HOUSING AND CARE OF COWS 81 



stable is 36 feet. The cows are to be placed in two rows running 

 the length of the stable, and either facing each other or toward 

 the outside of the building. There is much disagreement as to 

 which arrangement is the better. If the cows face outward, there 

 should be feeding alleys in front of them at least 6 feet wide, while 

 the central aisle in the barn behind them is used for removing- man- 

 ure. If the cows face inward, the central aisle between the rows 

 of cows is used for feeding purposes. In either case an overhead 

 railway is often used for removing manure from the centre aisle, 

 when the cattle face outward, or for carrying feed when the ani- 

 mals face toward each other. The writer gives the preference to 

 the plan of facing the cows towards the outside of the building. 

 By this arrangement the cows get more air and light, and their 

 breath does not commingle. At the same time the manure can 

 be more readily removed, which is more important than ease of 

 feeding, for the production of clean milk. In the cow stall, the 

 chief object should be to have an arrangement which keeps the 

 cows wholly apart and does not cumber the floor so as to make 

 places where dirt can collect. The best floors are of concrete, cov- 

 ered with cement, and made somewhat rough, so that the cattle 

 will not slip. Competent dairy men place layers of tar paper under 

 the upper layer of cement,* or cover the cement with movable wood 

 flooring, under the cows, to prevent them from lying on this hard 

 and cold substance. (See Appendix.) If not of cement, the floor 

 should be of planed, matched planking, and the cracks filled in with 

 tar. In case planking is used, it is best at any rate to have the 

 gutters of cement. 



To secure drainage of the floor of the stall, the rear half of 

 it — that is, the half nearest the manure trench — should have a fall 

 of two inches. The manure trench should be sixteen inches wide 



* On top of three inches of concrete, place three layers of building paper. Coat 

 the two lower layers of paper with melted tar. Add three inches of concrete 

 above the paper. 



