20 



l^W ENGLAND FARMER. 



Jan. 



For the Seio England Farmer, 

 BURFACB WATER FOR CATTLE. 



A correspondent "J," in the Farmer for Dec. 

 3.1, recommends securing water for cattle in pas- 

 tures, from the collections of rain and snow in 

 low places. 



I have a field whrch I wish to pasture, but 

 which must he provided with water, either by 

 digging a well at considerable expense, or by 

 some such means as building a cistern to obtain 

 water, as "J." recommends. Now I wouldinquire 

 whether water thus secured, would continue to 

 remain good, healthy, and palatable, for cows 

 giving milk, through the pasturing season. f". 



Franklin, Mass., Dfc, 1870. 



Remarks by J. — In answer to the above, 

 which the editor of the Farmer has sent to 

 me, I confidently say yes, it would remain 

 good, healthy and palatable. The reservoir 

 .vhould be covered either by a roof or by 

 cross timbers covered by a plank floor. This 

 would keep the heating influence of the sun 

 from the water, and keep it cool. Whf:n stag- 

 nant water is exposed to the sun, a green, 

 stringy vegetable growth form*', that looks dis- 

 agreeable. Then, if it is covered, ths cattle 

 will be kept out of it, as well as flies and bugs. 



I should prefer to have it enclosed, and a 

 roof over it, if in the pasture, so as to keep 

 cattle from above it. To secure it from frost 

 in winter, it would be advisable to cover the 

 plank before mentioned with earth. 



What impure water cows often drink in dry 

 seasons ! Many herds have the slow and last 

 drainings of swamp lands ; water charged with 

 a variety of mineral salts and rotting forest 

 leaves and other vegetable sub-itances, — a reg- 

 ular herb tea ! The water of springs as they 

 run slowly in mid-summer over various rocks 

 and soils is impure and brackish. 



Within a year my uncle brought the water 

 from a distant spring, to his house. While 

 the season is wet it does well, but in the 

 drought of last summer it showed strongly of 

 sulphur, both to the smell and taste, and was 

 seldom offered to a stranger, without an apol- 

 ogy. The water from rain and snow is nearly 

 pure, and if gathered in cement cisterns when 

 it flows copiotlBly, it cannot be very impure, 

 even if it runs a short distance on the ground, 

 over a good turf. 



How large must a cistern be to hold enough 

 to last ten cows six months ? At my barn I 

 have a circular cistern eight feet in diameter 

 and seven feet deep, made by cementing upon 

 the earth, with a flat cover of plank, upon ash 

 stringers. I watered seven head of cattle 

 there two and a half months last winter. I 

 have a brother who has a cistern made in clayey 

 ground, cemented inside of plank, about the 

 same capacity as mine. It furnishes water for 

 five or six cattle and a span of horses most of 

 the winter. Near his house runs a brook early 

 in spring and late in fill, but is dry in mid- 

 mmmer and mid-winter. In the bed of this 

 brook he dug a pit about six f^et square and 

 eight deep, stood up plank around its sides 



and I think packed clay outside the plank. 

 This, with the cistern, is depended upon for 

 water, but T cannot tell the exact time each 

 will furnish water for stock. 



For a permanent supply I would dig a pit 

 ten feet wide and from twenty to thirty feet 

 long and from eight to ten feet deep. The 

 bottom and ends might be oval, so that most 

 of it could be dug with a team and a common 

 road scraper. Finish the inside tolerably 

 smooth, and three barrels of cement, castiiig 

 from nine to twelve dollars will coat it over 

 water tight. Before the cementing is done, 

 timbers should be laid across the narrowest 

 way and a plank floor laid, and then the edges 

 of the cistern beneath shoiild be cemented 

 flush up to the plank so that mice, frogs, 

 snakes, and other vermin can be kept out. 

 Make a wire screen for the entrance, so that 

 leaves shall be kept out of the water. 



In blue clay soil I should try such a pit with- 

 out any cement, and believe *he supply of wa- 

 ter would be permanent. 



I have watered my cattle several winters in 

 a hole from which I drew muck, and the water 

 continues in good supply all winter. In this 

 case, however, the land for an acre or so 

 around the hole is saturated with water which 

 helps keep up the supply. 



I am told that the Pacific Railroad supplies 

 its engines from tanks that are filled in the 

 wet season, and that at the West surface wa- 

 ter is collected for cattle, in the same way ; 

 but my impresbion is that many pools there 

 are not covered, consequently the sun shines 

 upon them, and the cattle poach up the sides 

 into deep mud and add their own droppings 

 to the stagnant mass. 



In some cases a pit like the one here sug- 

 gested would add hundreds of dollars to the 

 value of a farm, and be a very cheap way of 

 providing water. My neighbor is to-day draw- 

 ing muck to his barn-yard, that he threw out 

 of a pit last summer, which has furnished wa- 

 ter for eight head of young cattle, — not sur- 

 face water, but the moisture that leached in 

 from the swamp around. The cattle have 

 done well. This pit was not prepared in any 

 way ; a pool formed where the muck was dug 

 out. J. 



Foot-rot in Cattle. — A correspondent 

 furnishes the Mirror and Farmer, ISIanches- 

 ter, N. H., the following remedy for this dis- 

 ease : — Put them in a place where you can 

 handle their feet, and then take half a pint of 

 common tar and as much soft soap, put them 

 into any vessel, and heat them together until 

 they get thoroughly mixed ; then let it cool 

 down some, but not too much ; put it on the 

 parts affected quite hot, and in seven cases 

 out of ten it will effect a cure, but if it does 

 not, repeat the soap and tar, which will be 

 suflicitnt to cure any case that I ever saw, in 

 a few days. 



