
1t is easy enough to account for t
complexion of our agricultural fail
so far as the prevalence of horse-raci
and gambling are concerned, for tn
are but a natural outgrowth of t
sentiment of the times It is this
PRAYED sentiment that turns our ia
into jockey exhibitions and gambli
institutions. Let every honest farm
teach his sons by precept and EXAM
that there is something higher a
nobler than racing and betting -
b. Boynton, in National Stockman.
Tobacco Culture.
Whether this crop can be ma
4 y. L..