100 MISCELLANEOUS FARM SUBJECTS 



business will readily do all that class of work for a dozen average 

 farms. The same is true of many of the other machines in use for 

 farm work. The saving of time and labor to make farming success- 

 ful necessitates the use of machinery, and the problem confronting 

 the farmer is how to secure the use of that machinery in the best and 

 most economical manner. Co-operation appears to be the solution. 

 Co-operative ownership of farm machinery has been more thor- 

 oughly tested in some European countries than in the United States, 

 and the results have been satisfactory. (Y. B. 1894, 1895, 1896, 

 1897, 1899, 1901, 1904, 1908, 1910; Col. C. B. 167.) 



FARM BUILDINGS. 



The Home. Many American farmers have seemingly acted 

 upon the principle that the housing of the live stock on the farm is 

 of far more importance than the housing of himself and his family. 

 Hence his barn has been built with a view to the comfort of his 

 horses and cattle, while the house in which he and his family must 

 live, and in which the female portion of the family must labor, 

 is wholly without conveniences and without proper light, heat and 

 ventilation, thus shortening the lives of the family. He arranges 

 the feed bins and chutes in his barn so as to lessen the number of 

 steps he must take in feeding and caring for his stock, but too often 

 nothing is done to lessen the number of steps of his wife. The 

 most important of the farm buildings is the family residence. 



Location. One of the important features in the making of a 

 comfortable farm home is the proper location of the house and gen- 

 eral outbuildings. The grouping together of all the buildings may 

 not be practicable on large farms, but those that serve for the com- 

 fort and convenience of the family should by all means be near each 

 other. Where the buildings are already located it will be difficult 

 to remedy defects, and about the only thing to be done is to accom- 

 modate improvements to present conditions. The saving of time, 

 labor, and exposure to be gained by having the barn, and especially 

 the stabling, reasonably near the house should not be lost sight of, 

 and therefore suitable sites for these necessary buildings should be 

 decided on before definitely locating the house site. Good soil about 

 the house is also desirable. With good soil an attractive door yard is 

 easily possible, and while the prospective builder may reflect that a 

 few loads of manure will bring up the soil, he should also remember 

 that both manure and the time to haul it may prove none too abun- 

 dant, especially during the first years of his occupancy. The possi- 

 bility of locating the kitchen garden conveniently near, and also the 

 chicken house and yards, is worthy of consideration. 



In selecting a location for a house there are certain points that 

 should be held in mind. A slight elevation, having proper surface 

 drainage, with protecting hills or woods on the north, is greatly pref- 

 erable to a narrow / valley, a low meadow, or the north side of a hill. 

 The house should face so as to get sunlight into all the rooms, if pos- 

 sible, for where sunlight does not enter the doctor must. This may 

 be accomplished by facing the house southeast, for example, instead 

 of directly east or south. 



