Vol. 1.— No. 33. 



AND GARDENER'S JOURNAL. 



259 



lities, in. Sully fee mmends, mid indeed Having thus very imperfectly endeavored 

 regards it as necessary, that, grain of all to point out what is conceived to be the best 

 kinds, and also the cut hay and straw, should ! me thod of feeding horses, it is unnecessary 

 be carefully weighed. When all the ingre- to dwell on the various advantages which 

 dients are so prepared, the proportions tor i! such asystein offers. 



each horse are allotted. From the table I As tne horse advances in age, his teeth 

 which follows will be seen the different arti- .'gradually lose their perpendicular position, 

 es of food, and the quantities and weight; am j become less fitted for grinding the hard 



which ihe horse should receive. 



!. F.irinjt ions substances, consisting of 

 bruised or ground BeaDS, Peas. VVheal, 

 Barley, or Gals .... 



2. Biau, fine or coarse, 



3. Boiled or stiamoil potatoes, mashed in 

 a tub witli a wooden bruiser, 



•4. Fr.sh grains (boiled hurley,) - 



5. Hay cut down into chaff 



€. Straw cut ilown into chaff 



7. Mult dust, or ground oil cake, - 



With 2 ounces of sail for each class. 



By this table it will be seen that each horse 

 Teceives 30lbs. of food in the 24 hours a 

 quantity which will, in all cases, be found 

 to be amply sufficient. The addition of "I 

 ounces of salt is necessary to assist the di- 

 gestion of the food. All herbiverous ani- 

 mals, as is well known, in their wild 

 state, indicate the necessity or utility 

 of this condiment, by resorting wherev- 



food which the nature of his work, and his 

 artificial situation in stables, renders it ne- 

 cessary for him to receive. His mastication 

 |is rendered imperfect, and the grain when 

 given him unbi uised or ungroiind, is often 

 swallowed entire. And as he saliva and 

 the gastric juice of the stomach are held to 

 be the solvents of the food, and as more 

 perfect mastication must allow these to act 

 with more effect upon it, a more perfect di- 

 gestion, we may believe, is induced by giv- 

 ing the grain in the bruised or ground state, 

 and by the cutting down of the hay and 

 straw. Thus, not only must the practice 

 be conducive to t e health of the horse, but 

 it must produce a great saving of the food. 

 To persons requiring constant and steady 

 work from their horses, the advantages of 

 the practice are very obvious. 



The carrier, with his horse-provender 

 weighed, mixed, put into a bag, and carried 

 with him, can feed and refresh his horse at 

 all times and places. The same observation 

 applies to the farmer, and more strongly 



er it is to be met with in those places 



where native salt exits. In the vast forests | st,1 .', to the pos'-inaster, whose horses have 



of America, where rock-salt abounds, those 

 spots are called by the natives salt-licks, from 

 the wild cattle resorting to them to lick the 

 salt. In Cheshire, and the salt district of 



sudden calls upon them for great exertion. 

 By meansof provender so prepared, his hor- 

 ses soon fill themselves, and thus have time 

 to lie down, sleep, and rest. To the gen- 



that county, there is a farm which is noted j|M em , an and s P ortsraa >' such apian of feed 

 for the excellence of its cheese. On this !l "IS" 3 ' als0 I* 13 "? advantages. The health 

 farm is a natural salt spring to which the jofjhe horse is promoted and the economy 

 cows daily resort, and by many it is believed j of " s Provender assured. The following 

 that the tasting of this brine by the cows adds 



to the flavor of their milk.* 



Of the four classes into which Dr. Sully 

 divides his ingredients for feeding, those two 

 which contain the steamed or boiled pota- 

 toe are the most recommended. No food 

 conduces more to the healthy working con- 

 dition of horses than the steamed or boil»d 

 potatoe ; and we may observe, with relation 

 to this, as well as to other kinds of food, that 

 when the horse comes in weary and hungry, 

 after a long day's work, it is necessary to fill 

 his manger more copiously with the ingredi- 

 ents prepared for him. 



In determining what kind of food shall 

 be given to the horse, and in what quantity 

 it shall be supplied, particular circumstan- 

 ces must often be allowed to operate. Vio- 

 lent and long continued exertion, for exam- 

 ple, will require the strongest food, and the 

 largest allowance of it. It will be apparent 

 however, in the several instances before ad- 

 duced of the^inost approved methods of fee- 

 ding horses, that although these methods may 

 differ in the kinds of articles selected for 

 food, and in the quantities of the mixture 

 given, they all agree in certain essential 

 points; and it is to these that we wish in an 

 especial manner, to direct the public atten- 

 tion. The methods it will be seen, all a- 

 gree in the practice of invariably bruising or 

 coarsely grinding the grain and beans, in 

 cutting down the hay and straw, in giving 

 no hay in the rack, in allowing salt, and in 

 weighing each article separately, before mix- 

 ture, in place of adopting the fallaciuos guide 

 of measurement. 



