552 
MANUAL OF MODERN FARRIER if. 
mgs ; some have been well and usefully conceived, while 
others have been erected with more than necessary accommo¬ 
dation and elegance. In the latter respect none was, per¬ 
haps, more absurdly so, than that one erected by a joint-stock 
company at Edinburgh, about twenty-five years ago, which 
was ironically designated “ The Cow-Palace.” The specu¬ 
lation did not succeed, and this building stood long, a monu¬ 
ment of extravagance and folly, not being easily convertible 
into any other purpose. 
Perhaps the most useful and economical construction for 
a cow-house is one with a central wall, which should be 
about fourteen feet high, with a roof resting on it, sloping 
downwards to an outer wall of seven feet in height. The 
total width on each side should be about twelve feet. Each 
stall should be four feet two inches in width. At the 
heels of the cattle must be placed gangways about three feet 
and a half broad. The cattle should lie on wooden plat¬ 
forms, perforated with small round holes at their outer ends, 
for the passage of the urine. Urine runs should be con¬ 
ducted from the ends of the stalls, towards the outer wall of 
the cow-house, where there ought to be a receptacle for the 
dung being collected during the day, which should be thrown 
out every morning through apertures in the wall, about two 
feet square, at proper intervals, for the purpose. There 
should be a dung-pit, constructed of stone, or brickwork, 
for the reception of the urine, as well as the dung and 
litter, as the ammonia contained in the urine is the most 
valuable part of the manure. At about five feet apart 
should be a series of windows, covered with flap-boards, for 
giving light and air, when required. There should be a 
door at each end of the building, for admitting of a free 
current of air, as occasion requires. 
Some feeders prefer a circular building, on the score of 
