218 
THE CULTIVATOR. July 
the cellar. It will then be eighteen inches above the 
level of the bay; so that it gives more room for door 
and passage. Then nail on with large nails, hemlock 
boards perpendicularly upon the outside of the frames. 
They will need no nailing at the bottom. Leave suffi¬ 
cient door room next the barn floor. Cover with two 
inch hemlock plank; then make a passage from the 
cellar to the floor. It requires two doors in order the 
more effectually to keep out the frost—one at each end 
of the passage. This has been found sufficient. Fill 
in the sides of the cellar with earth pounded hard, to 
prevent the rats from undermining it; the remainder of 
the earth may be carried to the yard to mix with the 
manure heap. Almost every barn will admit of a cellar 
of the size which I have described. The quantity of 
hay above and on each side being enough to secure it 
against the frost. A Subscriber. 
Vernon Centre, Feb. 7, 1846. 
STALL FEEDING CATTLE. 
A subscriber of Baltimore county, Maryland, asks 
for information in regard to stall-feeding cattle. This 
business has been carried on to a greater or less extent 
in the valley of Connecticut river for many years. In 
Mr. Colman’s Fourth Report on the Agriculture of 
Massachusetts, the subject is very fully considered; and 
as our correspondent’s inquiry seems particularly di¬ 
rected to the practice of northern farmers, we abstract 
from the volume referred to, the principal facts em¬ 
braced in the following article: 
Mr. Colman observes that the stall-feeding of cattle 
is carried on to a large extent in the river towns of the 
county of Franklin, and to some extent in the hill 
towns. In the hill towns they are usually fatted on po¬ 
tatoes; the cattle being tied in the barn, and allowed a 
bushel of well-washed potatoes per day, each, at two or 
more feedings. They receive no water. A hundred 
bushels of potatoes, with what hay they will eat, are 
deemed sufficient to fatten a yoke of oxen, put up in 
good condition, and the advance in price is deemed a 
fair equivalent for the value of the potatoes and hay. 
Mr. Colman says it is generally thought that cattle 
fed on potatoes prove as well, that is, have as much 
tallow, as those fed in any way, and that the beef of 
such cat.ttle is believed by many to have a peculiar 
juiciness or sweetness. It is, however, thought they 
fall away more in driving to market than those fed on 
hay and corn. Several farmers are in the habit ofboil- 
ing or steaming the potatoes they give their cattle, and 
profess to find great advantage in it. It seems how¬ 
ever, that experiments have not yet well settled this. 
The articles most frequently employed in fatting 
cattle, are Indian meal, or corn and rye meal mixed, or 
peas and oats, or oats and corn ground together. In 
addition to these, many farmers give raw potatoes oc¬ 
casionally. Some farmers of experience are of opinion 
that potatoes are valuable for fatting cattle in the fall 
and spring, when the weather is warm, but that they 
do but little good in cold weather unless they are 
cooked. The value of potatoes is differently estimated 
by different individuals; some considering five bushels, 
others rating four, as equivalent to one bushel of corn. 
Mr. Colman gives the following examples of fattening 
with potatoes. 
(C M. I. approves highly of potatoes as food for fatten¬ 
ing stock, and deems four bushels fully equal to one of 
corn. He gives as many as the cattle Avill bear, and 
this varies from one to two bushels per day. He put 
up a steer in autumn which cost him twenty-six dollars, 
and killed him in March, weighing one thousand 
pounds, with eighty-seven pounds of rough tallow. 
This animal would seldom take more than five pecks 
per day. The quality of the hay, which cattle consume 
under these circumstances, he does not deem important; 
and thinks the straw of grain will do nearly as well as 
hay. 
“ He purchased a heifer, two or three years old, at 
eighteen dollars, and put her in the stall in November. 
She would have been, (had she lived,) three years old 
in six weeks from the time she was killed. When 
dressed, she weighed nine hundred and ninety-four 
pounds, and had one hundred and seventeen pounds of 
rough tallow. She was fed exclusively upon potatoes 
and hay, and eat usually one bushel and a half per 
day; she was sometimes induced to eat two busnels per 
day.” 