"in the last number of the Journal, the va'ue and us* 

 -.ces ot thi9 important condiment are fully treated of. 



are the words of the intelligent. humane,and 

 experienced gentleman whom we have al- 

 ready quoted. " My business," says Dr. 

 | Sully, "extends through Somerset. Devon, 

 Cornwall. Dorset, and Wilts. I travel 

 with single horses on one pair of wheels.and 

 by relaying, I am enabled then to cover 

 more ground with four horses than any man 

 I know in England, besides my pace is sev- 

 en and eight miles an hour, and my servant, 

 who always accompanies me, generally puts 

 in a bag of provender, of coarsely ground 

 grain, and cut hay and straw. I am cer- 

 tain the same plan will equally succeed with 

 horses, coach or saddle." 



Although we pride ourselves in Great 

 Britain, and very justly, on the beauty and 

 excellence of our horses, yet how superior 

 soever we may be in this respect to our con- 

 tinental neighbors, we do not surpass them 

 in knowledge of stable-management. — 

 Those who have visited that portion of Swit- 

 zerland which borders on Germany, must 

 have witnessed the skillful manner of feed- 

 ing horses. No grain is given to these ani- 

 mals without its due proportion of cut hay and 

 straw The hay-cutting machine is in very 

 general use in this quarter of that delightful, 

 romantic, and industrious country ; and it is 

 not only employed for the horse, but also for 

 the cow. During winter along with differ- 

 ent kinds of roots, as the carrot, the turnip, 

 the parsnip, chopped up, a quantity of cut 

 hay is mixed for the cow. If we pass from 

 Switzerland into Germay, we observe the 

 same, and perhaps greater attention to the 

 food of the horse. To all the grain he re- 

 ceives, a portion of cut hay and straw is al- 

 ways added, and, it may be remarked, that 



it is not uncommon, while on a journey, for 

 the Swiss and German horseman to feed his 

 steed, with coarse brown bread, half-a-pound 

 or more at a feed.* 



But it is unnecessary to go out of our own 

 island for examples of good and economic- 

 al modes of feeding horses; to the instances 

 we have quoted, of the manner of treating 

 them in certain stables in London, many 

 more might be added; and if we travel the 

 roads leading to the south from that great 

 city, we shall find innumerable examples of 

 the same good management. S M. 



(From the Middletown Sentinel.) 

 SHAKER BARN. 

 Mr. Starr, — I hand you for the amuse- 

 ment and information of the practical far- 

 mer, a description which I have verbally re- 

 ceived from a friend of mine, living in that 

 vicinity, of a large barn built the last season 

 in the town of Hancock, Berkshire county, 

 Mss. by the family of Shakers, located in 

 that town. It is possible, that in some points, 

 the dimensions may be inaccurate ; but you 

 may rely that they are materially correct. 

 Both the size and form are probably unfit for 

 common purposes — very few farmers would 

 wish to collect so much forage and manure, 

 or have so much stock in one place ; but 

 all who have any experience in the business 

 will agree that there is much ingenuity and 

 convenience in the design, for a large es- 

 tablishment. 



The barn isbui ton ground inclining south- 

 wardly, in a perfect circle, and is ninety 

 feet in diameter, across it from side to side. 

 The walls are stone, 22 feet in height, of 

 suitable thickness, and laid in lime or well 

 pointed on each side. Round the barn, on 

 the inner side, are stables forming a circle; 

 the manger within and suitable places over 

 it to throw or feed down the hay ; the sta- 

 ble and manger occupy about twelve feet, 

 and are eight feet high ; the stables open to 

 and from several different barn yards, in or- 

 der to make as many and such divisions of 



their stock as they have thought proper. 



The covering of the stables form the barn 



floor, which also extends round the barn. 



There is but one large door way for entrance 

 with teams and loads ; this is from the north- 

 ern side, from an offset or causeway, 8 feet 

 above the base, and of course fourteen feet 

 below the eaves. The cart or wagon that 

 enters with a load, makes the whole circuit 

 of the floor and aftei unloading, comes out 

 at the same door; thus eight or ten teams 

 with their loads can occupy the floor at one 

 time, in unloading, and not hinder each oth- 

 er. Within this circle of stables and barn 

 floor, is an area or bay, as it is usually cal- 

 led, which is filled with hay, &c. which 

 must be over sixty feet diameter. This is 

 pitched in and on from any side or place 

 most convenient, oi where wanted. 



The roof comes to a point at the centre, 

 and sheds off the rain all round, something 

 similar to an umbrella. It is supported from 

 the inner circle of the barn floor. The roof 

 boards are laid up and down, which by a 

 transverse sawing of the log all were brought 

 to a point, and then shingled round in the 

 usual mode. M. 



By some recent experiments made in France, it 

 appears tbat silk- worms may be entirely fed upon 

 the leaf of the scorzonera, or viper's grass. 



It may he observed, that this latter practice iB a!9« 

 commou with millers in some parts of this country. 



