raft_, as he was
inclined to believe, was chargeable solely to the _ignorance_ of their
hardly more intelligent master. A knowledge of the first principles of
mechanics, or, in the absence of this, an ordinary degree of active,
available common sense, would teach the proper use of such a
whipple-tree. For want of this knowledge, the farmer suffered much
chagrin, lost the time of four men, and did great injury to his team.

After mentioning this circumstance on a certain occasion, a gentleman
present gave a parallel case, that occurred under his immediate
observation. His neighbor had a yoke of oxen, one of which was large,
strong, and beautiful. One day, as the neighbor was passing the
residence of the gentleman, the latter remarked to him, "You have one
very fine-looking ox." "Yes," replied the neighbor, with apparent
satisfaction, "and a bonny fellow he is too. He can carry the _long end
of the yoke, and grow fat under it_." Here, again, the weaker ox had to
tax his strength doubly on account of the advantage which the ignorance
of his kind master had unintentionally given to his superior
yoke-fellow.

A farmer, or laborer of any kind, who possesses a knowledge of the
merest elements of science, and is accustomed to think and investigate,
can not only work more advantageously with his team, but he can do more
work himself, and do it easier too, than his neighbor of superior
physical strength, though of inferior mental capacity. The correctness
of this statement may be satisfactorily proved and amply illustrated in
loading timber, in moving buildings, in plowing, and in almost every
kind of work done on a farm or among men, either on land or at sea. The
ignorant man will spend more time in running after help to do a supposed
difficult job, than it will require for a skillful one to do it alone.
This is true in carpentry, and in all of the mechanic arts. Increase the
practical and available education of the laborer, and you enable him to
do more work, and better work too, than his less informed associate. The
following is a striking illustration.

A practical teacher employed some mechanics to build him a barn. The day
after the frame was raised, the teacher discovered that it needed to be
turned a few inches upon its foundation, to range properly with other
buildings. While the mechanics went in several directions to procure
what they regarded as necessary help, the teacher, who was familiar with
the various combina