Southport telegraph. [volume] (Southport, W.T. [i.e. Kenosha, Wis.]) 1840-1850, 1843-04-11
A GRICU l. T U r A l..
From the Prairie Farmer.
FENCING AND EMBANKMENT.
BY J. NJ. HURD.


BY J. NJ. HURD.
To the Editor of the Prairie Fairness
| have lately seen in your paper, two diff
erent plans for making ditch fence, both
of which are better than the. common mode
of rencng;yet they are liable 10 objections,
One proposes ditch and dixie, with su-
perstructure of posts and rails. This plan
is good but requires too much timber. The
other find on page 45 of this volume. The
writer proposes to defend the ditch and
dixie against hogs &c. by driving posts
inches apart; and as the writer seems anx-
ious to know the opinion Of his brother
farmers, will give mine. | believe the
plan a tolerable good one, but liable TO two
objections: first, it requires too many
stakes, and is too much labor; second, in
the spring. when the ground is soft, our
thin "Bar-shear" hogs would lean the
stakes little apart so as to get through.
Now as have shone my propensity to
find fault with the plans of others, and as
| h old that no one has right TO do if UNI
less he can propose better, | will proceed
10 describe fence which made two years
ago this spring, which think better. l
dug q ditch so rods long, four feet wide at
top, and two and a half deep,and layed up
the sod which was very tender and not
good, land put the dirt over it. This makes
a fence about 7 feet from the bottom of
the di,ch, and slanting so much that it
will rot cave in when the ground thaws in
the spring.
The dixie and banks Of the ditch were
IL xyo,}I hf,
better which has formed a toeiabe good
turf from the bottom Of the ditch 10 the
top Of the dixie, and prevents it from wash
ing off.
The super-structure is made Of stakes
and lath. as it is commonly called. The
stakes re three or four inches in dinme-
ter, 4 ] feet long, driven into the top the
dixie D feet deep, and five feet apart
The lath is 10 feet long, split from from J
TO inch thick and from 10 inches
wide. This is nailed on 10 the stakes with
stout sixpenny nails. The lath are put
from to pieces high and close together,
and believe that not even rabbit has
passed over or through it since the super
structure was put on. The lath being so
thin, will last until it is werm out by the
weather; and if stake break off, can
drive another by the side Of it and nail the
lath to that.
One of the advantag es OF this fence is IFS
cheapness.- ditch dug some myself,
and a hired man dug some al III" rnt of 4
rods per day, which would be a common
DAVIS work for man used to spading;a
although hauled my timber miles, the
top-dressing or super-structure cost me less
than 10 cents per rod, allowing good
price for my labor and the use Of team
1t took but so cts worth of rails for so rods.
have the lath lap on the stakes or posts,
and the nails will go through both. lfths
top is put on before the dirt settles, the bot.
tom lath should be sunk little into the
dirt, so that it will not leave a hole when
it settles. This is a cheap and safe plan for
fencing orchards.
Those who have tried the ditch have
observed that stock will not jump over it
unless they can aIight or start on the top
of the dixie; the top-dressipg above des
cribed will acknowledgement, their doing so.
| have used the words super-structure
and lath, because they will convey the
meaning better than any other words at my
command.
Jersey county March 10, 1643.