West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1893-03-16
"CITIzEN's" GREAT MISTAKE.
EDIroR ANGUS -

as piece of composition is very
fine, but like Thomas DuQuesne's
"Dreams Of an Opium Eater" has
no foundation in fact.
When Citizen" slurs at the team
it is evident he is unacquainted
with the subject on which he writes,
as a yoke of oxen and pair OF
males, when properly trained, is
the most profitable team known,
The oxen to purchase and keep will
cost less than one horse and furn-
ish as much power as two horses,
and when worked with two mules
will be just as quick as mules or
horses, and one mule sufficiently
large to pull with twelve hundred
horse, will wear out three twelve
hundred horses, and eat one-fourth
less. The assertion is made in the
Farmers Book, and the figures
given to prove it, that there is one
thousand dollars difference in favor
of the mule in what mule will
earn during its life and what a
horse will earn during its life. My
noble friend says the mules were
oyor-worked and tired out. This
is hallucination with him, as the
mules had not been used for three
and half days before gong for the
load of coal in question--in fact,
being a pair Of my truck mules,
they bad been idle all winter on
account of ice and snow; one of
them had only been used about four
and one-half days and the other
had been worked couple of weeks
during the winter.
Now for the facts. My lead mule
was temporarily lame with a sore
foot. and | did not wish it worked
while lame, and directed my friend,
the driver, to take a couple Of the
truck mules and put them before
the oxen and haul load of coal,
told him to only put on 333 bushels
of coal, as the mules were not bro
ken to the wagon, having been only
broken to the truck and plough
being a teamster of long experience
and the road being good from TIL
bank to torn, he concluded the
team would pull fifty bushels, the
usual load, without trouble; and tn,
team came all right until he under
took to pass the gate the mules were
accustomed to go through to thu
stable, when the mules decided they
would 20 to the stable, and thu
driver decided, and | think very
properly, that they should go OIL
with the load of coal, and the ques
ton of supremacy then came VI
between the mules and the driver
Seeing the battle raging from ny
Office window, / went upon tn,
field and suggested that he take tive
additional horses from the stabl,
and hitch them before the mules
but he and other drivers present de
cided that it was better not to do so
as it would spoil the mules, anC
proceeded to punish the mules foi
not pulling. / was only there ;
short tine and saw no cruel or IN
human punishment, and my drive
and three other drivers who wer,
present say there was none; neither
do | believe there was any, as M
driver is q very skillful driver anc
very kind to animals-"C Citizen
not being acquainted with sucl
matters, formed an erroneous opin
ion on the subject. 1t is certaInl,
very trying to the patience Of {
driver to attempt to drive an un
trained team while a crowd Of boy.
and men stand by and laugh and
talk, and attract tho attention oil
the animals and thus add 10 tn,
drivers difficulties, as was done on
the occasion referred to by "CitIzen'i
-"Citizen" being among the rest,
The mules we're not injured, MOI
do think they were punished ans
more than they deserved. The
driver was badly fatigued by the
time he got hi5 load to its destina-
ton, and one Of his hands was hurt
some, and / had far more sympa.
thy for him than for the mules, q.
/ think a faithful laborer is entitled
to far more sympathy than mules,
"Citizon" 20 the contrary nOtwith.
standing. In fact, I think il would
be a good thing If q number Of men
about this town were punished IN.
TIL they would pull, as it's lamen.
table fact that we hayein Kinqwood
like in other towns and cities, toe
many "men about town. a oman