260 Our Farming. 



house door. If keeping stock was our leading business, we should 

 cut our second crop clover, probably, and make into hay, and 

 after threshing it could be put in the bays where the wheat had 

 been. I wish you could see my horses in the winter, when they 

 are not used much, and are let out to drink. That dry yard to 

 roll, and run, and kick up in, is something they never fail to 

 make use of. And what a nice place to let out a few cows at 

 once ! They may give as much milk kept in the stable all winter 

 and watered there, but their offsprings would certainly be more 

 healthy for their going out twice a day for water and a little 

 exercise in fresh air, but protected from wind and storm, and I 

 believe the cows would enjoy it. From my plan of tool house 

 in last chapter, you might get the idea it was divided where the 

 dotted lines are by partitions. It is not. It is all one room. 

 Those dotted lines are simply to show where posts are and width 

 of doors. The chutes for throwing down hay and straw act as 

 ventilators for the basement. With a barn full of animals more 

 might be needed. As it is, we cover part of the holes in cold 

 weather. The windows in the stables are up high, and slide 

 open to let in fresh air (see picture of rear of barn) . The one 

 under the covered yard is seldom shut, only in very cold 

 weather. 



You know how much trouble comes from having barn doors 

 on the slam. Well, I made up my mind when I got a good barn 

 there would be a way .fixed to fasten all doors open, as well as 

 shut. After several years' use (five to eight), every door is still 

 as good as new. It pays, and life is too short to run after a stick 

 to hold a door open, and it don't always hold it then. We 

 have iron braces on each door of tool house (ground floor), about 

 two feet long, three-eighths round iron rods, with an eye in upper 

 end, through which a staple goes to fasten it to the door through 

 the lower batten. The other end of this rod is sharp, so it will 

 stick into ice or frozen earth. Then, to prevent its going in too 

 far when ground is soft, we had a large nut shrunk onto each rod, 

 about three inches from the point. When not in use, they are 

 laid up in a little hook on inside of door. You can drop it out 

 with your toe, as you open the door, and the door will stay as far 

 open as it goes, every time. The " stick" is always there and 

 cannot slip at either end. The heavier barn doors are held open 

 by larger rods (five-eighths), that hook into holes in the bridge. 

 These have never once got loose in the wind . All other doors 

 have hooks and staples to fasten them open, even all those under 

 the covered yard, and the entire cost all around was not over $3 

 less than it would cost to replace one broken door. I am a great 

 fellow for insurance. It is door insurance this time. I am afraid 

 you will not notice, if I do not tell you, that we take care of 

 everything. A man ma> make money and not get ahead, if he 

 lets everything go to ruin around him, three times as fast as there 



