THE FEEDING COW-HOUSE 519 



frost and thaw, and the turnips themselves much 

 injured. 



The. feeding-house should be at right angles with 

 the barn ; and, at about three feet and a half distance 

 from the principal wall, there should be a series of 

 troughs from which the cattle feed. These should be 

 constructed of fire-clay, which is preferable to wood. 

 The floor should be an inclined plane, on which the 

 troughs rest, and in the ends of each there ought to 

 be an arched aperture for the passage of water from 

 one trough to the other, by which means they are 

 easily kept clean, by throwing a few buckets of water 

 into the higher one, and the last or lower one empties 

 itself by a spout led through the wall. By means of 

 this arrangement, the food can be kept clean without 

 much trouble. The cattle should be chained to stakes, 

 situate at a proper distance from each other, and these 

 are attached to a horizontal beam, running from one 

 end of the house to the other, and attached to the roof 

 by an upright support. The three and a half feet 

 space between the beam and the wall, is intended as a 

 walk for the men who feed the cattle, and from which 

 they deposit the cut turnips into the troughs. The 

 cow-house should have a window at both ends, to en- 

 able the men to see that no accident befalls the animals. 



Should any of the cattle be seen choking, the 

 attendant must immediately apply the instrument 

 described, with the mode of using it, at page 429, and 

 represented on Plate x, fig. 1 9, which ought constantly 

 to be at hand. 



In large establishments, the cattle-feeders should 

 be on the spot night and day, and ought to have a 

 sleeping apartment at the end of the cow-house, with 

 a window looking into it, so that he may hear and see 

 anything which may require his attention. 



