170 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Apkil 



Mr. Davis, of Plymouth — after apologizing for 

 not being present to preside — said he could per- 

 ceive no evil in keeping manure in cellars from 

 October till spring ; but in the summer, he admit- 

 ted that in horse stables the ammonia might be 

 injurious, and he spoke of the sleighs of the Bos- 

 ton stable-keepers being discolored, and the var- 

 nish injured, by being stored in their stables dur- 

 ing the warm season. But we should consider 

 the difference between horse and cow manure. 

 He also complimented Gen. Sutton for the general 

 neatness and convenience of his farm buildings, 

 and particularly alluded to his tool-house, where 

 every little piece of iron was saved for the time 

 of need, which, according to the old maxim, came 

 once in seven years. 



Mr. Stedman thought we needed system in our 

 farm buildings, and would have the main out- 

 buildings under one roof. He recommended barn 

 cellars, and in his own case he had not experienced 

 any injury to his hay, though he does not carry 

 off his manure in the winter. Uses muck. He 

 objected to tying cattle ; spoke of an ox being 

 thrown, and said they should not press against the 

 stanchions. His platform for cattle is three and 

 a quarter inches high, covered with additional 

 strips of plank a little separated, to drain off the 

 urine. 



Mr. QuiNCY alluded to sand as bedding ; he 

 thought it improved the manure, and prevented 

 the escape of gases. His foreman thought well 

 of it, and it had been much used in England in 

 'horse stables. Mr. Q. here alluded to the great 

 racing-horse stable of Senator Hammond, of South 

 Carolina. These horses are kept in sheds, with a 

 little negro to attend each one. Horses need light 

 and air, and his own have a small window at their 

 heads. Darkness makes horses skittish, yet the 

 jockeys like it on this account. For unloading 

 hay, he commended the horse pitchfork, as it was 

 expeditious, and would take off 300 or 400 pounds 

 of hay at once. 



Mr. Brooks thought the horse pitchforks un- 

 profitable, as they required a horse and three or 

 four persons with them. 



Mr. QuiNCY replied that he recommended 

 them only in high pitching. 



Mr. Howard observed that they had for a long 

 time been used in Pennsylvania, and it was only 

 claimed that they were important for high pitch- 

 ing. They would put up a load of hay in five 

 minutes. 



Mr. Wetherell thought as the argument now 

 stood, the general opinion of the meeting was 

 against barn cellars. He regarded Mr. Brooks' 

 theory as the true one, of keeping the manure not 

 under the bai-n, but beside it. 



Mr. Stedman replied that if the opinion was 

 against cellars, it was simply because the best 



speakers were against them. He then briefly com- 

 mended cellars. 



Mr. Hersey, of Hingham, said he had a barn 

 100 by 35 feet, with a cellar under it, with 10 feet 

 opening, but had experienced no trouble with his 

 hay. Had sold 50 tons at the rate of $24 per 

 ton. He also alluded to his keeping sheep and 

 cattle in his barn cellar, saying they did well. 



Mr. Andrews, of West Roxbury, observed that 

 he had room for thirty cattle in his barn ; throws 

 the manure into the cellar, but perceives no bad 

 effect upon the hay. The cellar was ventilated, 

 and he used muck to absorb the urine. He 

 thought the sense of the meeting would be — ham 

 cellars well constructed. 



Mr. Brooks said he would have a spout to con- 

 duct off his liquid manure — though muck was 

 good to absorb it. He had used sand ; thought 

 it not valuable as an absorbent, but his theory 

 was, that the urine decomposed the sand, and by 

 setting free the potash, it was useful in the man- 

 ure heap. 



Mr. Andrews further observed, that a barn 

 merely for hay required no cellar ; a single roof on 

 four posts would be best. Hay in stacks is 

 bright and fresh, and cattle eat it readily. 



Mr. Hersey said he had some hay packed 

 closely in a barn on a wharf, without any ventila- 

 tion, and it was the best he ever had. Air, he 

 surmised, was rather injurious to hay, carrying off 

 its aroma, and it might be ventilated too much. 



Mr. Wetherell agreed with Mr. H. Hay- 

 barns need no ventilation. 



Mr. Bird, of Watertown, alluded to the im- 

 portance of cheap barns, which a man of moderate 

 means could build. Many barns he thought cost 

 as much as the majority of farmers are worth. It 

 was important to tell these men how to build a 

 barn worth $500, or less ; and he spoke of one 

 built in Belmont for $400, with a cellar. 



Mr. Stedman alluded to his barn, wliich cost 

 over $500. 



Mr. Howard, of the Cultivator, inquired what 

 were the principles involved in building a barn, 

 and what in keeping hay, cattle, manure, &zc. The 

 Chinese keep their tea close to save its aroma. 

 Does hay need more air than tea ? It will keep 

 well close, if no change of temperature takes 

 place ; but cattle must have air. Mi-. II. here al- 

 luded to the English, touching their barn and 

 cattle ai-rangements, and said they were rather be- 

 hind us in this respect. Their winters, however, 

 were lighter than ours, and they might not re- 

 quire tight barns. Now, he said, the practice was 

 becoming common, of feeding their cattle and 

 keeping their hay under sheds during the winter. 

 Mr. II. also spoke of some other subjects in thjg 

 connection. 



The time having arrived for closing the meeting, 



