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fork and track available to all, barns to be used for the storage of 

 hay should be built of good height. The height and consequent 

 storage capacity can be considerably increased by using a gambrel 

 or curb roof instead of a gable roof. Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate this 

 point. Attention is also called to the method of framing. Both 

 frames are made up from 2-inch lumber, and take much less timber 

 than the old fashioned frame. The truss shown in Fig. 2 is very 

 strong and is placed every 12 to 15 feet, the intervening space 

 being studded with 2" X 6" timbers, 20 or 24 inches on centers. 

 The joist frame is also a strong, rigid structure; many barns have 

 been built on this plan in the north central States and seem to be 

 very satisfactory. 



One other question that will need to be settled before deciding on 

 the best type of barn for a given location and purpose is whether 

 hay and other fodder is to be stored over the cattle or not. Con- 

 siderable objection has been made to this practice in the last few 

 years, and it is probably true that ideal conditions can be more 

 easily maintained in a stable that is apart from the storage barn 

 or attached to it only at one end. On the other hand, it is more 

 expensive, and there is really no good reason why excellent condi- 

 tions for the production of even the highest grades of milk cannot 

 be maintained in a stable, even if hay is stored above, provided, 

 that there is (1) a tight ceiling; (2) a good ventilating system, one 

 that works; (3) a room outside the stable where hay can be thrown 

 down, so that hay is never thrown from the mow directly into the 

 stable, but is drawn in on trucks; (4) plenty of windows so that 

 light and air are admitted on both sides; and (5) that reasonable 

 sanitary conditions are maintained in the stable itself. 



The Cow Stable. — The floor of a cow stable should be nonab- 

 sorbent, easily cleaned, not slippery, a nonconductor of heat, and 

 durable. A wooden floor does not fulfill these conditions. The most 

 satisfactory floor available to-day for this purpose is undoubtedly 

 made of cement, with some material that is a nonconductor of heat 

 in the stalls where the cattle stand. The writer is inclined to be- 

 lieve that bricks made of ground cork and asphalt are the best ma- 

 terial for this purpose; they are laid in hot asphalt and seem to be 

 giving satisfactory results where they are in use. Many dairymen 

 use a cement floor in the stalls as well as in the other parts of the 

 stable, but it is not entirely satisfactory. All slopes and grades 

 where the cattle are to pass should be left rough, that is, given a 

 float finish. The smooth trowel-finished cement is much more easily 

 cleaned and should be used for the feed floor and mangers, and may 

 be used for the walk behind the cows if ordinary care is taken in 

 handling the cattle. The cattle are more apt to slip on the smooth 

 finished floor. 



