Village Squire, 1974-12, Page 15-r
ox wasn't tempermental like a horse, just
prod him with the goad and he'd get under
way and rarely run away. Then when an ox
ate he was ready to go right away, no waiting
till he had digested his food as was necessary
with a horse. The ox chewed his cud
whenever he got a chance and there was no
waiting. As a clincher the oxmen said when
the ox had outlived his usefullness as a work
beast he could be killed and eaten. (Horse
meat wasn't eaten in those days).
The horse won out however. As time
passed the swamps were drained, the stumps
and stones were removed from the fields and
roads. High-class hay was grown as a matter
of course on all the farms and in the end the
horse's speed over the ground which was
about twice that of the ox decided the day. By
this time the roads had improved enough that
three miles an hour was a safe speed for a
loaded wagon. But as long as roads were poor
the ox's one and a half miles per hour was
enough. Besides the horse had an overdrive
which an ox didn't. When pleasure driving
became possible a smart stepping horse in a
buggy or cutter was an essential part of every
farm's equipment. And who would want to
take his best girl out driving behind an ox?
For that- matter what girl would go?
Another animal that was of great value to
the pioneer was the dog. The first settler
brought them as -companions. When they
acquired livestock the dog became their
herdsman and guardian. A good dog would
stand off a bear as well as bring the cows to
the barn for milking. When the men were
away as they often were, helping a neighbour
or working, the dog made the womenfolk feel
secure.
We can't wind this article on the settler's
helpers up without mentioning cats. Nobody
knows when or under what circumstances
cats were brought from Europe. Certainly,
these companionable living mouse traps were
here from the very first. Their value is
illustrated by a story from the early days of
settlement in Western Canada. A family
arrived at a prarie siding with their old cat
and her five kittens in a cage and bystanders
bid up to five dollars a piece for the kittens
Man has always valued his animals and
nobody more than the first settlers. To them
they literally were "HELP".
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VILLAGE SQUIRE/NOVEMBER 1974, 13