676 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



operations of the rice, and they are actually beneficial to the rice crop. During 

 winter they are put into a pond or tank, 85 lbs. of fish to each 3-ft. cube, and 

 the following summer again turned into the rice field, about 80 per acre. At 

 harvest time each fish weighs 2 lbs. or more. If kept during a third summer 

 they reach nearly 5 lbs. in weight. An acre of rice field may yield 90 lbs. of 

 carp. 



It is thought that carp may be used in the control of malaria since they feed 

 on the eggs and larvae of mosquitoes. The trout-perch was tried in rice fields 

 jmd though it did not reach the same size as the carp, its flesh was of better 

 quality. 



DAIKY FAHMING— DAIRYING. 



Open stables versus closed stables for dairy animals, S. S. Buckley (Mary- 

 land Sta. Bui. m {1913), pp. 219-250, figs. 3).— As the result of 3 seasons' 

 observations made during the fall and winter months, the advantages claimed 

 for open stables for dairy animals are the lower cost of construction, equip- 

 ment, and labor. The cost of production of milk, based on the amount of food 

 consumed, is also slightly less. The effects of extreme low temperatures are 

 practically negative in reducing the flow of milk. The manure is better pre- 

 served owing to the thorough mixing of solids and liquids with the litter. The 

 cleanliness of the cows and the bacterial content of the milk produced are more 

 favorable. There are also the advantages of fresh air and light, a separate 

 milking room, and less danger from slipping on floors. A greater percentage 

 increase in body weight was obtained in the tests. 



The maximum and minimum temperatures for each week during the winter 

 months were taken for both open and closed stables, and while the differences 

 were at times very great, no greater variation in the flow of milk was observed 

 from the cows exposed to a temperature of — 14° F. in the open stable than in 

 those cows in the closed stable which were exposed to a temperature of +14°. 

 It is stated that there is no instance in which there has been a decided decrease 

 in production of milk, temporary or permanent, which can be attributed to low 

 temperature or to sudden fluctuation in temperature, unless at the same time 

 there was exposure to rain. 



The feeding and milking operations in the open stable are described as fol- 

 lows : " The cows occupy the open spaces of the stable during the time they 

 {ire housed, and have access to the mangers for roughage, and to a plentiful 

 supply of drinking w^ater. The floor is abundantly supplied with bedding in 

 the fall of the year, and as it becomes worked into the droppings, just enough 

 new litter is supplied to keep the surface in good condition. After each removal 

 of manure the floor is well supplied with fresh litter and the process of caring 

 for it repeated. 



"At milking time the cows are all driven into one end of the stable and the 

 bars or gateway closed. Three cows are then allowed into the milking room 

 (space for more than 3, in a stable of 30, is recommended) and fed grain. 

 These are then milked and turned into the opposite end of the stable, directly 

 from the milking room. A second set is then allow^ed in the milking room, fed, 

 milked, and turned out. This is continued until all are fed, milked, and turned 

 out. The bars or gates are then opened and the cows given the freedom of the 

 stable until the next milking time," 



A comparison between the bacterial content of milk drawn in the closed 

 stable and in the milking room of the open stable, R. W. Lamson (Maryland 

 Sta. Bui. 177 (1913), pp. 251-262).— Yvom the comparison reported it was found 

 that while only general conclusions could be drawn there seemed to be quite an 



