at Home and Abroad. 
199 
a continuous pressure of about 16 tons resting upon the grass. Or if the 
attendant is not satisfied, and has reason to fear that there is not sufficient 
travel left to allow for the sinking of the grass before he comes again next 
morning, he raises it again to full stroke, and it is found that this is ample to 
last well into the next day, and thus secure continuous pressure. Next 
morning we generally found the silage sunk about another foot ; the lever is 
raised by one man in a few minutes, and the weight left hanging in such a 
position that it must sink about 2 feet before it need again be adjusted. This 
is not generally for some days ; and shortly, as it becomes settled, need not 
be looked to for we^ks. 
It will be seen by the section of the silo (Fig. 4), that the cradle upon which 
the beam rests its pressure does not appear long enough to reach the gi-ass 
when only a small first day's work may have been put in. This, however, is 
provided for, as, though not easily shown on so small a scale, it is made 
telescopic (Fig. 6), and lengthens out to follow the silage. It will also be 
Fig. 6. — Ddails of Pressing Apparatus. 
observed that the chains which are attached to the cradle and transverse timbers 
are carried over two pulleys (m) at the top of the beam, and thence, after 
passing through two snatch blocks (n) fastened to the wall, can be hooked 
on to the lever beam (o), and then, by working the jack through its full 
travel of 6 feet, they are raised about 8 feet out of the way of the people 
treading the grass. 
When it is desired to remove the silage for consumption, the hydraulic 
jack raises the cradle, boards are taken off as far as required, and the weight 
put on again — the cradle retiring towards the outer end of the lever as each 
section is cut. Thus the same uniform continuous pressure is maintained, 
the weight on the cradle being reduced by the shortening of the leverage in 
proportion as the area to be f)ressed is diminished. 
Near the top of the silo there is a shelf (p) which is for the piling away of 
the covering boards, and for the man to stand on to work ^he jack. 
I believe my silo, when fuU, holds 90 to 100 tons ; the weight of a cubic 
foot of silage 6 feet from the bottom was 60 lbs. 
Of course, the somewhat unusual height of the building is to save first cost, 
as the expense of pressure is the same for a high silo as a low one. Also, 
the deeper the silage, the more pressure from its own weight, and the more 
full days' work at filling, not so much time being lost in starting and stopping 
as is the case with the small fillings for so many toppings out. This, to my 
mind, more than compensates for the wages of the man who forks off the 
scafi"old, or for an elevator, if the latter be preferred. 
I prefer silos above ground, because it saves excavating ; and, after all, you 
cannot have less than 9-inch work, and in most cases the earth would require 
more to keep it up. Again, it is much cheaper to fork off a cart in the long 
days of summer than out of a deep hole every time you fodder the cattle in 
winter, as will be found when this new feed gets into the wholesale scale of 
every-day practice. Besides, there is the risk of water oozing through your 
cemented walls and making tea-leaves of the silage. 
I may add that for the last two months 1 have been feeding sixteen bullocks 
and heifers of the largest size ou nothing but silage and 6 lbs. daily of cake 
and meal ; and the result is, I consider, at least a dead heat between them 
and similar bullocks on the same allowance of cake and meal, and turnips and 
hay ad lib., instead of silage. 
