36 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



friend of mine had seven cows, all valuable animals. He was • 

 making milk for the Boston market, and thought he would try 

 the experiment of steaming the food ; but as he had no appa- 

 ratus to do that, he procured a boiler which held two barrels 

 and boiled all the hay that he fed to those seven cows during the 

 entire winter. The statement which he made to me seemed an 

 extraordinary one, but he said that it could be verified by many 

 of the neighbors, who came in often to see his operations. He 

 said that the milk of each cow increased very materially, and 

 continued to hold out during the whole time that he made the 

 experiment ; that they ate the hay with great eagerness, and 

 seemed to like the water in which he boiled the hay better than 

 the hay itself. He said that on one occasion a cow drank five 

 common water-pails full of that water in the morning, at one 

 time, pailful after pailful. I stated these facts to the man who 

 purchased the milk and carried it to Boston* who had had a 

 long experience in buying and selling milk, and he said he was 

 aware of the experiments that were going on, and he was ready 

 to state that he never carried so good milk into the city as at 

 the time these experiments were being made ; that his custo- 

 mers — who were particular customers, who wanted a good 

 article and were ready to pay liberally for it — sought for it 

 eagerly, and he could not supply the demand. 



Now we cannot all go to the expense of purcha?:ing an appa- 

 ratus for steaming the food for our stock ; a great many of us 

 would be glad to do it if we had the means. We are borne 

 down with the cares of the day ; we have not the skill or genius 

 to go into this thing ; we do not understand how it is done. 

 "What is the next best thing we can do ? I will tell you what I 

 think it is — and it is not mere theory, for I have practised upon 

 it for a great many years. 



In the first place, I have two hay-cutters, of good size, (and 

 I would not recommend any man to buy a small one,) and I cut 

 all my fodder — cornstalks, meadow hay, straw, and everything 

 that I intend to use for feed — several tons at a time. My barn 

 is tight, and it is thrown on the floor, or on a mow, where it is 

 sprinkled over with water ; a little salt is added, and it is 

 suffered to remain there two, three or four days, until the whole 

 mass is moist. Then it is overhauled, mixed thoroughly, and 

 any grain which I have to use is mixed up with it. It is suffered 



