Livery servant

“ A chief servant in husbandry, which can eire (plough) , sow, mow, thresh, make a rick, thatch and hedge, and can kill and dress a hog, sheep, and calf, by the year 40s., and 6s. for his livery.
A common servant in husbandry, which can mow, sow, thresh, and load a cart, and cannot expertly make a rick, hedge, and thatch, and cannot kill and dress a hog, sheep, or calf, by the year 33s. ”

“ What livery is, we by common use in England know well enough, namely, that it is an allowance of horse-meat; as they commonly use the word stabling, as to keep horses at livery; the which word, I guess, is derived of livering or delivering forth their nightly food; so in great houses, the livery is said to be served up for all night—that is, their evening allowance for drink. ”

“ The practice of giving liveries to menial servants has not originated in modern times. It is mentioned in some of the statutes made in the reign of Richard the Second. In that of Edward the Fourth the terms livery and badge appear to have been synonymous, the former having no doubt been borrowed from the French language, and signifying a thing delivered. ”

“ The idea of wearing livery was not in his eyes, what it would be in ours, a part of his humiliation, for it was then customary for gentlemen, as well as servants, to wear the livery of their employers. ”

“ In the great houses, servants out of livery help to the different plats, servants in livery holding the dishes, sauces, etc., and changing the plates. I believe it is strictly haut ton for the servants in livery to do nothing but assist those out of livery. In America it is thought stylish to give liveries; in Europe those who keep most servants out of livery are in the highest mode, since these are always a superior class of menials. The habits of this quarter of the world give servants a very different estimation from that which they hold with us. ”

“ Liverymen, name given to members of the several guilds or corporations of London and freemen of the city, so called as entitled to wear the livery belonging to their respective companies; they possess certain privileges of a civic character. ”

“ They wear, if not a uniform, a livery. All these things are true. But I tell you this, which is no less true. Not one of those Mahommedan servants would die wearing the livery, acknowledging their service. ”

“ We still speak of livery stables, but this does not mean that there coachmen and grooms who wear livery attend to horses, but that the horses themselves receive there their livrée—delivery of so many feeds of oats. ”

“ A son of one of the inferior gentry received as page by a nobleman wore his lord's livery, but had it of more costly materials than were used for the footmen, and was the immediate attendant of his patron, who was expected to give him a reputable start in life when he came of age. ”

“ LIVERY, originally the provision of food, clothing, &c., to household servants. The word is an adaptation of the Anglo-French livrée, from livrer, to deliver (Late Lat. liberare, to set free, to serve, to give freely) , in the special sense of distributing. In the sense of a fixed allowance of provender for horses, it survives now only in “livery-stable,” i.e. an establishment where horses and carriages are kept or let out for hire. From the meaning of provision of food and clothing the word is applied to a uniform worn by the retainers and servants of a household. ”

“ The kind that'd been put in the manger for him to eat was the same that the livery stableman had used to put in the stalls and bed the horses down with. It was straw, only this was musty straw and wouldn't even make good bedding for horses. ”

“ Animal food is only allowed to certain of the harder working men, hedgers and ditchers, and to them only occasionally, and in very moderate rations. My small cannibals clamoured round me for flesh, as if I had had a butcher's cart in my pocket, till I began to laugh and then to run, and away they came, like a pack of little black wolves, at my heels, shrieking, 'Missis, you gib me piece meat, missis, you gib me meat,' till I got home. At the door I found another petitioner, a young woman named Maria, who brought a fine child in her arms, and demanded a present of a piece of flannel. ”

“ A mountain farmer's vegetarian meal was little to his liking, and he knew that meat was reserved for Sundays and rare festivals. Then mounting his horse he went trotting over the farm, reckoning up the value of crops stacked or standing, and of the sheep and cows pastured on the mountain-side, as if the produce had been his own, not the farmer's. ”

“ By this arrangement the cattle would not be exhausted with their labour, and they would have time to follow the object of their journey—that of hunting the wild animals with which the country abounded, and also of procuring a constant supply of food for themselves and their attendants. ”

“ It is about two years ago, when I had occasion to read some papers about slaughter houses and the transport of cattle, that the irresistible conviction came upon me that I must choose between giving up the eating of animal food or my peace of mind, so revolting were the disclosures made. Oh, the poor cattle, knocked about, frightened, starved and left without water while exposed to the burning rays of the sun or huddled together in the transport ships ! Can anything be more cruel? ”

“ Yes, certainly; he provides food convenient for them, and not for oxen only, which were used in his sacrifices, and man's service, but even the young lions and the young ravens are the care of his providence, they ask and have their meat from God. Let us give to God the glory of his bounty to the inferior creatures, that are all fed, as it were, at his table, every day. He is a great Housekeeper, a very rich and bountiful one, that satisfies the desire of every living thing. ”

“ After the meal, and when he was thoroughly warmed and made comfortable, he entered into conversation with the worthy couple, and ascertained that the man was a shepherd, and made a fairly comfortable living out of his small flock of sheep, which supplied him and his wife with raiment and flesh meat for food, besides a small surplus for barter to procure other necessaries. ”

“ Enact a law, to be rigidly enforced, providing that no meat of any kind, whether ‘fish, flesh or fowl,’ except mutton, shall be used for food. What will be the intrinsic value of your beef cattle, of your swine, your poultry, and your fish to-morrow? ”

“ Be that as it may, men feed and keep goats, sheep and cattle for greater convenience in procuring flesh food. This is an excellent device. I look forward to the time when we shall see the convenience of erecting mensheds, and keeping and breeding these useful animals for food.
I have already told you of their care for cattle, horses, sheep and goats. But they also keep and feed elephants, camels, asses, dogs, cats, and even birds. It may therefore be said with truth that men are the natural slaves and servants of all other living creatures. ”

