1838.] CRUELTY TO DOGS. A HYMN. (PRINTED ON A CARD FOR THE USE OF SCHOOLS.) I. COME, Holy Spirit, calm my mind. II. Hast thou imparted to my soul A living spark of heavenly fire ? III. Reveal to me the Saviour's love, The love that Christ for sinners bore And give a new, a contrite heart, A heart that Saviour to adore. 267 Sent by Iota. CRUELTY TO DOGS. Ir is within these very few years, that dogs have been regularly used for the purpose of dragging heavy loads. A dog is a most useful animal, as every one knows; and he is a faithful friend to those who use him well,—and often those even who use him ill. He ought to be treated well; and every kind-hearted person would be grieved to think of ill-treating so faithful and serviceable an animal. If the dog can be made to assist his master, in helping him to drag his little barrow, the master may fairly take this help; but, it is perfectly brutal to set such a creature to drag such loads as some of them are harnessed to, and severely beaten, even when they are doing their best. A dog is a willing creature, and will generally do all he can for his master. He is a quick and active creature; and his willingness often urges him to attempt more than he is able to perform. But a dog is not a heavy creature; he is not suited to the dragging of enormous loads; there is not weight enough in him: and, when he tries to do this, he is often doing more than he ought to do. Hence it is, that we see the miserable, fatigued, and panting state of most of these dogs, when they have an opportunity of resting: they generally lie down oppressed with weariness and thirst. We cannot imagine any greater brutality, than that of the men who could treat a dog in the manner described in the following extract from a London Paper. Queen Square.-The dog-cart nuisance.-Samuel Tucker, Joseph Fuller, and William Mining, who described themselves as costermongers, were charged with cruelly ill-treating a dog. Thomas Gibbins, officer of the Animal's Friend Society, stated, that he was crossing Westminster-bridge, when he heard a dog howling in a most dreadful manner. Upon reaching the foot of the bridge he saw a large truck, heavily loaded, to which were attached two dogs who were endeavouring to draw it up the steep ascent, but could not. Witness heard the boy Mining tell Tucker that he could not make the dogs move, when Tucker replied he would make them, and immediately struck one of the dogs several blows across its back with the butt end of a heavy cart-whip. The force of the blows caused the poor dog to utter most piteous cries. Witness immediately interfered, and requested Tucker to desist, who answered him with a volley of abuse. He then attempted to take him into custody, when Tucker collared him and called to Fuller, who came to his companion's assistance, and told witness if he did not go he would do for him. A mob having collected, and witness having received several blows from one or other of the prisoners, he thought it better to let them go for the time. He, however, followed them over Westminster bridge, and, after obtaining the assistance of the police, the prisoners were taken into custody. Unluckily, the prosecutor was not provident enough to secure any of the bystanders as witnesses; and the prisoners therefore escaped the punishment, which the law would have inflicted on them if their crime had been proved. We have merely introduced the above account as a specimen of what we know to be going on in many parts of London, in consequence of the great extent to which the dog-cart system is now carried on. V. INDIAN CORN. MR. Cobbett committed the great error of endeavouring to prove too much: he did the world good service by in 1838.] INDIAN CORN. 269 troducing that hardy dwarf variety which took the title of "Cobbett's corn;" but, by asserting that it could be rendered an agricultural crop, he caused a number of experiments in the field to be instituted in a large way, which, in the compass of a season or two, baffled all his endeavours, showed the fallacy of his views, and chased his corn, not only from the field, but almost from the memory of the cultivator. This is to be lamented; because, there does not exist, perhaps, in nature, a vegetable of greater beauty or excellence, take it for all in all. It is, in the garden, a plant of extremely easy culture, growing with great luxuriance, exhibiting a beautiful verdure; yielding abundance of fruit, which, when plucked at an early age, is a most delicious table vegetable; and, when left to ripen, which it will do in ordinary summers, produces a grain that poultry doat upon, and thrive with. Field culture does not generally answer well; but a gentleman, near Maidenhead, grew three or four acres of Cobbett's corn, from seed ripened in England, about the year 1833, upon the produce of which he fattened about forty turkeys, all his great flock of fowls and chickens, and many pigs; his servants observing, that they never ate pork of finer flavour and condition. Early in May is a good season for sowing the