Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1921-01-09

-HE OK Is coming back" After
having been forced off Ameri-
can farms for several genera
tons by the horse, the bovine
beast of burden Is reappearing in the
agricultural districts. There Is 1ar-
reaching movement to restore IN part
at least, his ancient prestige. In the
wears to come Mr.. Ok is going TO
have a very conspicuous part In the
great work of feeding the people OF
the limited States and the world.
what ia it that has reached back in
tho dim past and brought forth frleha
az after his long period of obscurlty
The answer is the automoDile. One
can hardly think of two forms OF iarn,
power wider apart than the OK am
the gasoline engine. says the fsoi a.
New York, the first agricultural jour
nal to take up seriously the susses
,ion that the OK might well come INTO
more general use on the farms OF tnis
country. 1.-The horse drove the OK OIL
most farms and the horse in turn ID
being superseded by tns TRACTOR. the
car and the truck. Now there Is ac-
, tually a movement 10 pFihs 'no
back for farm work.
most of the long hauls for farm
crops will be made hereafter with
trucks. Where roads are improved
comparatively few horses are seen at
culinary road work. There are sun
many horses used on farms, but their
labor is more ana more expsn pen NC,
Feed Is high and the horse does not
work as many hours during the year
as he did before the gasoline engine
was adapted to motor power
..The OK can be kept for less money
and sold for beef. When trained prop
erly an active Devon or Jersey OK can
step lively. 1t seems ridiculous at
hrst thought that the rapid truck or
car should actually lead US back to
the OK for farm work. Yet, under
some conditions. that is already nap
pening."
IF IL a case of history repeating it,
self. for oxen were among the earliest
OF dom esticated animals. as they I'M
doubleday were among the most I'M
portant agents in the growth OF early
civilization. iney are ~ ~ H.
the oldest written records OF the RE
brew and Hindu peoples ana are ns j,
ured on Egyptian monuments raised
more tan three thousand years Is. y.
Remains OF domesticated specimens
have been found in Swiss lake dweli-
ings, along with the stone implements
of neolithic man.
After the introduction OF metal
coinage into ancient Greece. this
method of exchange was commemo-
rated by stamping the image OF an
OK on the new money. The value at
tached to the OK in ancient times Is
further shown in the important part
| 1t played in Greek and Roman mythol-
ogy.
The Hindus were not allowed to
shed the blood of an OK and the Egyp-
tians could only do so In sacrifclhg
1 Vnt IsS
were forbidden to muzzle 1t when
ttreading out the corn; to destroy the
OK wantoniy was crime among the
: Romans. punishable with exile.
Alas. the patient. sad-eyed animal
had his era of glory and passed on.
! Strange. indeed, il is that amid the
| hustle and hurry of this swift TWEEN
the lights OF adv <ment in all the
activities OF life. Mkre should reap
pear '~is primitivFally of man to
take his place in the onward march
, to greater civilization.
! Thus far the movement for the re-
. turn OF the OK is perhaps more
p: pronounced throughout New England
J: than in other parts of the country.
! but keen interest Is manifest in many
states. AS a matter OF fact the New
=: Englanders did not let the OK disap-
pear altogether as a farm animal. as
! was the case. in the west and south.
! Up to as late as thirty years ago
tyokes OF oxen were a common sight in
| the fields OF Maine, New Hampshire,
Vermont. Massachusetts. Rhode Is
/ land and Connecticut. Then they be-
gan gradually to give way to horses
A few were seen at county fairs in
the autumn. hitched to stone drags in
pulling contests, to this day a popular
sport among Down East" rural folk
| Then came the motor trucks and
| the automobiles. and thousands OF
Fl, carmers found their horses useful
ness o.: the road reduced to negligi.
| New England. northern and western
New York. Pennsylvania. Ohio. Illi-
nois and elsewhere throughout the
| country, who are turning to the OK