310 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



July 



July, and turn it during the hot weather, in 

 July or August. I would then put about a 

 bushc-1 of liiuc to twenty or twenty-five bushels 

 of nuick ; and, in turning it over to mix the 

 lime with it, would aim to make the heap as 

 compaet as possible ; and before the fall rains 

 set in, 1 would eover it with something to throw 

 off the water. In the winter, draw this pre- 

 pared nuiek to tiie yard, and mix it with the 

 manure — say one load of muek to one load of 

 nuinure. In my case, I should use some of 

 the earliest-made manure and muek for root 

 crops in May or June ; and to get it in good 

 condition, the heap should be turned, if possi- 

 ble, during the winter, -and again in the spnng ; 

 and if bone-dust, or blood, or woollen waste, 

 or anything that would favor rapid deeompo- 

 sition, eould be obtained, I would mix it with 

 the heap a month or six weeks before using — 

 the earlier the better." 



"But," remarks the Deacon, "I thought 

 lime would set free the ammonia. I know 

 lime and ashes are good to mix with the muck 

 when about to apply it directly to the land, 

 but I never heard of mixing lime with muck 

 that was to be afterwards mixed with stable 

 maiuire." 



Exactly. That is precisely where my plan 

 differs from that generally recommended. I 

 have no fear of the anmionia escaping from 

 the hea[). The more ammonia we can set free 

 in the heap the better, provided it does not 

 escape ; and if muck enough is used, there is 

 no sort of danger. 



In my case, the bulk of the manure would 

 be kept in the heap during the summer, and 

 be drawn out on to the grass-land in the fall, 

 to be ploughed under for corn or potatoes the 

 next spring. A much larger proportion of 

 muck could be used with the manure in this 



MILKING— CARE OF CO"WS' TEATS. 



I bi'gan to milk when I was only eight years 

 old, which is 64 years ago, and there has not 

 been more than two months in all of the sixty- 

 four years but what I have every day had 

 something t^i do With cows. And perhaps I 

 know as much about cows as any other boy 

 that is no older than I am. 



1 have had some experience with cows' 

 cracked teats. At night I wash the teats with 

 ■water ([)refer to have it warm,) then with a 

 brush, such as painters have, and a tin basin, 

 have some pure hog's lard melted, and give the 

 cracks a good greasing. Then I feed the cows 

 ■ with something that they like to eat, which 

 diverts their attention. I commence stripping 

 down the teats with my thumb and finger ; I 

 do not clasp my whole hand harshly round the 

 teat, for by so doing the cracks will open and 

 hurt the cow. If the cow is inclined to kick, 

 do not whip her. I have long since found it 

 better to pat them on their shoulders and card 

 their cheeks, speaking gently to them, than to 



use all the goadsticks one can get hold of. It 

 takes some longer to milk in this way, as I 

 milk in a long (juart milk measure, with one 

 hand, going round and taking only a (puirt at 

 a time out of each teat. When I get all the 

 milk, I strip into one of ray hands and apply 

 it to the teats, leaving them quite soft and 

 moist. Then I have a two-quart tin wash dish 

 with a handle, with about a pint of flour in it, 

 and press the ilish up to the bag with the teats 

 enclosed ; shake the dish, and the Hour will 

 adhere to the cracks. 



I have been told that those who tend grist- 

 mills do not have their hands crack. A wash 

 made of milk and molasses of equal parts is 

 good to keep the teats moist while milking, 

 and to be ajjplied before the dish of tlour 

 is applied. To prevent the teats from crack- 

 ing, I grease the inside of the cow's legs with 

 lard where they rub against the teats when the 

 cow is travelling. In using these prescriptions 

 it don't affect the taste of milk or butter, as 

 oil and some other ingredients used by some 

 people do. The flour acts as a kind of paste 

 on the cow's teats. 



Now there is a good deal of fussing with 

 cows, but what other animal can we any better 

 alTord to fuss over than the cow ? We are 

 deriving some benefit from the cow every day 

 in the year on the farm. When she does not 

 give milk she is breeding, and her manure is 

 on the farm and not wasted on the highways 

 as is that of oxen and horses. — Daniel Foster, 

 Augusta, in Maine Fanner. 



Sri.ixT IX Horses. — A few years ago I 

 bought a valuable horse that had a splint on 

 each fore leg, believing that they could be re- 

 moved. I was successful in the following 

 treatment : — I took the Volatile Lininient of 

 the U. S. Dispensatorj', to which was added 

 one drachm of oil of origanum ; this was ap- 

 plied thoroughly twice a day, and followed by 

 rubbing the splint with a round pine or basa 

 wood stick, as hard as could be done without 

 abrading the skin. This was continued several 

 weeks, when we had the satisfaction of seeing 

 the splints grow beautifully less and finally 

 disappear entirely. In this case the splints 

 had been on about a year, and had become 

 (juite large. I believe this treatment will cure 

 most cases if continued a sufHcient length of 

 time. — Dr. A. N. Braman, Brockport, N. Y., 

 in Rural New Yorker. 



A Barn for 3200 Cattle. — A farmer 

 out West has ;^200 cattle, and purposes to 

 accommodate! them all in one barn and stable 

 building. The plan is a sixteen sided centre, 

 with sixteen wings, three hundred and fifty 

 feet long each, affording room for one hun- 

 dred head of cattle on each side of the feeding 

 floor, or two hundred in a wing — ,3200 cattle 

 accommodated in the sixteen wings. The 

 centre building will afford room for a steam 



