Farm-Buildings. 
191 
third  of  its  previous  value.  Hence  any  arrangement  by  which  one 
animal  lias  more  food  than  he  can  digest,  and  another  less  than  his 
share,  is  on  both  accounts  a source  of  loss  to  the  owner,  and  if  the 
stock  are  exposed  to  the  cold  in  winter,  a further  loss  takes  place;  but 
if  by  grinding,  steaming,  or  other  preparation  of  the  food,  and  by 
the  use  of  warm  boxes  or  stalls,  in  which  each  animal  receives  its 
allotted  portion,  more  of  the  food  is  converted  into  fat  and  flesh, 
and  less  remains  in  the  manure,  a saving  is  effected  not  only  in 
the  more  uniform  thriving  of  the  stock  and  the  smaller  portion  of 
food  which  is  expended  in  maintaining  the  animal  heat,  but  also 
in  the  difference  in  value  between  a feeding  and  a manuxing  sub- 
stance, the  proportion  between  which  has  been  pointed  out  in  the 
case  of  linseed-cake,  but  which  there  are  as  yet  no  data  for  calcu- 
lating in  the  case  of  corn,  hay,  or  roots.  Again,  the  undigested 
food  left  in  the  manure  is  subject  to  further  depreciation  before  it 
is  applied  to  the  land.  The  better  the  manure  the  more  liable  it 
is  to  heat,  and  the  more  it  has  been  heated,  the  more  it  suffers 
from  rain.  How  then  is  it  to  be  prevented  from  over-heating  ? 
Compression  is  the  readiest  and  most  efficient  way  of  accomplish- 
ing it,  and  this  is  obtained  most  perfectly  in  boxes,  in  which  the 
manure  is  solid  enough  to  prevent  undue  fermentation,  and  is  also 
protected  from  rain.  If  straw  is  scarce,  and  stalls  for  feeding 
cattle  be  preferred,  the  labour  of  cutting  the  litter  and  of  wheeling 
away  the  soiled  part  daily  to  mix  with  earth,  is  amply  repaid  in  the 
perfect  preservation  of  the  manure  which  is  thus  obtained. 
The  advantages  of  feeding  cattle  in  stalls  and  boxes  have  been 
so  prominently  put  forward  of  late  as  to  lead  to  the  proposal  to 
dispense  with  straw-yards  altogether.  This  is  running  from  one 
extreme  to  another.  It  has  certainly  been  proved  both  scienti- 
fically and  practically  that  warmth  is  to  a certain  extent  a substitute 
for  food,  and  during  winter  fattening  cattle  can  scarcely  be  kept 
too  warm  consistently  with  good  ventilation ; but  it  would  be  un- 
wise to  tender  young  cattle  or  cattle  of  any  sort  that  are  not  making 
up  for  the  butcher,  and  are  intended  for  summer  grazing.  Young 
animals  also  require  a certain  amount  of  exercise,  which  is  con- 
ducive to  healthy  growth,  and  probably  no  arrangement  is  superior 
to  small,  well-sheltered  open  yards  for  young  stock. 
In  ordinary  farmyards  manure  is  much  injured  by  rain-water, 
and  to  obviate  this  it  is  suggested  that  covered  depots  should  be 
provided  where  it  may  be  deposited  till  wanted.  The  objection 
to  covered  manure  pits  is,  the  lightness  of  the  manure  and  its  con- 
sequent tendency  to  heat  itself  dry  with  very  great  loss  of  ammonia. 
It  certainly  may  be  watered  from  a pump  or  tank,  but  this  would 
only  increase  the  fermentation  so  long  as  the  heap  was  light,  and  to 
meet  this  difficulty  it  has  been  suggested  that  it  should  be  frequently 
carted  over.  It  is  certainly  possible  by  carting  or  some  other  mecha- 
