No. 8. 



Stall-fed Sheep. 



247 



five feet in diameter, in the lowest part of the 

 hollow, and from that digged a trench to the 

 dry gravel ditch; the cess-pool and drain 

 therefrom were then filled with clean stones 

 gathered from the land to within a foot of 

 the surface, and I found in this, as in all simi- 

 lar cases, that the plan pursued was quite 

 effectual in drawing away the surface water. 

 And it may be staled as a general rule in 

 draining, that if there be very wet and very 

 dry spots of ground contiguous to each other, 

 an under-drain from one to the other will lay 

 the whole dry, oftentimes with a very short 

 cut, and at little expense — the proper Elking- 

 ton plan — and many wet and worthless spots 

 may be most effectually laid dry, by merely 

 digging a hole on one side and filling it with 

 stones." 



Now this system is reasonable and conso- 

 nant with common sense, and has been con- 

 ducted with the most perfect success for a 

 great number of years; and if persons would 

 practise only as much as what might be de- 

 nominated "Elkington's plan," that is, to 

 drain only where it is necessary, either by 

 covered drains across the slope, or borincr, 

 they would not need to adopt a system which 

 would entail an expense of 45 dollars per 

 acre, and carry an extent of one hundred 

 miles of drains on a single firm. 



John Ferris. 

 Berks County. 



For the Farmers' Cabinet. 

 Stall-fed Sheep. 



Mr. Editor, — I find in the Quarterly Jour- 

 nal of Agriculture, a very interesting account 

 of two experiments on stall-feeding sheep. 

 One is at a loss to comprehend why this is 

 not oftener practised in this country than it 

 is, for the advantages would be great, not 

 only in the supply of the market with a su- 

 perior quality of meat, but to the feeder, who 

 would find a ready sale for his sheep, at a 

 considerable advance in price : while the con- 

 venience of stall-feeding sheep — their quiet, 

 cleanly habits rendering them a peculiarly 

 pleasaint household family — must be apparent 

 to every practical man. After this, comes 

 the advantage in point of quality and quan- 

 tity of wool, the first of which ought to weigh 

 with the wool-buyer in this country, as it 

 does in every other where this system is pur- 

 sued. The greater variety of articles as food 

 for fatting sheep, which might be grown 

 here, would be of very considerable moment, 

 for to no other stock is a change of diet of 

 so much importance, as is well known to all 

 who have practised the system of stall-feed- 

 ing, whether for making fat mutton or house 

 Iamb. 



The first experiment was conducted by 

 Mr. Wilkin, with sheep, a cross between the 

 Cheviot and Leicester or Dishley, of the age 

 of over one year, denominated technically, 

 Hofrgs. The best sheep in the lot weighed 

 157 pounds alive, indicating about twenty 

 pounds per quarter, dead weight; they had 

 been kept in a shed and open court since the 

 25th of November — the time of slaughtering 

 being the 16lh of April — and the average in- 

 crease of live weight during that time on 

 each sheep was forty-eight pounds and a 

 half The daily weight of turnip for each 

 sheep was 17 pounds, and the cost of grain 

 and oil-cake for each was seven shillings and 

 sixpence. The increase of value was from 

 22s. to 25s., and afforded a considerable profit 

 on stall or house-feeding. 



The second experiment was made by Mr. 

 McBryde. During the month of December 

 1838, he tied up a number of the pure Lei- 

 cester breed in stalls, and fed them on tur- 

 nips, rice, sago, sugar, and linseed oil ; and 

 in December 1839, he tried the same experi- 

 ment on a lot of common-bred wethers ; he 

 gave them daily a quantity of linseed, and as 

 many turnips as they would eat, and the ex- 

 periment far exceeded his expectations. The 

 quality of the mutton was of the finest de- 

 scription, and the wool, by being sheltered, 

 one day from the cold and drenching rains, 

 and the sun and drying wind the next, was 

 soft and fleecy, far superior to that on the 

 same kind of sheep which had been fed 

 abroad ; and another great advantage which 

 the stall possesses over the field-feeding is, 

 preservation from the diseases which the 

 damps and vicissitudes of the weather often 

 engender. The whole lot was sold to Mr. 

 Boyle for slaughter, and so high was his 

 opinion of their excellence, that he paid 

 seven shillings per head more for them than 

 for others of the same lot that had been 

 field-fed. 



Mr. McBryde remarks, "although the last 

 lot has proved exceedingly prosperous, yet 

 the pure-bred Leicesters were more so; and 

 although at first confinement to the stall they 

 consumed a greater quantity of turnips, yet 

 in the end there was a great saving, as they 

 did not require nearly so much as tiiey would 

 have done in the fields. The nutritious qua- 

 lity of the linseed made the mutton of the 

 very richest flavour, peculiarly firm and 

 juicy." He expresses his opinion that many 

 farmers will try the experiment, for during 

 both seasons those tied up in the stalls were 

 exceedingly healthy — far more so than the 

 lot from whence they were taken at random, 

 and required but little attendance. The first 

 which was killed weighed 82 lbs. of mutton, 

 having 18 lbs. of fat Joshua Stiles. 



Berks County. 



