1902 
3 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
CEMENT STABLE FLOORS. 
Proper Finishing of the Surface. 
Part II. 
The next very important step is thorough mixing 
of sand and cement before water is added. A small 
box with handles at each end, so that two men can 
carry it easily, three feet wide, six feet long and a 
foot deep, will hold enough for a single mixing. Re¬ 
member that the mixing after water is added is rather 
to mix water with the sand than to mix sand and 
cement. The mixture of sand and cement should be 
considered complete while they are yet dry. I am 
unable to put into language the exact amount of 
water necessary. An exact rule could be given ii the 
sand was always perfectly dry, but as that is impos¬ 
sible the eye of the mixer must be the judge. The 
texture must be such that the mixture will spread 
readily, and be plastic, yielding quickly and readily 
to trowel. Enough water should be used so that after 
the surface is finished water will stand for a few 
minutes upon the surface and then disappear. Fol¬ 
lowing this system nas produced a floor 
without crack or blemish. During the 
drying, for a few days each day the 
surface should be sprinkled. The first 
foundation should become partly dry be¬ 
fore placing a finish coat upon it; that 
is, the surplus moisture should pass out 
but not become dry. If the first condi¬ 
tion prevails, too much water will be 
obliged to evaporate up through a finish 
coat, and it will require much too long 
a time to dry. On the other hand, if the 
under coat is quite dry, the two thick¬ 
nesses will not readily unite, and hence 
a cracking, breaking surface will soon 
appear, or if it does not at once break, 
there will be a peculiar hollow sound 
when tapping with a hammer or mallet, 
that eventually means destruction if 
animals stand on or walk over it. 
One of the serious objections to ce¬ 
ment is its slippery surface, which is a 
fatal defect if so built, but in my ex¬ 
perience this smooth surface is entirely avoidable, 
and here again comes the value of coarse sanu. While 
fine sand, if clean and sharp, may produce a firm, hard 
surface and body, the rough surface finish cannot be 
put on. After the last coat has just nicely stiffened, 
float it with a board float or trowel, gently of course, 
but sufficiently to disturb the surface, leaving a 
rough finish, which will be found after drying to re¬ 
main permanent, and prevent slipping. In fact, 
horses seem able, if the surface is dry, to hold about 
equally well with a plank surface. This is not the 
only value of this rough finish. If one will place a 
piece of paper over a metal surface that 
“feels cold,” and then place the hand 
upon it, the trouble has gone; that is, 
the thin sheet of paper, a non-conduc¬ 
tor, prevents the rapid radiation of heat 
from the hand, and all is well. This 
rough surface finish will hold to its 
place the bedding, with great tenacity, 
much more effectual, in fact, than a 
plank surface. If the straw used is not 
too coarse it will pack as tightly as 
though glued to the floor. Now this 
sheet of bedding serves to the animal 
as a non-conductor, just as the sheet of 
paper does for the hand, so it seems to 
me we need have no fear of cows slip¬ 
ping if we follow the simple plan above 
mentioned. Masons are inclined if they 
have not had large experience to use 
the trowel instead, in order to get a nice 
smooth finish—a very serious mistake 
if once done, because it is quite impos¬ 
sible to make fast another coat to the 
surface if once it becomes hard, and especially is this 
true when it is troweled smooth. 
The mangers and all parts used as a feeding and 
walking surface may be made as smooth as glass, and 
be much better for it. The feeding floor or manger 
is much more easily kept clean if finished with a 
glassy surface. In a previous article (page 862, issue 
of December 21 last) we gave a surface line or con¬ 
tour which is easily followed in cement if the gutter 
is first laid. Dig out a trench about two feet wide, 
and build the foundation the same as for any por¬ 
tion of the floor, and finish it; then use an eight-inch 
timber next to the cow platform, and a six-inch tim¬ 
ber next to the drive, and build to it, making a gut¬ 
ter 15 inches wide, eight inches on one side and six 
on the other. We found a very clever way of fasten¬ 
ing all partitions, manger and stall foundations, by 
anchoring iron pipe, which in our case was wornout 
and otherwise worthless. Pieces of three-quarter and 
one inch pipe were cut 10 to 12 inches long, and placed 
in their proper places in the earth, and up through 
the cement, projecting about two inches. Upon these 
were placed 4x4 or 3x1 scantling; a secure working 
basis was thus secured which could not possibly slip 
or move one hair’s breadth. The cost was nominal 
and we did away with any depression in the cement, 
which means decay for the timber in it sooner or 
later. Horse stalls, box stalls, drive floors, granary 
floor, everything except the hay barn, was cemented. 
All box stalls were given a sharp pitch to a shallow 
gutter, which has a tendency to collect much surplus 
water. But the fact remains that the moisture will 
but slowly move to it when plenty of bedding is used. 
Constant care and frequent cleaning, with a change 
of bedding, are absolutely essential for a dry nest and 
safety to the animal. This is the reason that many 
object to cement for hoghouse floors. The usual way 
of infrequent cleaning, as practiced upon plank floors 
that are more or less open will not work upon cement. 
As soon as the bedding is wet it loses its non-conduc- 
tive power, and the animal is subject not alone to the 
cold floor, but to a wet one also, both conducive to 
muscular and finally to digestive disorders. With 
cows the excreta is all dropped in one place, and does 
not come in contact with the body; hence the safety 
of cement. 
