19th century British Evangelicals on cruelty to animals

Following our two historic and extraordinary examples of early 19th century British Evangelicals speaking out in a strong way against cruelty toward God's creatures.  First is the passionate poem "On Cruelty to Brute Animals," from a Friendly Hints poetry section of The Evangelical Magazine, 1806:

A MAN of kindness to his beast be kind;
But brutal actions shew a brutal mind.
Remember, he who made thee made the brute;
Who gave thee speech and reason, form'd him mute:
He can't complain; but God's omniscient eye
Beholds thy cruelty,—he hears his cry.
He was design'd thy servant and thy drudge;
But know,—that his Creator is thy Judge!

And second is the piercing essay "On Cruelty to Animals" from The Evangelical Magazine and Missionary Chronicle, 1834 (I believe the same publication).  It speaks of ungrateful cruelty to dogs, work horses and more, and of animals "suffering and groaning" (in reference to Romans 8) under the weight of "our transgression."  The message of the essay remains powerfully relevant today, as does the editor's note at the end to our contemporary community of faith:

"Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn."

Perhaps there is no vice that obtains to a greater extent in the present age of education and enlightenment, than cruelty to the brute creation—those subordinate animals, without whose services, man, the proud and the merciless, would find his powers fettered, his efforts paralyzed, and his ambition blighted.  From the dog which guards our hearth, to the bee which labours for our luxury, all are alike subject to our power, and how pitilessly do we use it!  The one is but too often overworked, underfed, and even rewarded with kicks and stripes; while the other is put to a miserable death when it has ministered to the gratification of our appetites.  Free in the forests and savannahs of foreign lands, what animal can be more noble, more redolent of life and vigour, than the horse?  Subjected to the sway of man, how cheerfully and willingly he obeys the beck and call of his master; and even although the trial should prove too mighty for his strength, still does he strain every nerve, and put forth every energy to satisfy the claim which is made upon his power.  See him on the race-course, in the hunting-field, seeming almost to enjoy the exertion which is required of him, until his capabilities are taxed beyond their strength, and he becomes the victim of his over urged obedience.  From thence trace him to his end; mark the gradations by which this lordly animal, ever willing to fulfil his appointed duties, sinks gradually to a miserable end.  From the over-driven and over-laden coach he is transferred to the equally-laden, but more slowly-moving van; thence, he is again removed to the hackney-coach, the shame of modern days!  Starved, worked, neglected, coerced, left to perish slowly day by day, until he is at length eligible for that last refuge of departed strength and beauty, the knacker's yard!  Further we will not pursue the picture. To no one animal are we so deeply indebted as to the horse; to our pleasure, to our business, he is alike necessary, and to each he contributes in no niggard measure; if, then, this be the reward which is meted to him, how can we look for milder treatment towards the less useful animals?  Should any affirm that they nevertheless enjoy it, let them turn to our bull-baits, our badger-hunts, our multitudinous and multifarious sports, in few or any of which can it be adduced that cruelty to the subordinate animals does not form a prominent feature.  Morally, socially, and above all, religiously, we sin deeply in thus causing unnecessary suffering.  Morally, inasmuch as we have no right to inflict that on others which we shrink from experiencing in ourselves; socially, because we are as accountable to our fellow-creatures for the evil example which we set forth, as we are culpable in the commission of the sin; and religiously, as it hath pleased Almighty God to instruct us repeatedly in his holy Scripture that they were created for the use and not for the abuse of man.  The same mighty power which "breathed into man's nostrils the breath of life," gave vitality to the brute also; and if our blessed Saviour condescended to enter into the gates of Jerusalem riding upon an ass; how much more should we, who are ourselves the creatures of weakness and of sin, extend our limited protection to a "suffering and groaning creation," and let the effects of our apostasy fall as lightly as in us lies, on the animals who are bowed by our transgression.

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N. B.  We cannot but deeply lament that Christians, and especially Christian ministers, take so little public interest in the subject of the above appeal.  We hope to be able to rouse attention to the awful cruelties practised upon the brute creation.  EDITOR.

(I'm grateful to Laura Hobgood-Oster for pointing to these pieces in her book The Friends We Keep: Unleashing Christianity's Compassion for Animals, and to Animal Rights History for their service in sharing the poem and essay (in addition to another short review related to animal concerns from The Evangelical Magazine), via the original text made available by Google Books (the link to each original text is included above) from which the portion of the 1806 magazine cover image is also taken)