1M4. 
THE R.UKA.L NEW-YORKER 
633 
A Small Silo. 
I think of building a small silo. 
I have 20 acres, and would like to keep 
about three cows, have two now, but find 
it too expensive to feed them hay and 
grain, as all have to be bought. Would 
a small silo be suitable in such a case? 
If you think so, about what size? I have 
in m'nd to erect a small square one in¬ 
side of .barn. What dimensions would 
suit two or three cows? A. B. c. 
Vineland, N. J. 
I do not think that A. B. C. could af¬ 
ford to construct a silo to accommodate 
three cows. In the first place silage 
does not keep well in a square silo of 
small dimensions, and the expense of 
filling the silo, and the risk involved in 
keeping the silage sweet when such a 
small amount is fed daily, would in my 
judgment make it not only impractical 
but unprofitable. On a basis of unit 
cost per cow I do not think that it would 
be profitable to construct a modern silo 
with any degree of economy unless a 
dairyman has at least 10 or 12 cows. He 
might better resort to the growing of 
mangel wurzels, turnips or some other 
root crop that would fit in well with his 
truck farming, or he could resort to beet 
pulp as a source of succulence. It is 
not a problem of how small a silo might 
be built, but rather a question of keep¬ 
ing quality. Small silos, homemade, are 
often unsatisfactory, and their usefulness 
would not justify the expense involved. 
If A. B. C. could grow Alfalfa and sup¬ 
plement this with corn and beet pulp 
moistened with molasses water, I feel 
sure that he would be able to feed the 
three cows more economically. 
F. C. HINKLER. 
White Particles in Butter. 
Can you tell us what sometimes causes 
white particles in butter from separator 
cream? - Is it perhaps that too much 
milk goes through with cream and that 
this milk curdles? E. 
Martinsville, N. J. 
I think that probably your trouble is 
due to gathering the butter in the churn 
before washing. Stop churning when the 
granules of butter are small, about the 
size of wheat kernels; draw off the but¬ 
termilk, then wash three or four times 
with plenty of water, giving the churn 
a few turns each time, wash until the 
water comes off clear, and be careful that 
the water is not much colder than the 
churning temperature of the cream. I 
do not think that the thickness of the 
cream has much to do with the appear¬ 
ance of white particles. An uneven dis¬ 
tribution of salt, insufficient working or 
an over-ripe cream may cause white 
streaks. c. s. M. 
The Milch Goat. 
Hardly a day passes without our re¬ 
ceiving one or two letters from people 
who want to buy a milch goat. It is 
curious what ideas many people have re¬ 
garding these goats. Some of them ap¬ 
pear to think that a goat will give almost 
as much milk as a cow, that it will live 
practically without care, and with little 
feed, and that it can be bought for a few 
dollars. People write us saying that they 
have a family of two or three, not enough 
to warrant them in buying a cow. They 
have heard that a goat will give milk 
enough for this family, that it can be 
kept in a piano box, fed on many 
of the kitchen wastes with a small 
amount of hay, and that for $3 or $8 a 
good goat can be obtained. Just where 
this vision of utility came from it is 
hard to say. The goat is an economical 
creature, but when we expect it to do 
such a remarkable performance as is 
herein enacted, the goat falls down and 
fails to please. The fact is that it is a 
very good goat that will give two quarts 
of milk a day and keep that up for three 
or four months. Of course, we read of 
goats that give six or seven quarts a day 
and do other remarkable tliiugs. We 
also hear of hens that pay a profit of $15 
a year, and of men who dig 300 bushels 
of potatoes in a day, chop 10 cords of 
wood or Loe several acres. The e may 
be such wonderful creatures, blit they 
are not found in the ranks of ordinary 
hired men, and r ost of the goats which 
give this large quantity of milk are now 
dead. As for prices, a very reliable 
dealer writes us this: “A goat of any re¬ 
liable breed that gives from one to two 
quarts of milk daily is worth $25 or 
$30, and a breeder can easily obtain that 
money for her. Such a thing as buying 
a good milch goat for $5 is entirely out 
of the question. He may be able to buy 
a young kid for $5 and raise her into a 
goat which might give three pints a day, 
but that is about the limit in the goat 
line. That young man who thinks he 
could keep a goat in a piano box and 
have her turn out milk enough for his en¬ 
tire family on little or no feed should 
forget his dream at once, for there is 
absolutely nothing to it.” 
Packing Butter. 
A few weeks ago, I noticed in Tiie 
R. N.-Y. an inquiry about packing but¬ 
ter. Years ago I, and before that, my 
mother, packed butter every Summer, 
both for ourselves and for customers. It 
was preferably June butter. The cream 
was raised in the old-fashioned way in 
pans (creameries and separators were 
unheard of). After churning and rins¬ 
ing the butter, it was salted and left over 
night. The next day it was worked and 
packed. We used tubs mostly, though 
sometimes stone jars. I think we often 
put a little salt at the bottom. Then 
the butter was put in, a layer about 1 % 
inch thick, and packed as solidly as pos¬ 
sible with a wooden masher. Then a 
sprinkle of salt and another layer, and 
so on till full, the division into layers 
being for convenience in taking out. 
