318 THE FAT OF THE LAND 
provide an ample exercise field for twice that 
number. It was in grass (timothy, red-top, and 
blue grass), and the cows nibbled persistently 
during the short hours each day when they were 
permitted to be on it; but it was never reckoned 
as part of their ration. The sod was kept in 
good condition and the field free from weeds, by 
the use of the mowing-machine, set high, every ’ 
ten or twenty days, according to the season. 
Following the mower, we use a spring-tooth rake 
which bunched the weeds and gathered or broke 
up the droppings; and everything the rake caught 
was carted to the manure vats. Our big Hol- 
steins do not suffer from close quarters, so far 
as I am able to judge, neither do they take on 
fat. From thirty minutes to three hours (de- 
pending on the weather), is all the outing they 
get each day; but this seems sufficient for their 
needs. The well-ventilated stable with its mod- 
erate temperature suits the sedentary nature of 
these milk machines, and I am satisfied with the 
results. I cannot, of course, speak with authority 
of the comparative merits of soiling versus graz- 
ing, for I have had no experience in the latter; 
but in theory soiling appeals to me, and in prac- 
tice it satisfies me. 
When I found I could keep more cows on the 
land set apart for them, I built another cow 
stable for the dry cows and the heifers, and 
added four stalls to my milk stable by turning 
each of the hospital wards into two stalls. 
