94 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan., 



one hundred and twenty-five pounds of fresh corn, together, with 

 her grain ration, and ask for more. The ration o:^ this cow has 

 been weighed for several weeks this winter, and has averaged sixty 

 pounds of ensilage, which was all she would eat. The grain ration 

 was the sarrte in both cases.- This cow, as do all my herd, gives 

 more and richer milk, makes more and better butter on the ensi- 

 lage ration than when fed on fresh corn. In view of these facts, I 

 think I am justified in claiming that the change wrought in the. 

 silo renders the forage more valuable for feeding, my own experi- 

 ence showing a gain of over forty per cent. 



In building a silo, it may be constructed of the various forms of 

 masonry, of "concrete," or even of wood; it maybe entirely 

 above or entirely below the surface of the ground; or partly 

 above and partly below; it may be on level land or in a hillside, 

 as shall prove most convenient. But of whatever built, and 

 wherever located, it is of great importance that perfect drainage 

 be secured. It is of equal importance that the silo be thoroughly 

 built as the pressure, both inward and outward, is very great. If 

 built of any form of masonry, it is necessary to plaster the walls 

 with cement, that the walls may be smooth and air tight; this is 

 doubly necessary if brick are used, owing to their porous nature. 

 My own silos are of stone laid in cement mortar and thoroughly 

 plastered; were I to build again I should lay the stone dry, point 

 and plaster it, saving a considerable sum. A friend of mine, to 

 save the few dollars it would cost to plaster his silos, omitted this 

 feature; the ipesult is, at least ten per cent, of his ensilage is 

 worthless. Do not fail to have your walls "plamb," that the 

 boards used to cover the fodder may follow down readily as the 

 mass settles. At an Ensilage Convention I attended last Decem- 

 ber, in Worcester, one farmer reported his silo was built of two 

 thicknesses of inch boards with tarred paper between, and with 

 which he was perfectly satisfied ; of course the frame was made 

 strong enough to withstand the pressure. The sample of ensilage 

 exhibited from this silo was as good as that shown here to-day by 

 me, but I do not remember that we were told if it came from 

 near the walls of the silo, or from the center. 



You say, "This is a new process; let us wait and see how it 

 works." Gentlemen, it is not a new process; the experimental 

 period is past; the principle is beyond question, and by it you can 

 furnish cattle healthful, succulent food the entire year. Mons. 

 Goffart began his experiments in France in 1850, thirty-one years 



