]\ranor Farm, Bray don, Wilts. 391 



are fed each winter, generally over GO. The food is mixed up in 

 quantities of 300 gallons at a time, water being laid on to the 

 mixing-tub. Their ordinary mixture of food consists of 1 part of 

 barley, 1 of wheat, 1 of beans, 1 of bran, and 1 of malt-dust; 

 of course, a considerable quantity of straw is used besides what is 

 grown on the 150 acres of arable land. 



A word or two as to buildings and roads. The old premises 

 were in keeping with the land, A thatched barn and a cart-hovel, 

 as far as Ave remember, comprehended the sum total, forming two 

 sides of a small ill-contrived yard. Mr. Ruck has added a large 

 feeding-house and covered hay-barn ; the latter joins the barn, and 

 is so arranged that from the entrance of the barn a view is ob- 

 tained throughout. In the erection of these buildings, he naturally 

 sought to turn to the best account a large amount of second-rate 

 oak timber, logwood, and faggots, derived from the grubbing up 

 of old fences with their hedge-row timber, and therefore for use 

 on the spot. The straw-barn is 80 X 50 ft., the feeding-shed 

 as large ; and the two, made entirely of timber, cost 290?., which, 

 considering the amount of accommodation, is very cheap. The 

 covering of the feeding-house is composed chiefly of faggots 

 resting on rough branches laid on the horizontal beams, and 

 covered with thatch : there is a double roof with a gutter down 

 the centre, which is thus arranged : — a large V-shaped wooden 

 trough, with a 6-inch iron gutter at the apex, collects the water 

 from the thatch, and gives it free passage to the iron trough below, 

 whilst it catches and detains any bits of straw, «Scc., which would 

 otherwise choke the iron piping. The water is collected at the 

 further end of the building into a large reservoir provided with a 

 pump, by the aid of which water is laid on to every feeding-box 

 in the building. The feeding-house is capable of holding 48 

 beasts in 8 pens, and is equally useful for pigs. The pens on 

 either side are divided by a central gangway containing a tram- 

 way for the feeding-barrow — a light ingenious apparatus which 

 holds 40 bushels of chop. It is calculated that the animals can 

 be fed in four minutes. The dimensions of each compartment 

 are 20 X 23 ft. The bearings are 10 ft., the beams consist of 

 Scotch fir poles laid across, carried by plates and posts of oak ; 

 round the centre posts are triangular cribs, which are filled daily, 

 and the refuse turned out for litter. The pits are sunk 16 in. deep 

 and well puddled. Besides the ordinary manger-room against the 

 tramway, each pen contains two corner mangers, one on each side 

 of the door ; in these the refuse of the other mangers is placed, 

 so that the weaker beasts may have a chance. The covered hay- 

 barn, which is sufficiently large to hold all the hay and much of 

 the straw, is a cheap and ingenious construction. The walls, 



