The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1910-12-22
SHEPHERDS WITH CROOKS
Will Guard Cattle on Big Hartman
Estate.


New York, Dec. 2l.-Mrs. Mary
Hartman, widow Of E. H. Hartman,
is going back TO first principles in
farming, back 10 the time of Abraham
whose cattle were watched on the
plain by cowherds, The news sur
prised the older inhabitants of Arden,
Hartman and Tuxedo, who can re-
member when the now great Harri-
man estate was little farms.
The old stone walls are to be torn
away and crushed into macadam and
the wood fences will be burned. The
10000 acres of land in the Ramapo
valley are to be thrown into one great
fenceless plantation and the herds of
fine Jerseys, Guernseys and H0lsteins
are to be watched by herdsmen.
Some one suggested cowboys, but
there is something too modern about
the cOwpuncher OF the plains. 1t is
expected that the her6ers will wear
something like the Tyrolean cow
herds costume. The "Co-boss, CO
boss, co-boss" of other days in the
Ramapo valley may even be supplant-
ed by the yodel of the Tyrol.
Another innovation will be the
| presence of large flock of fine
! sheep. Shropshires and merinos,
! which will be cared for by shepherds,
| carrying crooks and accompanied by
fine sheep dogs. The uplands. which
are more adapted to sheep than to
cattle, will be dotted by the woody
creatures and their picturesque at
I tendants.
THE herding of cattle in this way
is Mrs. Harriman's own idea," says
C. I. Ford, general superintendent of
the Hartman estate, and so is the
keeping of sheep. There is some
thing essentially poetical in great
flock of fine sheep, as there is In a
| fine herd of blueblooded cattle.
I'VE have decided to sell the cat.
tie on the Glove Valley farm down at
the Glove, cut the land into small
holdings and establish a high class
colony for folks having business in
the city. The site has the most
wonderful view in the State. We are
going to construct series of artifi-
cial lakes.
but the herds on the big estate
down the valley will be kept up and
improved. Mrs. Hartman has al
ways tried to make this dairy as
nearly ideal as possible. She Is work
ing out the certified milk idea Her
object Is not to make the place a
money-maker, but to give an object
lesson TO the milk trusts. She hopes.
by setting an example of what can be
done, to force the producers and
handlers of milk for the big cities
to come up to the level OF her dair-
les"
The barns certainly are remarkable
They are kept spotlessly clean and
the cattle live in cleaner quarters
than many families do In cities.
When the mixers come in from work
in the fields to milk the cattle they
go into a great wash room, battle, put
on white duck suits and clean their
finger nails.
All the departments in Mrs. Harri.
mans great establishment are under
the direction of college men. The
farmers are graduates from the great
agricultural schools. Those who look
after the forests have been picked be
cause of previous training Every
few weeks all the cattle are put
through most rigid examination fol
signs of tuberculosis or other all
ments and no COW even suspected
is permitted to live.
Mrs. Charles c. Rumsey, Mrs. Har
riman's daughter. who sailed with hel
artist husband on the Mauretania Sat
urday night, will bring home from
Europe farming ideas that will b.
tried at Arden.