FARM LAYOUT 395 



One should consider the matter very carefully before he 

 puts up buildings. A delay of a year or two is better than 

 a serious mistake. A mistake in permanent buildings is a 

 mistake that lasts more than a lifetime. It passes on 

 to the next generation. So long as a farmer spends his 



FIG. 100. A set of barns that cost $600 for each animal housed. At 

 least six times too expensive. Too large for the farm. Poor con- 

 struction, as the low, many-gabled roofs allow little storage room and 

 are very expensive to maintain. 



energy and money in raising crops he usually has little 

 to regret. 



Two thousand years ago Cato gave advice on this sub- 

 ject that is just as good and just as much needed to-day as 

 it was when he wrote it. " In his youth the farmer ought 

 diligently to plant his land, but he should ponder before 

 he builds. Planting does not require reflection, but de- 

 mands action. It is time enough to build when you have 

 reached your thirty-sixth year, if you have farmed your 

 land well meanwhile. When you do build, let your 

 buildings be proportioned to your farm, and your farm to 

 your buildings. It is fitting that the farm buildings be 



