302 THE AUTHOR'S REPLY TO 



world," whom "Ignoramus" appears so solicitous of instruct- 

 ing, to subjoin the following questions and answers extracted 

 from the letter just referred to. 



" Ignoramus," then writing not under an assumed character, 

 observed : 



" It also appears, to my humble apprehension, that much skill 

 and ingenious mechanism, and considerable expense, must be applied 

 to construct cribs that shall move up and down between the posts. 

 How are they suspended ? And what force is to raise them to, 

 and stay them at, any particular elevation at which it may .be 

 desired to place them? And what advantage is gained by their 

 moving up and down, above a crib which should simply stand on the 

 ground ? 



No supernatural agency is exercised to regulate the action 

 of the cribs between the posts ; nor is much skill, ingenious 

 mechanism, or expense necessary to be employed. The great 

 moving power centres in simplicity, which the carpenter would 

 term a rabbet. This is made by nailing a spline perpendicu- 

 larly in the centre of the outside ends of the crib, and two 

 others upon each post to receive them, by which means the 

 crib is moved up and down at pleasure ; the suspending power 

 being nothing more than two pins thrust through holes in the 

 sides of the splines upon the post for the crib to rest upon. 

 The necessity for rendering the cribs moveable, arises from 

 the increase of manure in the boxes ; a circumstance that 

 Mr. Taunton ought not to have overlooked, and that requires 

 no further explanation. 



" The cribs we use in our farm-yards cannot be built, at least, 

 for less than ffteen or nineteen shillings, which, again, would draw 

 another stiff instalment out of the thirty shillings" 



The wood for the cribs, if made of foreign deals, would cost 

 only 3s. 3d. each. 



" You do not mention of what wood or of what size the poles 

 ought to be, which are to make your sills and ties. I should gladly 

 learn, also, the length which you allot to each beast, from the crib 

 backwards." 



