880 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



it ; for they feed upon what the horse eats. But if the stomach 

 becomes empty, having nothing else to eat they attack the coats 

 of the stomach, which produces irritation followed by inflamma- 

 tion. Give some sweet apples, or some molasses and water, and 

 they will change their food, and the horse will be cured. 



MANURES AND SOILING. 



Dr. Waterbury called up the question of soiling, being one 

 branch of the question for discussion ; and said that by this 

 means men with small farms would be enabled to keep an almost 

 unlimited amount of stock. 



Dr. Underhill said that for considerably over 20 years he had 

 pursued the system of soiling, keeping his cattle in the yard, or 

 permitting them to go a short distance for drink, but never turn- 

 ing them out to graze. By this method, where land is very high, 

 he had been able to raise a considerable number of cattle and 

 horses, and at the same time to carry on a successful fruit cul- 

 ture ; which he could not have done with the ordinary method. 

 It is necessary that the materials taken from the soil in the crop 

 should be returned to it ; and to depend upon the market to sup- 

 ply this exhaustion, is a poor resort. In order to farm success- 

 fully, the manure must be husbanded. He had found no manure 

 equal to the compost produced by the mixture of the decomposed 

 vegetable matter found in the alluvium, with the offal of animals. 

 With half a dozen cows and four or five horses, more manure may 

 be made than many farmers make who have a hundred cattle. 

 By soiling, upon a few acres of land a large amount of stock can 

 be kept with the aid of root crops, which are indispensable. 

 When the green clover and other crops are gone, we have the 

 turnip, carrot, parsnip, mangel wurtzel, and sugar beet. Where 

 land is cheap, soiling may not be necessary ; but where land is 

 valuable that system must be adopted. There are those who lay 

 up ten thousand bushels of these roots for the winter. Giving 

 the white turnip seemed to be an unfair way of watering the 

 milk; but with rich turnips, carrots and other roots, we may 

 make the milk and the butter what we desire. Carrots are ex- 

 cellent for fattening animals ; but for the last week or -two, he 

 would recommend Indian corn or Indian meal. For bedding for 

 cattle, there is nothing better than the dried leaves of forest and 

 ornamental trees, which may be packed into a very small space, 

 and make excellent manure. He had tried all the new-fangled 

 manures, and some of them were excellent as containing one or 



