THE PAVEMENT AND ITS SLOPE. 7 
too often only to generate deleterious gases by fermentation ; 
the cause of much sickness. To lessen this, the pit should be 
cleared of all manure twice a week and rinsed with a solution 
of disinfecting fluid or sprinkled with chloride of lime. 
Offensive drains should be treated in the same way if 
there be any in or out of the stable. 
The whole of the water from the roofs is conveyed from 
the shooting by iron pipes to two large tanks, placed at 
opposite sides of the yard, capable of holding about 400 
hogsheads. This supply is sufficient for all purposes, as 
I have never known the tanks to be dry longer than a 
few days together, barely sufficient for occasionally cleaning 
them out. 
The pavement. of the stalls is flint, which offers an uneven, 
yet not an uncomfortable surface. It is preferable to bricks, 
which are liable to become slippery and may cause injury to 
the horse on rising. It has a fall of about four inches from 
head to tail. A greater fall would be bad, for it would cause 
the back sinews to be always in a state of tension. In dealers’ 
stables you may see the animals standing across the stalls 
to avoid this. The great rise in such places is obviously 
to make the horses look of more importance, to engage the 
attention of the purchasers. But this would be an evil in 
the racing stable; nor do I think any horses would long 
remain comfortable in so unnatural a position. The flooring 
behind the stalls is of brick, but I think ground clinkers are 
better, for they are not so slippery, and certainly are more 
durable, and look nicer. 
Drains are bad. They cause dampness, and often produce 
the unpleasant smells they are designed to prevent. When 
undrained stables are kept scrupulously clean by frequently 
removing the dung, no such smells will be generated, and 
