grafs you dig up is their grafs, not your grafs. And when God appointed you to be master of the beast, and tenant of the field, he gave you no right to deprive your beaft of that food which God hath ordained for him; but as Lord of the Manor he demands of you a quit-rent for the use of the beast that plows and labors for thee.

I know indeed it is unneceffary, and might seem like trifling, to endeavour to perfuade, or convince a man of the reasonableness, expediency, or advantage accruing to himself, in feeding his Horse or his Ox; the Owner's interest will prompt him to it, without advice. The moft cruel Mafter

will

will not ftarve the Slave by whom he gets his bread; nay, perhaps, will give him Food enough to go through his work; but this is not all that is required in the divine precept, Muzzle not the OX that treadeth out the corn. For if food and barely food enough to fupport life is all that is meant by it, I prefume it would not have been delivered as a facred command. Not to MUZZLE the OX, implies fomething elfe than not to farve him. To ftarve him to death is fuch a mixture of Folly and Cruelty, that no man of common fenfe or common humanity can ever be supposed to be guilty of it. But to muzzle him whilft treading out the corn, or laboring for the food of Man, is not unufual

ufual even with thofe who would be efteemed Merciful. The pre

cept therefore enjoins the Care and Attention of the Mafter, to the Eafe and Happinefs of his Beaft; and that he ought not to fuffer the poor creature to be tantalized with the fight of what is agreeable to him, or would be a refreshment to him, and refuse to indulge his longing appetite. His labor deferves wages; and his particular labor, at the time of treading corn for the appetite

*

of man, fhould remind us that the beaft has his appetite likewife.

* The OX is not to be muzzled, when be treads out the Corn; for it would be unreasonable to deny any Thing a part of the fruit of its can Labours. JOSEPHUS, Jewish Antiq. Book iv. Ch. 6,

The

The circumftance of the work it felf fhould then make us more attentive to his wants; and the harder his task is, the more it behoves the master to alleviate his fatigue by frequent indulgencies and refreshment. To fuffer a beaft therefore, who is laboring for the support of our nature, and who is as fenfible of hunger as we' are, and yet harneffed and restrained from indulging his appetite, whilft we can gratify our own whenever we please; to fuffer this useful Beaft to pine for his meat, is putting a muzzle to the Ox that treadeth out the corn; and though this may not be called an absolute act of cruelty, yet in my opinion it has a tendency to un

mercifulness and injustice.

And

T

And, if fo, no less unmerciful and unjuft is it to withhold from the laboring Beaft his due quantity of Drink, which is as neceffary to his fupport and refreshment as Meat, and is part of his food as well as grafs or ftraw. - The Lord covereth the heaven with CLOUDS, and prepareth RAIN for the earth; -To give to the BEAST his Food. Pfa. cxlvii. 8, 9. And He fendeth the SPRINGS into the Valleys which run among the Hills; To give DRINK to every BEAST of the Field; and the Wild ASSES quench their Thirst. Pfa. civ. 10, 11. II. The Wild ASSES and Brutes at large,

can quench their thirst at every call of Nature. But the Tame ASS, the Beafts of the Field, Horfes