110 INDIAN CORN CULTURE. 



is to be used for binding it will expedite work 

 to cut it into suitable lengths before getting 

 into the field. 



The stack should be located in a convenient 

 and well-drained place and have a foundation 

 of straw, rails or boards, to keep the fodder 

 dry. The base of the stack should have a di- 

 ameter slightly less than the length of -two 

 bundles of stalks laid end to end. The butt 

 ends of the stalks should form the exterior of 

 the stack and the center should always be from 

 two to three feet higher than the outside for 

 that layer of corn. The diameter in well-made 

 stacks slightly increases up to a height of six 

 or eight feet, after which it may contract until 

 topped off. As the stack is built bundles are 

 laid crosswise over each layer about and at the 

 center and over the ends of the bundles form- 

 ing the outer layers, to keep the whole well 

 bound together and to maintain a sufficient 

 •slope to the stalks forming the outer circum- 

 ference of the stack. When the top is to be 

 formed the stalks may be gradually drawn in 

 and all the bundles placed in layers sloping 

 from center to without, so as to furnish good 

 protection for the fodder below. Sometimes 

 the stalks are laid up to a pole five or six feet 

 long, inserted in the top of stack, to which the 

 bundles may be fastened. Such a covering is 

 not easily displaced by the wind. 