The use of succulent vegetables, excepting potatoes, 
does not seem to be common in fattening cattle in 
Massachusetts. The opinion was expressed to Mr. 
Colman by one farmer of large experience, that the 
common English or flat turnip is of but little value for 
this purpose. The cattle are said to appear well and in 
fine condition when fed on turneps, but yielded very 
little tallow. This opinion is not at all singular, but is 
frequently expressed; though, as Mr. Colman observes, 
it is likely that the experiment of fattening with tur¬ 
neps has seldom, if ever been fairly tried in this part of 
the country. 
The course of feeding as practised by one farmer 
whose example is quoted, is to bring the cattle to the 
stall about the 20th of November; then to begin feed¬ 
ing them with half a bushel of potatoes and four quarts 
of meal each per day. After a time he quits feed¬ 
ing with potatoes, and gives only hay and meal, from 
one peck to nine quarts each per day; and seldom ex¬ 
ceeds this quantity. 
A mixed provender is generally preferred. Indian 
meal is commonly chosen for the bases, and meal 
from peas and oats, or rye, are mixed with it. Oil¬ 
cake is highly esteemed, and is often bought even 
at twenty to twenty-five dollars per ton. It is crushed 
and then ground fine, in which state it weighs about 
forty-five pounds to the bushel. A good provender 
consists of one-half of this oil-meal, a quarter oats and 
and a quarter corn, ground together, and the whole 
well mixed when given to the cattle. Mr. Colman 
states that flax-seed jelly is sometimes used, and with 
excellent advantage—he used himself, and highly ap¬ 
proves it. He quotes the following mode of pre¬ 
paring it: 
« To seven parts of water, let one part of linseed be 
be put for forty-eight hours; then boil it slowly for 
two hours, gently stirring the whole lest it should burn. 
Afterwards it ought to be cooled in tubs and mixed 
with meal, bran, or oat chaff, [hay,] in the proportion 
of one bushel of hay to the jelly produced by one quart 
of linseed, well mashed together. This quantity given 
daily with other food will forward cattle rapidly, but it 
must be increased when they are intended to be com¬ 
pletely fattened.” 
Mr. Colman remarks that the jelly does not supercede 
the use of meal, but is best mixed with it; and it is be¬ 
lieved no article according to its cost, can be used with 
greater advantage for this object, and that none is more 
nutritive.* 
To obtain the greatest benefit of the food eaten, the 
utmost regularity should be observed in feeding. The 
quantity given at one time, should be as nearly that 
which the animal can eat with a good appetite, as pos¬ 
sible ; and the meals should be given regularly at sta¬ 
ted intervals. It is believed that cattle kept constantly 
* Since the above w&s written, we have met in a foreign pa¬ 
per, an account of a mode of fattening cattle with flax-seed, which 
was lately communicated to Prof. Johnston, and by him read be¬ 
fore the Ag. Chemistry Association. The mode of making and 
using the article is described as follows:— 
“ The linseed is crushed and boiled with water for two hours ; 
when hot it is mixed with meal and cut straw, 2 lbs. of linseed, 5 
lbs. meal, and 9 lbs. straw, for each beast, a day, given at twice, 
two hours after mixing, with 70 lbs. of the best turneps, divided 
into two meals. It is quile wonderful to see how fast the cattie 
feed [fatten] and how well the holding stock do, the latter having 
about half the quantity of linseed and meal.” 
A correspondent of the Agricultural Gazette , who uses linseed 
for fattening cattle, gives the following as the daily allowance to 
each animal: 
A mash composed of 4 lbs. of barley meal, 2 lbs. linseed, dis¬ 
solved in boiling water, and a small portion of a sheaf of oats 
chopped. This mash to be divided into two parts, and given twice 
a day; 7 stones. [56 lbs.] turneps, divided into two parts, and 
given three times a day ; dry straw is always in the rack, of 
which a beast may eat as much as he pleases. 
