The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1897-07-22
A UNIQUE CHARITY.
Donkey Farm for the Employ ment OF
Irish Girls in London.


u charity which may become as protita-
bic as a trust. Her ladyship is one of the
clique led by Mrs Ernest Hart, the orig
inator of the Irish village. She is con-
stantly at work upon some new charity
which always aims to benefit the col
leens of her native country.
London is full of Irish girls, pretty,
red-cheeked young women, full of en-
ergy, strong as men and ready to work
hard at anything They shame the
whitefaced lackadaisical London work
ing girl, who is well known to be the
tiredest creature under the sun.
The colleen chafes under shop work.
She wants to do something that requires
muscle and common sense. She is too
clever and too healthy to be tied down to
mechanical work, and after a year in
London she grows sad-mouthed and
pale, longing ever for the opportunity
that so seldom comes to working women
in England.
This spring, when London began to
fill up with visitors and doctors calls
became frequent to the overtaXed sight
| seers. her ladyship suddenly conceived
the idea of a donkey farm. Here is i
| chance for my colleens," said she
The idea came into her head at Wal
dorf Aston dinner. The conversation
touched upon pulmonary troubles and
the danger of London dampness to con-
sumptives. Then Mr.. Astor, who does
not hesitate to mention his wife fire.
quently and at length, spoke of the
donkey dairy which he maintained at
Cliveden during the last year of Mrs.
Astor's life and the unreasonable bene-
fits resulting therefrom, concluding
with: And Tate says it undoubtedly
prolonged her life through another sum-
mer."
That was enough for Lady Cardigan.
BY next day her wits had planned
out a pretty farm not an hours ride
from the heart of London. where she
could send her tired working girls to
rest, and where they could earn a liv-
ing at the same time by tending to the
donkeys and supplying London with the
milk. They could have their vacation
without being either a drug upon them
selves or victims of charity, for her
ladyship is too thrifty to see the bene-
fits in pauperizng healthy souls.
To-day a prescription for an invalid
of wealth is: ~ pint of donkey milk
twice day" The cost is a guinea pint.
so it can be seen that the curative fluid
is not for poor persons, but only those
who can pay for it,
The fl 1t very distinguished person.
age to patronize the farm was H. r.. H.
Albert Edward. DR.. Edward Giles. one
Of the princes travelling attendants. rec
commended it to cure the prince quickly
the first day of the arrival in London for
the season. There was an audience with
the lord mayor, family dinner always
| a formal affair when three heirs to the
| throne are to be presently and the prince
was 10 coach later in the day. As an eX-
pertinent the physician ordered donkey
milk for him. and. after drinking it,
| his highness declared himself wonder
| fully refreshed. Lady Cardigan, hear
| ing Of it, asked permission to mention
| the fact to her friends: and soon the
farm became known as The Prince of
Wales Donkey Farm" It's well pat
ronized by a very high class of persons,
and the milk is in such demand that or
ders must be left far ahead. One donkey
day is reserved for emergency or
| ders"
Those who have cared for cow dairy
can form no estimate of the small
amount of work needed for dairy of
donkeys. The animals are much harder
than cattle, and need less attention.
The pasturage is much more easily pro-
vided for Cows need a certain length of
grass before their lips will allow them
to crop the heritage. But donkeys are
so thin-lipped that they can live and
gather food where cows would starve.
They are more easily Pdstured also.
Owners of cattle must be careful
about turning their animals out upon
side hills, or where there are slippery
| declines. All bad places require fenc-
ing in, on account of the awllwardness
| of the beasts. This. in England, where
| there is so little spare land, is an inn
measurable difficulty, often requiring
even large land owners like the
| earls of Essex and Rosebery to fence
| in their blooded beasts and feed them
with cut fodder. like horses. But;he lit
tie donkey is sure-footed, and can scale
the steepest cliff for juicy weed that
grows above him.
The only real work comes at milking
time, but this the colleen Dawn willing
ly performs, making a merry job fit
Americans in London are charged one
dollar Il pint for the milk, but they
expect to pay a little higher Tor
the privilege of being in Lon
don jubilee year; and for the
butter they pay ten dollars pound. 1t
is such great delicacy that the only
Cnes who can buy it are those with
more money than they can spend other
wise.
London's suburbs are now filled with
small enterprises, moneymaling and
philanthropic, and London physicians
are showing how accommodating they
can be. "The patronage of the cele-
bratcd DIR. ThingumbGb" being readily
obtained for anything that pleases and
does not do any harm. The princess Of
Wales is lending her name tc all sorts of
things, too, and it will be a diamond