When within about an inch of the top, 
a clean white cloth cut a little larger 
than the tub was put on and a little 
strong brine put over that. This gave 
good satisfaction at that time, but I have 
never packed any separator butter, s. 
Stricture of Teat. 
I have a 1,200-pound cow, 10 years 
old, very fat. She is due to freshen with¬ 
in 10 days. Last August her left hind 
teat had (at first) a slight sore on the 
end. I pulled off the scab not knowing 
the extent of the sore, and I took a 
scab that covered the end like a thimble. 
Then I had a serious time and consulted 
a veterinary, who said it was caused by 
a sting or a thorn. It healed but partly, 
closed the orifice so the stream was very 
small. I fear trouble when she freshens. 
Can you suggest a treatment? I have a 
milking tube and know how to use it. 
New York. r. e. w. 
The stricture at the orifice of the 
teat should be nicked in one or more 
places with a teat bistoury and the cut 
kept from reuniting by frequent stretch¬ 
ing with clean milking tube until healed. 
The nicking may be done with ordinary 
knife if skillfully handled but there is 
danger of cutting too deep and it would 
be best to have it done by a competent 
veterinarian with proper instruments. 
No milking tube, or other foreign body, 
should be inserted into the teat until first 
washed and dipped into boiling water. 
Infection is frequently carried into the 
odder in this way and one quarter lost. 
M. B. D. 
Care of English Rabbits. 
I have a pair of English rabbits, and 
I would like your advice as to raising 
and caring for them. How often do they 
increase? Should I pen the doe separate¬ 
ly Indore farrowing time? How old do 
the little ones get before the dam weans 
them? r. s. 
Laurel, Del. 
The does should be bred four or five 
times a year. It is a general idea that 
they will breed much oftener, but there 
is no gain in over-breeding a doe, as it 
will only impoverish her and the young 
will be weak and short-lived. Breeding 
in this way, each doe should produce 
from 25 to 30 young a year. The doe 
should never be kept in the same pen 
with the buck. The doe should be taken 
to the buck’s hutch from three days to 
a week after weaning the young. The 
young should be weaned when they are 
about six weeks or two months old. Do 
not breed a young rabbit until it is at 
least nine months old. H. R. s. 
Grain Hay. 
Owing to the dry season I got no seed¬ 
ing last year. Could I sow a crop of 
Canada peas and oats, and cut them in 
time to raise a crop of millet on the same 
ground, after cutting the peas and oats 
green for hay? The ground is corn stub¬ 
ble and in fairly good condition. It had 
a good coat of stable manure on sod last 
year. If not, please advise me what to 
do. D. P. s. 
New York. 
Yon can sow oats and peas early and 
cut them for hay or fodder in time for 
a millet crop. This is the best com¬ 
bination we know of for an early hay 
crop. 
Why I Started in 
the Dairy Business 
When Dad left the farm to me 
I asked myself, “ How are you 
going to make the old place pan 
out?” Dad had run it his way. 
I allowed I’d run it my way. 
I borrowed money on it, bought 
more good native cows, became 
a dairy farmer, and put in a 
SHARPLES 
EB 
M ILKER 
q Dad had been paying 
■ Del Morgan and Tom 
h Hoops 15 cents an 
■ hour for milking about 
■ 6 cows each. Cost him 
ss 5 cents a cow a day, 
h or thereabouts. No 
gs money in that. My 
a three-unit outfit milk- 
si ed 30 cows an hour, 
s Del did most of the 
work, and I soon found 
a that milking a cow 
es twice a day cost 50 
a cents a month against 
m $1.50 in the old-hand- 
gj milking days. Con¬ 
ga siderable saving, be- 
m lieve me. 
H Well, when a machine can 
B milk cows faster and better 
£3 than I can by hand, make 
_ ’em like it, produce a lot 
of cleaner milk, and cut 
down overhead expense 
about two-thirds, I’m 
ready to take the platform 
and tell you dairy farmers 
I’m strong for that 
machine. 
Tom and Del have quit 
muttering and threaten¬ 
ing to revolt. Dragged 
’em out of bed pretty early 
in the old days. Now 
they sleep longer, start 
later, finish sooner, earn 
more than their salt. Got 
more outfits now, too. 
Paid the mortgage off 
long ago. Increased a 
one-horse wagon milk 
business to 75 cows and a 
flock of busy wagons. 
Traveling some ! 
The MILKER pulsates 
like real money and harmo¬ 
nizes with the purr of the 
SHARPLES 
TUBULAR g* 
Cream separator 
Bought it about the time 
I got its running mate, 
the MILKER. Talk 
about team work ! Men, 
give me a TUBLLAR, 
a bunch of teat cups 
with the upward squeeze, 
75 high grade cows— 
Yon can get a Milker Book and 
a Separatar Catalog by asking 
for it like I did. Good read¬ 
ing and means bigger profits. 
THE SHARPLES SEPARATOR CO. 
WEST CHESTER, PA. 
Chicago Dallas Minneapolis Kansas City 
Omaha Toro no San Francisco 
Portland, Oreg. Winnipeg 
AGENCIES EVERYWHERE 
Q 
H 
m 
or even less—and con¬ 
tented help like Eve got, 
and I’m willing to take 
my chances with the old- 
fashioned chap who 
dairy farms with the 
drudgery methods of his 
grand-dad. 
Si 
