Agriculture of Norfolk. 
319 
the soap and brush." The truth is, warmth, quietness, and comfort are 
verj' essential, as means of making food repay its cost in the best man- 
ner, to every animal on which food is bestowed for that especial purpose ; 
and therefore our attention ought as constantly to be directed towards 
securing the former as providing the latter ; and I think this general 
principle can hardly be too often impressed upon feeders of stock. I 
may observe also, that, although most of the best Norfolk farmers are 
aware of this fact, it is not so well known, generally, as it ought to be, 
that the peculiar flavour and quality of bacon is derived more from the 
food on which it has been fed than from the manner of curing it. 
YARDS, BOXES, BUILDINGS, &c. 
A question of some importance has recently arisen as to the 
comparative merits of stall, yard, or box feeding ; but perhaps 
more particularly between the two last-mentioned methods. Box- 
feeding is of recent origin in Norfolk, and advocated on the ground 
of its uniting the advantages of having the cattle loose (or at liberty 
to move themselves as far as is beneficial), without allowing them 
to be checked in their feeding by annoyance from other animals, 
or by their own restlessness ; whilst the manure, by this means, is 
made under cover, and the liquid from the cattle preserved in it ; 
the boxes being generally sunk in the ground, or, when placed on 
the level, surrounded by a wall of clay, and in some cases brick 
and mortal', for the purpose of retaining the liquid manure. This 
is the new mode of feeding ; and the only objection raised to it, 
which seems of much importance, even at first, is, that of its being 
more expensive. If it is really a more expensive means of arriving 
at the same end, it should undoubtedly be at once abandoned; 
but in these cases, as well as others, the cheapest way is not always 
the most profitable; on the contrary, it is often found, in the end, 
the dearest. Those who advocate stall-feeding say, that by their 
plan you can feed twice the number in the same space ; but then 
the question arises, can you feed them as rapidly, for the same 
amount of food consumed, and with equal benefit to the manure? 
If you cannot do both these, the difference should be taken into 
the account in calculating the expense of feeding. For, supposing 
the interest of the landlord and that of the tenant to be (as they 
really are in the long run) as identical as if united in one person, 
a very small difference in the capability of producing improvements 
in the animals, from equal c^uantities of food consumed, would 
abundantly cover the most extravagantly built sheds for them. It 
is said, however, that these boxes may be so constructed as to cost 
very little. 
Mr. John Blomfield, of Warham, has long prevented water from 
entering the sheds surrounding his yards, as a means of avoiding 
injury to the manure there made. He has kept his horses in the 
yards all night, during summer, upon cut grass, «Scc., more than 
