272 THE HORSE 



cesses of the vertebra being uncovered by anything but skin, and causing 

 considerable pain when pressed against the hard wood or iron. The straw 

 is also turned under at the lower end, so as to present a neat appearance to 

 the eye, as well as to afford comfort to the horse. In the morning the wet 

 and dirty parts are forked out, and the remainder turned back and pressed 

 tightly under the manger, or it is put into some other convenient place, 

 where it can be dried, which latter plan is an excellent one in point of econ- 

 omy and comfort. When the litter is thus disposed of, the whole surface of 

 the floor is carefully swept, the dirt being shovelled back into the gangway, 

 and finally removed from the stable. A little clean straw is then thinly 

 spread over the stall, and left with a level edge behind the heels of the 

 horse, where natty grooms put a border of plaited straw. During the day 

 the droppings are collected in a basket, and removed as soon as they are pei'- 

 ceived by the groom, by which the litter is kept clean, and the hind-feet of the 

 horse are prevented from contracting foul thrushes, which many are apt to 

 do, if they are allowed to be constantly crammed full of moist droppings, as 

 they often are by careless grooms. On the average of seasons country straw 

 may be bought for about £3 per ton, in which there are about sixty trusses, 

 each therefore costing Is., and, on the calculation of two trusses per week, 

 the horse's bed will cost 2s. for that period, without estimating the value of 

 the manure, which varies greatly. In the neighbourhood of very large 

 towns, where the supply of manure is greater than the demand, it is almost 

 a drug, and will scarcely pay for the labour of removal, but in agricultural 

 districts it is worth 6s. per ton, and then an arrangement is often made by the 

 farmer to supply straw on condition of receiving back the manure made with 

 it. It may generally be calculated that an allowance of one-thii'd or one- 

 fourth of the cost of the straw may be made for manure, and the litter may 

 then be estimated as costing Is. per week. 



Peat-moss litter has come into considerable use during the last few years 

 in cab and omnibus and tradesmen's stables, but requires to be broken up 

 small, and to be used with care. The English moss is cleaner and better 

 than the foreign. It has the advantage of dispensing with drains, but its 

 manurial value is not equal to that made from straw. It is softer than straw, 

 and therefore horses are found to lie down on it more readily than on straw 

 — and this is an advantage; it is also free from smell. For private stables, 

 however, it is seldom used, on account of its inferior appearance, and because 

 it holds more dust than sti-aw. When it was first introduced, it was met 

 Avith much opposition, as usual with anything new in England ; and it was 

 said by grooms to produce rheumatism, but this chai^ge appears to have no 

 foundation in fact. 



A good deal of correspondence has taken place in The Field and other 

 journals as to its effect upon the feet, some writers declaring that it produces 

 bad horn and a vax'iety of diseases, and others declaring that groggy or 

 navicular cases do much better on it than on any other bedding. 



It is generally agreed th:.t in close stables where proper ventilation is 

 impossible its power of fixiticr ammonia is a very valuable quality. It 

 occupies less bulk in the stores saves drainage, and until a good deal soiled 

 saves labour, no unimportant item in a business establishment. There is arj 

 objection to it which I have not seen in print, namely, its capacity to 

 retain ringworm, and infcc t another horse that may lie upon it. 



