Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-21
ON THE FARM
A TRIP INTO THE RURAL DIS
TRICTs OF NEW ENGLAND.


Last week 1 visited a New England farm.
chiefly to the young animals and to pho
tograph them. At no stage of their lives,
perhaps, are animals more interesting than
when they are very young, when the world
is al. new to them, when we can record
their first impression of it, or, rather, the
behavior prompted in part, perhaps, by
those first impressions.
1t was bright morning, warm, but fresh,
and the white clouds were floating across
an intensely blue sky. The trees were put
ting forth their first leaves in many shades
of tender green, the grass was showing en-
erald along the roadSides, and here and
there among 1t were growing patches of
spotted adder's tongue. In the pine woods
near the roadside the trailing arbutus min
gled it's breath with that of the spruces and
balsams and the edges of the marshes were
glowing with yellow marigolds. Above
them marsh hawk rose and fell in grace
full curves, sometimes so low as to fan the
still standing stalks of last years bull
PUSHES; robins were calling across the mead
ows and purple finches were singing, SEEM
ngly in half the trees along the roadsides.
* x
Out in the fields the men were busily at
work blowing the ground Some had horses,
was a red team, there a black one and be-
yond there was a piebald pair, with brass
knobs upon their horns, which glinted in
the sunlight
BY and by I arrived at the farm house
had set out TO visit. 1t was a long, low,
white building perched upon the crown OF
a hill and had a row of old sugar NAPLES
in front of it. AT least most of it was low;
the original house was two stories, but sew
eral additions had been made from time TO
time, perhaps as the growing family of the
original owner had demanded more room.
To the north of the house and at right an
giles to it was a great barn, the timbers of
which had been hewn more than hundred
years ago. In and out of the wide-open
doors purple barn swallows were flying. and
on wire fence near the wagon shed
phoebe sat wagging her tail.
A rap on the door with the old, blackened
bronze knocker brought out pleasant
faced woman whom l knew slightly. She
told me that "Will" had gone to Claremont
for load of feed, but that he would be
back soon. In the meantime would l have
some cider? 1t was a little tart" but not
real hard" l would; and before had fin
ished in came WILL" and presently we
went out to look at the animals.
The first things we saw were the sheep.
They had been recently sheared, and were
all in well-fenced Enclosure on the south
side of the barn, getting the full benefit of
the sun, but sheltered from the wind. With
them were their little lambs, some newly
born and lying close beside their mothers,
some bold with their several weeks expert
ences, and venturing many yards from the
sides of their dams, as though to find out
what our presence meant. One old sheep
had twins, and both were on their knees,
nursing, one on either side, while she looked
first at us, then at them, and then at US
again. Many of the sheep were bleating,
and at the kindly voice of WIFI came run
ming toward us. Among them was a little
black-faced lamb which had lost its mother;
this was the first to attract the attention of
the farmer.
Whose little lamb are you?" said he,
stopping down and speaking in the gentiest
voice imaginable
.Baa-a-a," said the lamb, confidently
thrusting his smutty little nose into the
mans big, brown fist.
Yes, l know" he replied soothingly, II
know who your mother is, and now We'll go
and find her" And lifting the baby up in
his arms, he stalked through the flock until
he came to a big eve standing unconcerned
at some distance from the rest, and al once
began Gliding her "a father might his
child.
why Molly" he said, I'm very much
ashamed of you. Why don't you look after
your little lamb?'
Then to the lamb:
Here, little fellow. here's your nanny"
and he set down the youngster, which at
once fell on his knees and began to suck,
shaking his tail and butting his mother Wig
orously with his fuzzy head.
Then we went into the big barn to the
Angora goats, also recently sheared, and
kept for the present in wooden pens. In
each pen there were one or two old goats,
each with little snow-white kid. These
kids are the most artificial animals 1 know
of; they look almost exactly like the woolly
lambs on wheels which are found for sale
in the toy shops. WIN took half dozen
out of their pens, and carried them into
the yard TO be photographed. The mothers
watched us anxiously, standing on their
hind legs to look over the top bars of their
pens.
There was black cat on the floor of the
barn. and we set one of the kids down to
see what he would do when he saw it, The
cat was sitting still, and the kid walked up
and looked at her critically. Then he gave
a skip. and brought his stiff forefeet down
hard on the boards, close to the cat Puss
was surprised and moved back a few steps,