My experience warrants the purchase of sacked in¬ 
stead of barreled cement. It is likely to be finer, in 
better mechanical condition, and much more economi¬ 
cal of time in use. A sack is quickly broken and used 
to a given measure of sand without measuring it, 
and also easily handled, loading, unloading, etc. 
There are found on the market to-day three grades 
of domestic cement, and we have no necessity for im¬ 
ported goods; the better grades of hydraulic cement 
known to the trade as Portland, another brand which 
in sustaining power stands between the Portland and 
the cheaper grades, and the latter, known as “Star,” 
“Akron” and water lime. h. e. cook. 
CHEAP STOCK FOODS; CUTTING SILAGE. 
PROFIT IN OAT HULLS.—One of the best object 
lessons that we have seen for some time was at a 
dairy institute recently held at Coventry, Conn. A 
farmer, who had bought one of the widely advertised 
popular (?) dairy feeds which are said to be a com¬ 
plete balanced ration for the dairy cow, with the ex¬ 
ception of roughage, brought to the meeting two boxes 
whose contents weighed two pounds. He had paid 
$25 per ton for the feed, and upon looking at it be¬ 
came suspicious of its contents. He took two pounds 
and ran it through an ordinary sieve, and then 
weighed the two parts. That which refused to go 
through the sieve was found to be nothing but oat 
hulls, and upon weighing he found that he had paid 
$8.75 of the $25 for those hulls. He also stated, and 
a close examination confirmed his statement, that if 
he had had a fine sieve for the remainder another good- 
sized per cent would have turned out to be ground 
hulls. In the fifty-fifth chapter of Isaiah we find these 
words: “Wherefore do ye spend money for that 
which is not bread, and your labor for that which 
satisfieth not?” Are we no further advanced than 
were these people 2,500 years ago? We are still pay¬ 
ing good money for these almost worthless refuse 
products from the oatmeal factories. New brands 
with highly-colored names and pictures, or yards of 
worthless testimonials, do not increase their value one 
cent. Some one will ask: “Isn’t there some value 
in them?” Yes, but they are, we might almost say, 
never worth the price asked for them. Dr. Jordan 
has well said: “They are all sold to get rid of some 
product that could not be sold on its own merits.” 
The manager of one of the largest feed brokers in 
the country told us last Fall at Buffalo that a certain 
company was making more money out 
of the 150 tons per day of their oat feed 
they turned out than out of all their 
other products combined. 
THE BY-PRODU ^ I’S.—There are a 
good many dairymen who as yet fail to 
realize that there are two great classes 
of feeds known as by-products. To the 
first belong cotton-seed and linseed 
meals, gluten meals and feeds, wheat 
bran and middlings; to the second corn 
and oait. feeds. In the first class the by¬ 
products are richer in protein than the 
original product. How can this be, some 
one will say. Cotton seed itself 
contains about 18 per cent protein while 
cotton-seed meal contains about 43 per 
cent. A ton of raw cotton seed is treated 
to extract the oil and the resulting pro¬ 
duct leaves of hulls, 890 pounds, cotton¬ 
seed meal 760 pounds, and cotton-seed 
oil 330 pounds. Thus from a ton of 
whole cotton seed, which contained 18 
per cent protein, or 360 pounds, we get 760 pounds 
cotton-seed meal, which still contains nearly all the 
the protein, as the hulls only contain about 30 pounds. 
This leaves 330 pounds in the 760 pounds of meal, or 
about 43 per cent. In the second class, which are 
largely the refuse from breakfast food products, the 
better parts are used for human consumption. Thus 
a ton of oats, Which are about 12 per cent protein, will 
contain about 236 pounds protein. From these the 
manufacturer will obtain about 1,400 pounds oatmeal 
or rolled oats, containing about 15 per cent protein, 
or about 210 pounds. The remaining 600 pounds, 
mostly oat hulls, will contain about 26 
pounds protein, or a little over four per 
cent. This latter product is ground up 
and often mixed with something else 
to give it a character (?}, and turns out 
a high-flown oat feed. 
A BIG CUTTER.—At the same insti¬ 
tute Theo. Stanley, of New Britain, gave 
some good advice in a talk on silos and 
silage, in regard to having the silage 
machinery all in harmony. Thus, if one 
uses a corn harvester, nave the cutter 
large enough to handle the whole bun¬ 
dle, and the engine with sufficient pow¬ 
er to cut it without difficulty. We have 
found by experience the soundness of 
this advice. This year our corn was cut 
with harvester, and we used 16-inch 
cutter and six horse-power engine and 
boiler. Although the corn was large 
and full of ears we could take in a large 
bundle at at time, and cut very rapidly 
in half-inch lengths. 
BUYING GRAIN AHEAD.—On our own farm, 
where we milk from 50 to 60 cows, we expect to make 
milk practically as cheap as we did last Winter and 
expect to have the cows in even better appearance. 
Our silage contains more corn than usual, and our 
grain feed, coarse bran, cotton-seed meal and gluten 
feed was mostly bought in the Summer, and stored in 
rat-proof iron bins, and the constant jump in prices 
of feed doesn’t trouble us half as much as the neigh¬ 
bor whom we tried to have order wheat bran last 
Summer with us at $16 per ton. He is now paying $25 
to $30 per ton, but says he won’t be caught another 
year. Wheat bran touched $15.25 last Summer, and 
we made up our minds to order, but instead of wiring 
we wrote a letter, as we had some instructions to 
give. The difference between the time of wire and 
letter cost us $38, as grain advanced enough to catch 
us that amount. Mails are too slow for this rapid 
world nowadays. B. Q. M. 
Connecticut. 
