94 HUNTING 



dilapidated farm-building. Slate roofs are so liideous 

 to the eye that we constantly wonder why they should 

 be used for any kind of building, more especially 

 as they are continually getting out of order, and during 

 a high wind the slates are often either completely 

 torn away or loosened, the serious consequences of 

 which we need not emphasize. Good tiles, well laid, 

 form the best roof of which we know. 



In regard to drainage we need only quote a passage 

 from Major Fisher's admirable book entitled, "Through 

 the Stable and Saddle-room " : " Let the gutters from 

 each stall or box run direct into one common gutter 

 which traverses the stable from one end to the other, 

 and the further this gutter is extended beyond the 

 stable in its open form before it is received into any 

 underground drain, the better. As far as stable 

 drainage is concerned, nothing further is necessary." 

 We perfectly agree with this opinion, and warn our 

 readers against any elaborate system of drainage. 

 As in human habitations, so in stables, it is necessary 

 beyond all things that the drainage and ventilation 

 should be perfect. Ventilation means the ingress of 

 fresh air and the egress of foul air. Yet not only a 

 large majority of grooms, but a large proportion of 

 masters, labour under the delusion that ventilation 

 means draught, which will cause the horses to catch 

 cold. Consequeutly, we often find stables reeking with 

 foul air, with the result that the horses suffer from 

 every imaginable form of lung disease. Major Fisher, 

 whose long experience of cavalry stables gives 

 additional weight to his opinions, states in the follow- 

 ing words the best method to ensure perfect ventilation : 



