1883.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
6T 
tion of profit and expense to suit tlie locality; 
but in this section, when com is $1 per 
bushel, eggs sell for 22 cents per dozen, but 
we have the advantage of Philadelphia, At¬ 
lantic City, New York, and Cape May mar¬ 
kets. At times the price reaches 40 cents, 
but the average may be safely placed at 18 
cents, though we pay high for corn and other 
food. I have had returns from one hen—$2 
in eggs, and $4 in chicks, the expense being 
about $2 ; but while this applies to a single 
hen only, which had full attention, as an ex¬ 
periment, it demonstrates that the rule will 
work well with fowls in small flocks, and $2 
clear profit can be safely expected. I see no 
reason why those of limited means should 
not embark in this profitable enterprise, by 
keeping large numbers of poultry in small 
flocks, the only secret in the matter being 
not to crowd them. 
A Wire Gate. 
Mr. J. J. Doan, Hendricks Co., Ind., writes 
us: I have in use a gate made as follows: 
There are two horizontal pieces the length of 
the gate; two uprights the hight of the gate, 
and extending both above and below the hor¬ 
izontals, in order to put a wire on the bottom 
to prevent the gate being lifted by hogs. 
There is a wire on top, to protect the gate 
from being pushed by horses. Four wires 
fill the space between the horizontals. These 
wires, being on the same side, tend to strain 
the gate. To counteract this difficulty, and 
to keep the gate from sagging, I have two 
diagonal wires on the opposite side. This 
gate serves all purposes of the common gate 
effectually. There is no inducement for boys 
to swing on it. Wind will not rack it. It is 
neat, light, and cheap. 
Keep the Cattle Under Cover. 
Even now, in some of the newer regions of 
the West, the easiest way to get rid of the 
manure is considered the best. The English 
farmers have long been obliged to feed farm 
animals largely for the fertilizers they yield, 
and this has proved that covered yards are 
the most economical. These covers are not 
so expensive as might be supposed at first 
thought. Substantial sheds, large enough 
to accommodate a hundred head of cattle, 
may be built at a cost all the way from $1,000 
to $1,500, according to the locality and 
price of labor and lumber. The roof may be 
made with three ridge poles resting upon out¬ 
side walls, and two rows of pillars. There 
should be ample provision for ventilation 
and the escape of the water falling upon 
the roof. The original cost will not be many 
dollars per head, and the interest on this will 
represent the yearly cost. If this should be 
placed at two dollars for each animal, it will 
be seen that this outlay is more than repaid 
by the increased value of the housed ma¬ 
nure over that made in the open yard, and 
exposed to the sun and drenching rains. 
The saving in food consequent upon the warm 
protection of the animals has been carefully 
estimated to be at least one-tenth the whole 
amount consumed. In the saving alone the 
covered yard gives a handsome return upon 
the investment. 
Half Barrels for Hens Nests. 
The engraving shows one-half of a salt bar¬ 
rel, which is to be notched as indicated. I find 
this form very useful as nests for laying, or 
setting fowls. They may be packed away 
snugly, and are cleaned so readily, that farm¬ 
ers will be pleased with them. Some earth 
is to be placed 
in the bottom 
of each. Then 
a large sod 
which will 
nearly fill the 
tub up to the 
notch should 
be placed, on 
this, roots 
down. Earth 
should be a barrel nest. 
scooped from 
the center of the sod, so that when the sod is 
pressed down, a slight depression may be 
formed. The nest is then ready for use. 
The earth should be well moistened if the 
nest is to be used for setting purposes. A 
sprinkling of sulphur on the sod should not 
be omitted, and the chicks will be a pretty 
sure “ crop.” The notch will prevent the hens 
from jumping down upon the eggs, which, 
especially with the Asiatics, is the cause of 
much loss. By omitting the notch, and nail¬ 
ing a strap to each side, we have a convenient 
and cheap basket for carrying light and bulky 
material. Saw a barrel in two and you will 
be astonished to see the different uses to 
which it may be applied. K. C. Greiner. 
Cotton-Seed—Cotton-Seed Cake and MeaL 
From inquiries reaching us from various 
parts of the country, we are pleased to learn 
that farmers are awake to the importance of 
cotton-seed cake as a cattle food and as a fer¬ 
tilizer. The wording of several of the inquir¬ 
ies shows that many suppose the seed itself 
is used as food. This is very rarely used, and 
never should be. The hulled seeds, the kernels, 
are placed under a hydraulic press, which 
separates from them nearly half their weight 
of oil. The cake that remains, after all the oil 
possible has been removed, contains all the 
other constituents of the seeds, and an ap¬ 
preciable portion of the oil which the pres¬ 
sure is unable to remove. This is cotton-seed 
cake, which, for convenience in feeding, is 
broken up and ground, when it is known afl 
cotton-seed meal. It will be seen that this 
bears the same relation to cotton-seed as 
oil-cake or oil-cake meal bears to flax-seed or 
linseed. Some of our friends ask how the 
two cakes compare in feeding value. Cotton¬ 
seed cake is much the richer food, and it is 
sufficiently exact to say that three pounds of 
it is equal in feeding value to four pounds of 
oil-cake. The great value of cotton-seed 
meal, like that of oil-cake, is as food for milk 
animals and those that are being fattened. It 
should be given with hay and roots. Some¬ 
times cows do not relish it at first, but if it 
is mixed in small quantities with bran or 
meal, they soon become very fond of it. 
Four quarts are regarded as a full daily ra¬ 
tion, but at first only a quart, or even less, 
should be fed, gradually increasing the quan¬ 
tity. The great manurial value of cotton¬ 
seed must not be overlooked. The crude 
seed has long been used in the cotton States 
as a fertilizer, but the cake is greatly con¬ 
centrated, and nearly all its fertilizing con¬ 
stituents are found in the manure. Sir J. 
B. Lawes found that the manure from feed¬ 
ing a ton of the cake was worth $27.86 in 
gold. We recently observed that by util¬ 
izing the seeds, the value of the cotton 
crop of the country had been increased 
one-third. These benefits may be shared by 
farmers in the Northern States, if they will 
avail themselves of the cotton-seed meal as 
a cattle food. When its real value becomes 
widely known, our farmers will make such a 
demand for it, that not a ton of cotton-seed 
cake or meal will be allowed to go abroad. 
Plan of a Simple Poultry House. 
Herewith is presented a plan of a poultry 
house, with roosting-poles, laying-boxes, and 
also a method for collecting the droppings. 
The width of the building is ten feet. The 
north side is 7 feet high, and the south 
side, 9 feet; the roof is made of boards 
12 feet long ; at the bottom is a gutter to 
receive the droppings. The fowls roost on 
horizontal poles, their droppings fall on 
and roll down slanting boards into the 
gutter, which is made 15 inches wide and 2 
inches deep. There is a door as shown by 
dotted lines, with a lid entrance at the bot¬ 
tom, through which the fowls enter at night, 
or in showery or windy weather, taking 
shelter under the nests, which are 16 
to 18 inches wide, and extends the whole 
length of the building. There is a walk 
along the gutter, from which the eggs are 
gathered. A wheelbarrow can be drawn 
in, when the droppings are taken from 
the gutter with a shovel. As the hens 
go in to lay, they first spring on to an 
alighting board. The nest spaces are 19 
inches square. The nests are daily aired, 
and frequently purified by sunshine. The 
building can be extended to any desired 
length. This is a well tested plan of a 
poultry house, at once simple, effective, 
and economical. J. W. Clarke. 
