348 . FARMER'S ASSISTANT. 



vegetables before they are put into the barn, but in the 

 drying and washing of the dung, and the evaporation of 

 its best p^rts, when lef in the barn yard, before it is mixed 

 with ihe. soi-; and by the still greater wabte, when droped 

 in the fields. 



The essential point, then, is to make and save the great- 

 est possible quantiiy of barn dung manure from a given 

 quantity of ground ; and this is only to be accomplished by 

 soiling. 



For this purpose, therefore, some of the most intelligent 

 European Farmers have barns with ccllu's under them, for 

 the purpose of receiving the dung ol the cattle, and into 

 these the dung and litter are constantly thrown, where they 

 are prepared, by a due state of fermema'ion, for mixing with 

 the soil. Suitable earths are also laid behind the cattle to 

 absorb their stale as it runs backward, and these, when 

 saturated, are also thrown down and mixed with the dung. 

 Some, however, object to cellars as the receptacles of the 

 dung, on the ground of their being too cool for the process 

 ot us fermentation during Summer, and prefer sheds adjoin- 

 ing the barn, to keep the dung under cover to protect it From 

 the rains. Where cellars are used, they should not be too 

 deep, and should be wt.ll opened for the admission of warna 

 air during Summer. 



The quality of the dung of cattle depends much on their 

 food ; that therefore which is made from green grass will 

 be found superior to that made from dry hay ; that which is 

 made from fating cattle is the best of any. 



Having observed thus much^ we will proceed to lay down 

 a system ot fit; Id- husbandry, in connection with the plan of 

 soiling cattle, which we presume will be found far more 

 profitable than the usual method of field culture. 



Take a field of proper extent, say, for instance, forty 

 acres, as nearly square as may be, and of as nearly uniform 

 soil as can be had, of a good gravelly-loam, sandy, sandy- 

 loam, or other good arable soil, and sufficiently level. Clear 

 it of stones, so as that it can be tilled in the most complete 

 manner: Build a barn in the centre of this field, with a 

 walled cellar under it, with a door to drive in with a cart 

 on one side, and another to drive out at the opposite side. 

 The barn is to be proportioned to the size of the field, and 

 a communication to be made to it on the side most conve- 

 nient, by a lane, For a more minute description, a plan of 

 the whole is here laid down. 



