No. 4.] KEEPING UP FERTILITY. 91 



vuluable elements in the manure are concerned, this plan, 

 still by far the most common in this State, leaves little to be 

 desired. But its effect ujjon the health of the cows in the 

 stable above and upon the hogs in the cellar itself are such 

 as to lead me to condemn it, at least if the cellar is closed 

 ou all sides. The bad consequences of this system can be 

 much lessened bv the liberal use of absorbents and chemicals, 

 such as plaster and kainit, both in the stable and in the 

 cellar, and by the frequent removal of accumulated manure. 



My preference, however, is to keep cattle in a wing con- 

 nected with the hay barn, and without a cellar underneath. 

 The floor should l)e tijiht, and the drainage from the auttcr 

 behind the cattle should be conducted to a water-tight cistern 

 outside. An excavation at the outer end of this wing will 

 permit the backing up of a cart or manure spreader on such 

 a level that the manure can be dumped directly into it from 

 a barrow or overhead trolley car. This plan would doul)t- 

 less prove inconvenient where only a small herd is kept, and 

 sometimes impracticable upon a large place. For these rea- 

 sons I should prefer to provide a shallow, cemented basin, 

 protected by a shed roof, so that the manure might be 

 allowed to accumulate for a few weeks, if desired. AVhen 

 the herd is large, however, the labor of handling manure — 

 and it is this item that makes it cost — can be reduced to the 

 lowest point by the plan of dumping into a cart or manure 

 spreader, and then applying directly to the field. 



And this leads me to say that I lielieve most fully in the 

 plan of applying manure to the fields as fast as made, in so 

 far as this course is practical )le. It is difficult to keep it 

 Avithout loss, or injury to the health of our stock. I would 

 generally fall-plough the fields to l)e manured, and then dur- 

 ing the fall and winter months get out and spread the 

 manure as made. The experience and observation of many 

 practical men has convinced them that this is the best plan. 

 Under this system the soluble constituents of the manure are 

 washed directly into the soil ; and ammonia is not formed 

 with such rapidity as to be driven into the air in any con- 

 siderable amount. The manure as it lies ui)on the surface 

 does not heat, it can hold considerable anmionia, and every 

 rain or meltiuo: snow dissolves and carries -into the soil what 