“ To the herd he speaks as follows,
As they journey on together:
"Tear and kill the wicked hostess,
Tear her guilty flesh in pieces,
When she comes to view her cattle,
When she stoops to do her milking!" ”

“ When they are sick, they slaughter cattle to the shades, and say, ‘Father, look on me, that this disease may cease from me. Let me have health on the earth, and live a long time.’ They carry the meat into the house, and shut it up there, saying, ‘Let the paternal shades eat, so shall they know that the offering was made for them, and grant us great wealth, so that both we and our children may prosper.’ In the cattle-fold they talk a long time, praising the ghosts; they take the contents of the stomach, and strew it upon all the fold. ”

“ Whether he saw fields of wheat or of clover; a woman leading her cows by a rope to pasture them in the fields; a herd of cows belonging to a large farm; a shepherd keeping his sheep with the aid of his dogs, or putting himself at the head of the flock, and the dogs keeping the procession in order, watching meanwhile to see that none remained behind or went astray from the others — all these subjects fascinated him, and kept him constantly in an attitude of observation, of which he never tired. ”

“ Many and many a time have I been begged to explain "what would become of the animals" under a vegetarian régime, fears being sometimes expressed that they would drive mankind from off the face of the earth, at other times that they would themselves perish miserably in utter want and destitution! Many and many a time have I been reminded, not as a joke, but as a serious argument, that animals were "sent" us as food! ”

“ No; as the wolves and lions and bears themselves slay all they feed on, so, in like manner, do you kill the cow or ox with a gripe of your jaws, or the pig with your teeth, or a hare or a lamb by falling upon and rending them there and then. ”

“ Again, is it not the agriculturist who fattens, for our clothes, his abundant flocks in the pastures? For how should we clothe ourselves, how nourish ourselves, without the agriculturist? And, gentlemen, is it even necessary to go so far for examples? Who has not frequently reflected on all the momentous things that we get out of that modest animal, the ornament of poultry-yards, that provides us at once with a soft pillow for our bed, with succulent flesh for our tables, and eggs? ”

“ The increase of our cattle is a blessing in which God is to be acknowledged. Thirdly, That their beasts designed for service might be fit for it: That our oxen may be strong to labour in the plough, that they may be fat and fleshy (so some) , in good working case. We were none of us made to be idle, and therefore we should pray for bodily health, not that we may be easy and take our pleasures, but that we may be strong to labour, that we may do the work of our place and day, else we are worse than the beasts; for when they are strong it is for labour. ”

“ A sulky dog, and a bad-tempered horse, wear themselves out with half the labor that kindly creatures do. An unkindly cow will not give down her milk, and a sour sheep will not fatten; nay, even certain fowls and geese, to those who observe, will evidence temper--good or bad. ”

“ The inhabitants could get no beef, mutton or goats' flesh for themselves; all had gone into the maws of hyenas, tigers, wolves and the rest; and the procurators were insisting on the farmers selling their kids, lambs, calves, ewes and cows-in-milk, any stock, even mules and horses; any animals fit to butcher for lion-food. ”

“ I must also mention the instinct of commisseration in some animals. It is a well-known fact, that when a sheep has produced two lambs, and has died in bringing them forth, other ewes of the flock have suckled and brought up the helpless young ones. I have seen sparrows feed young canary birds, which have been placed for the first time outside of a window, when they have cried for the food their parents had been in the habit of supplying them with. ”

“ They led a wandering life tending their cattle on the hills, and living in tents. They paid their tribute in cattle, and received an allowance in grain from the king for clearing the land of wild beasts and birds which devour the seeds sown in the fields. ”

“ The perfection of form and health, and the uniform good condition, which characterize the thrifty one, indicate too plainly to be misunderstood, those which will best repay the care of their owner. The selection of any indifferent animal for stall-fattening, whether cattle or sheep, will inevitably be attended with loss. Such ought to be got rid of when first brought from the pasture, for the most they will bring. ”

“ Damaged, mouldy, or sour food, the horse, of course, will not eat unless he is very hungry, and then only sufficient to stay his appetite. Damaged grain there is no excuse for, and can only be given through carelessness or indifference on the part of the owner or his servants. ”

“ For already the cow of your mother-in-law will be lowing for food; the horse of your father-in-law will be whinnying; the milch cow of your sister-in-law will be straining at her tether; the calf of your brother-in-law will be bleating; for all will be waiting for her whose duty it is to give them hay, whose duty it is to give them food. ”

“ Many more things too are produced only fit for the food of irrational creatures, and cattle, and wild animals and birds, but utterly useless as food for men, which while still in their rough state without being in any way touched by fire, conduce to the health and life of cattle. ”

“ Let due attention be paid to the breeding of poultry, and swine, and dogs; then persons of seventy years old will be able to eat meat. Let there be no interference with the labour of the husbandman; and there will be no mouths crying out for food. Let education of the people be reverently attended to;―above all, let them be taught their duties towards their parents and brethren;―and there will be no gray-headed burden-carriers to be seen along the highway. ”

“ The grazier will consider the kind of beast which his land will bear—the kind of meat most in demand in his neighborhood—the early maturity—the quickness of fattening at any age—the quality of the meat—the parts on which the flesh and fat are principally laid—and more than all the hardihood and the adaptation to the climate and soil.
In order to obtain these valuable properties the good farmer will make himself perfectly master of the characters and qualities of his own stock. ”

“ Though on foot, I was at the landing as soon as the gentlemen, and was first to announce to the master the feats we had performed in the course of the day, adding, with great emphasis, and even confidence in my manner, "You know, master fish-master, whether we have had any meat to eat here or not. If we had meat here, would not you see it? You have been up with us every night, and know that we have not been allowed to take even shad, let alone having meat to eat." ”