BUILDINGS, AND THE MANUFACTURE OF MANURE, 71 



Every animal should have a separate manger, or rather division 

 of manger, to itself. For this purpose, upright partitions must 

 be placed in it opposite the posts to which the beasts are tied, 

 and again in the middle between them. In order to prevent 

 the chaff from being thrown out and wasted iron rods must be 

 driven through from front to back ; three of these rods will be 

 requisite, in order to prevent any waste at all for each division 

 of the manger. Unless this precaution is taken, the cattle will 

 be found to toss their food out with their noses, and especially 

 will this be the case if there be any pulped roots in it. In 

 searching for the pulp among the chalf they waste the whole 

 mass. The mangers should be at least from twelve to fifteen 

 inches deep, and should be of uniform depth back and front, 

 and will be best on the ground or nearly — ^just high enough to 

 insure sweetness and freedom from waste. 



The yards, if they are already in existence, will be generally 

 found to lie very wet from having been hollowed out somewhat 

 every time the dung was removed. To obviate this evil we 

 would recommend their being filled up to a proper level with 

 burnt soil ashes — the scouring of ditches, tussocks, and, indeed, 

 all refuse, properly burnt, will answer the purpose. If the cattle 

 are allowed the range of the yard during the day, it surely is of 

 moment that they should have a dry instead of a wet bed, and 

 if we do not tie up the animals at night we may be sure that, 

 however dry and warm the shed may be, the yard will still be 

 the resting place of the underhngs, and ought to be made as 

 comfortable as possible. 



When a plentiful supply of ashes can be secured the yard 

 may be cleaned out to the bottom every year, or, indeed, oftener, 

 but where they are difficult to procure we can see no reason why 

 they should not remain down until enough can be burnt to 

 supply their place. These ashes make an invaluable manure 

 for root crops, and, indeed for any crop, and are not expensive 

 in manufacture. On mixed arable and grass farms a plentiful 

 supply can always be secured, and on purely grazing ones, if care 

 be taken, enough can be got for the purpose. The cost of burning 

 will of course depend upon the ease with which the materials 

 can be got together, and upon the nature of the soil — strong 

 clay or calcareous soils burning the best, sandy soil being very 



