322 AMERICAN CATTLE. 



COW is kept to four acres of arable land, and in many cases only 

 one to five, and six acres. Three acres of pasture, and one acre 

 of good meadow, keep the cow through the year. The fact that 

 three times as much land is usually devoted to summering a cow, 

 as to wintering her, should, of itself, be quite enough to show 

 the wastefulness of the pasturing system. Especially, when it 

 is considered that it takes one-eighth more food to keep the same 

 animal in cold than in warm weather. Let us compare this with 

 soiling. It appears, by the experiments detailed, that land may 

 be so fertile, that forty rods of ground will be sufficient to soil a 

 cow for the whole pasturing season, but we will not assume so 

 extreme a position. If we take twice this amount, or one-half 

 acre of fertile land, devoted to soiling crops for each cow, no 

 disappointment will result. Then, if one-half acre will soil a 

 cow, instead of three acres pastured, we have saved five-sixths 

 of the land, or two and one-half acres. This two and a half 

 acres will, certainly, soil and winter another cow. But we will 

 divide the four acres into two parts, giving each cow two acres, 

 and estimate three-fourths of an acre for soiling, and one and a 

 fourth acres for wintering the cow. This can, most confidently, 

 be relied upon to furnish abundant food, when in good condition, 

 to keep a cow through the year. And thus, we see that the 

 land usually devoted to a cow, under the pasturing system, is 

 abunda'it, in soiling, to keep two. 



"In fact, the writer has never used so much as two acres in 

 good condition, to keep a cow through the year. And as it has 

 been shown that the aggregate amount of labor is not increased 

 by soiling, it follows, conclusively, that this system, properly con- 

 ducted, will double the income of the stock feeder, without any 

 increase of his land. 



SOILING CROPS. 



"The field or fields which are to furnish the summer food, 

 should be near the place of feeding — and being near the barn, it 



