FARMER'S ASSISTANT. 119 



wood : OF course, a proportionate saving may be made in 

 the use of the former, in preference to the latter. 



There is a saving in sawing wood, when carted home, in 

 preference to choping it, as the sawing can be full as 

 speedily and cheaply performed. A further saving is made > 

 in cuiing up the wood quite short ; as a fire composed of 

 billets ot wood, not more than fourteen inches long, will 

 give more than two thirds as much heat, as that made ol 

 wood of double that length. 



The size into which wood should be split, so as to be 

 durable in burning, and yet give sufficient heat, is also a 

 matter worthy of some consideration. If spilt very small, 

 any given quantity will give more heat, lor a while; but 

 will be quickly consumed z If large, it will consume slow- 

 ly ; but will burn less readily, and give much less heat. On 

 the whole, we are inclined to believe that billets, of from 

 about three to four inches of a medium diameter, will be 

 found the most economical, as avoiding the two extremes. 



Wood, when dried, forms the best of all fuel, not only as 

 making the pltasantest fire, but for all culinary purposes. 

 Most kinds of coal, as well as peat, and turf, the only other 

 articles of fuel generally used, are by no means so conveni- 

 ent, for many purposes, of cooking particularly; but, where 

 either of these can be procured, at no great distance, they 

 are generally a cheaper article of fuel, than wood. 



Coal needs no previous preparation for use, but the 

 mere diging it out of the earth Peat, and turf, are easily 

 raised, in the first instance, by means of a long narrow 

 spade with a wing, set at right angles on the right side, 

 by means oi which a square chunk, about fourteen inches 

 long, and four inches square, is cut out from the pit at 

 every sinking of the spade. 



But, in order to render these masses of earth fit for 

 burning, some further steps are requisite: Each chunk, 

 thus cut out, is to be laid on the ground, separate by itself, 

 to dry; and, when partly dried, are to be piled, open, across 

 each other; and thus, in a few clays of dry weather, they 

 will be fit to cart home for use. They should be kept 

 under cover, in a dry state, for the purposes of fuel. 

 These earths are very cheap kinds of fuel, where they can 

 be had on any farm, or at no great distance from it. 

 See further, EARTHS. 



Where neither of the foregoing articles are to be had, 

 for fuel, recourse must be had to artificial means, for a sup- 

 ply. In some instances, dried cowdung has been used, for 

 this purpose. But the best artificial substitute for fuel, that 

 we can suggest, would be about equal parts of cowdung, or 

 horsedung, and clay, well mixed together, and cast, like 

 bricks, into chunks, say, three or four inches square, and 



