98 H. It. STEVENS ON ENSILAGE. 



filling. Whoever will carry out thoroughly these four demands of 

 the system, will be more than satisfied with ensilage. 



The advantages of ensilage are several. In the first place, it will 

 enable any active farmer to keep twice his present amount of an}* 

 kind of stock, and, within three years, to raise fodder for a cow on 

 every acre of arable land, and also to increase this amount thereafter 

 indefinitely ; being practically limited only by his personal capacity 

 and judgment. At present prices of cheese and butter, there would 

 be twent} r dollars per acre net profit for every acre, which would keep 

 a cow, after paying for all labor and grain. 



The system being equally adapted to feeding sheep, or hogs, or 

 making beef, will prevent any undue increase of dairying. The 

 remoter consequences of the greats-increased production of the soil 

 are incalculable : the lessening of labor, the improvement of food, 

 and many like advantages, will soon follow the general inauguration 

 of this s} r stem. 



It will also assist enormously in making mankind independent of 

 the weather ; for the constant use of the plough and cultivator, and the 

 raising of strong, growing crops, will greatly obviate the difficulties 

 from drought ; while the serious loss and expense of harvesting crops 

 in wet seasons will be very greatly diminished by this method of pre- 

 serving. Very great improvements will, doubtless, soon be made in 

 all the machinery for harvesting crops, so as to reduce the labor ne- 

 cessary as much proportionately as it is done in manufacturing, com- 

 pared with the processes of thirty years ago. It is quite probable, 

 too, that farming on this system will become attractive to men of 

 executive capacity, and that organizing faculty which has hitherto 

 sought its fields of action everywhere except on the farm, to the great 

 detriment of agriculture. If I have omitted any thing essential, you 

 can write me again. I expect to increase my silos materially next 

 season. 



Yours, 



J. PUGSLEY. 



