642 THE AMERICAN FARMER. 



ing a barn. On very large farms necessitating the extensive use of farm implements, a sep 

 arate building is sometimes required for their storage. 



A good barn is one of the great essentials on a farm. In newly-settled sections, they 

 are sometimes dispensed with for a time, until the land can be put under cultivation, and the 

 owner is able to erect the necessary farm buildings. This is frequently the case in the far 

 West, but even under such circumstances the most thrifty and enterprising farmers will not 

 be long without a barn, and those which are the most enterprising and prosperous will gener 

 ally erect the best farm buildings and keep them in the best repair. As a general rule, the 

 barns of the Western and Southern portions of the country are not equal in architectural 

 structure and convenience to those of New England and the Middle States, although many 

 portions of the older-settled sections of the West are fully equal in this respect to either of 

 the latter mentioned. Next to a good farm house, a good barn is essential, and no farmer 

 can afford to be without one which should be of sufficient size for all the purposes to which 

 it is to be appropriated. 



While large barns are more expensive than small ones, and a surplus of room in this 

 respect is therefore a lack of economy, yet it more frequently happens that barns are too 

 small, rather than too large, and the owners are obliged to be subjected to great inconvenience 

 for this reason, or be at the expense of building others, or enlarging the original. A 

 large number of small buildings on a farm are a blemish and an unnecessary expense, and it 

 is better in every respect for the farmer to build one barn of sufficient dimensions for all the 

 practical uses on the farm, than to be obliged to build two or three small ones. 



The size of the barn must, of course, be proportionate to the size and productiveness of 

 the farm, and the number of animals to be furnished comfortable quarters. Even in latitudes 

 that do not essentially require the housing of stock during a portion of the year, animals that 

 are kept stabled a part of the time are more valuable, as they have better care, and are more 

 gentle and therefore easily managed, while they can also be fed with less waste of material, 

 and the fertilizers they produce can all be saved with little care, which is no small considera 

 tion when we take into account the value of well-composted manure to the farmer. In those 

 latitudes in which the ground is covered with snow a portion of the year, the barn should be 

 large enough to accommodate all the stock on the farm, and their fodder. Animals that are 

 not protected from the cold require more food than those that are, since much of the food 

 which they consume goes towards the production of animal heat, and unless enough food is 

 given them to satisfy their hunger, this extra demand reduces the supply for repairing the 

 waste of the system; consequently such animals will not only consume larger quantities of 

 food, but will grow thin in flesh and present an emaciated condition in the spring. Young 

 horses and cattle are frequently stunted in their growth by this means. 



On the other hand, stock that are provided with warm, comfortable quarters, will con 

 sume less food, and be kept in a thriving condition during the winter. Diseases are also 

 more frequently prevented, and more easily cured under such conditions. Cows that are 

 kept in warm stables will give more milk and of better quality than those that are not com 

 fortably housed. This truth is so apparent, that it requires no argument to substantiate it. 

 It is therefore a practice of economy, as well as humanity, for the farmer to furnish food and 

 good shelter for his stock. 



Where ensilage is used extensively for feeding animals, less room will be required in the 

 barn for the storage of hay. Hay may be stacked in the field, thus rendering less room nec 

 essary in the barn; but hay that is thus exposed to the weather, is greatly inferior to that 

 which is stored; besides, stacking involves much waste. A great advantage in this respect 

 will be found in baling hay, as it will then occupy much less room than otherwise. In build 

 ing a barn the farmer should have as definite an idea of its use, and the necessities for its 

 convenience, as in building a house, and in many respects what will apply to the one will, 

 with slight modifications, apply to the other. 