seed: the preparation of the soil for which, is the following:-select a spot of light, friable loam, open to the full sun; set out and dig a set of trenches, pointing north and south, one yard asunder, one foot deep, and one foot wide: put into each a six-inch layer of reduced manure, return the earth over that, incorporate with it a little light, vegetable or leaf mould, if at hand, and then leave the plot to settle for a few days, observing to mark out the centres of each trench, by a stick at both ends. In some sunny day, draw a drill along the middle, two inches deep; and when the sun shall have made the drill and earth quite warm and friable, dot the seeds along a line, three inches apart; sprinkle over them air-slaked lime, mixed with one-sixth of coal soot, and draw the loose soil into the drill, flattening it firmly, but not to a hard surface.-Gardener's Gazette. MR. WILBERFORCE. THE following extract from the life of this eminent philanthropist and statesman, just published by his sons, places his domestic character and habits in the most amiable light, showing, at the same time, how much an admiration of the beauties of nature is calculated to elevate the mind, and to embue it with the purest sentiments of religious awe and meditation:-" Who that ever joined him in his hour of daily exercise, cannot see him now as he walked round his garden at Highwood, now in animated and even playful conversation, and then drawing from his copious pockets (to contain Dalrymple's State Papers' was their standard measure) a Psalter, a Horace, a Shakspeare, or Cowper, and reading or reciting chosen passages, and then catching at long stored flower leaves, as the wind blew them from the pages, or standing by a favourite gum-cistus to repair the loss. Then he would point out the harmony of the tints, the beauty of the pencilling, and the perfection of the colouring, and sum up all into those ascriptions of praise to the ALMIGHTY, which were ever rising from his grateful heart. He loved flowers with all the simple delight of childhood. He would hover from bed to bed over his favourites, and when he came in, even from his shortest walk, he deposited a few that he had gathered safely in his room before he joined the breakfast table. Often would he say, as he enjoyed their fragrance-" How good is God to us! What should we think of a friend who had furnished us with a magnificent house, and all we needed, and then coming in to see that all had been provided according to his wishes, should be hurt to find that no scents had been placed in the rooms? Yet so has God dealt with us-lovely flowers are the smiles of his goodness.""-Sent by a Correspondent. RELIGIOUS REFLECTIONS. (SELECTED.) HAPPY they, who, on hearing of the salvation of Christ, immediately attach themselves to its author. Delays are always dangerous; and, in this case, often fatal. 1838.] RELIGIOUS REFLECTIONS. 271 Reader! hast thou ever had Christ as a sacrifice for thy sin pointed out to thee? If so, hast thou followed him? If not, thou art not in the way to the kingdom of God. Lose not another moment! Eternity is at hand! and thou art not prepared to meet thy God. Pray that he may alarm thy conscience, and stir up thy soul to seek, till thou hast found. Reader, if thou art seriously inquiring where Christ dwelleth, take the following for answer. He dwelleth not in the tumult of worldly affairs, nor in profane assemblies, nor in worldly pleasures, nor in the place where drunkards proclaim their shame, nor in carelessness and indolence. But he is found in his temple, wherever two or three are gathered together in his name, in secret prayer, in self-denial, in fasting, in self-examination. He also dwells in the humble, contrite spirit, in the spirit of faith, of love, of forgiveness, of universal obedience; in a word, he dwells in the "heaven of heavens," whither he graciously purposes to bring thee, if thou wilt come and learn of him, and receive the salvation which he has bought for thee by his own blood. There is not a circumstance in our life-not an occurrence in our business, but God will make subservient to our salvation, if we have a simple heart, and a teachable spirit. The steps of a good man especially are ordered of the Lord, and, while he acknowledges his Maker in all his ways, He will direct his steps. A proper consideration of this great truth will produce both confidence and humility. The man who knows not God lives a dying life, or a living death; but he who believes in the Son of God passes over from the empire of death to the empire of life. Reader! thou wast born in death: hast thou yet changed the place of thy natural residence? Remember, that to live in sin is to live in death; and those who live and die thus, shall die eternally. It is no wonder that the great mass of children are so wicked, when so few are put under the care of Christ by humble, praying, believing parents. Let every parent, that fears God, bring up his children in that fear; and, by baptism, let each be dedicated to the Holy Trinity. |