The mountain sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1844-1853, 1849-11-22
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From the Germantown Telegraph.
Cutting Food for Cattle.

| In valuable pamphlet entitled '.NOti-
ces for Yoaaag Farner,'' from the pen
of Judge Peters, formerly President of the
Pennsylvania Agricultural Society, find
the following directions:
"Cut or chaff your hay, straw, corn
tops or blades, and even your stalks, and
you will save great proportion which is
Otherwise lost, or passed through the ami
NAL without contributing to its nourish-
ment. One bushel of chaffed hay at
mess, given IN trough, three times in
twenty-four hours, is sufficient for COW,
horse or OK. A bushel of chaffed hay,
lightly pressed, weighs 81 lbs. A horse
or horned beast thrives more on 5 pounds
thus given, than on "a or 25 pounds, as
commonly expended Including waste) in
the usual manner of feeding in racks, TO
which troughs, properly constructed, are
far preferable. Salt your clover as well
as other succulent and coarse hay. But
over sailing diminishes the nutriment.-
More than peck to a ton is superf1uous.
Half that quantity is often sufficient. Ten
er fifteen pounds are usually an ample al
lowance. [ am more than ever persuaded,
from the successful results, attending re-
cent experiments, that by chatting hay,
and other coarse fouder, the farmer and
stock raiser may easily economise at least
one third of his feed, and at very small
expense both as regards the necessary i'm
plements and the time required for their
use. Usually there are attached TO every
farm establishments, helps who have ne
cessarily much leisure time, especially on
rainy days, and when the weather is 9TH
erways inauspicious, for the successful
prosecution of agrestic or outdoor work,
and who can be employed in driving the
chatting machine, thus securing a suthclen-
cy of chafied hay, stalks or butts for feed
ing during those seasons when they can
be proftably employed without. Corn
tops and butts, from their great coarseness,
want of succulence, and unsavorlness from
the imperfect manner in which they are
too often cured, are rarely eaten with avid
ity by neat stock unless driven to it by
hunger; out when chaffed, we'll steamed
or soaked, and rendered palatable by an
admixture of Indian meal, or other nutrl-
tive and sapid feed, they are devoured with
great eagerness, and even where there is
no unnatural or morbid impulse communl-
Gated in consequence of a prlvatIon partial
or entire, of their usual and accustomed
food. In seasons of scarcity, farmers are
often greatly Strengthened for the means
with which properly to keep their stock;
and at such times they are not unfrequent-
ly compelled to dispose of their animals at
price scarcely more than nominal. when,
were they guided by proper principles OF
economy. and were their usages IN every
department squared by enlightened poll
Il 4 Of tnI
der, and perhaps, in many cases, an excess
to spare. When there are bountliul har-
vests, the employment of the chatter, or
hay cutter, III the economlsatlon and pre-
paration Of food, is urged as equally i'm
portant. Then is the time to save against
the advent of less propitious times, or a
time of actual need. When the produce
of the earth is barely sufficient to supply
, present and pressing wants, no surplus can
be laia aside for the future; there is an
immediate demand for all-it is wanted
and must be applied. But when our mows
are well filled, and our garners stored to
repletion, we can save that which can be
spared from present for future use.
| have seen many instruments used tol
: the purpose of chaffing-some OF which
are expensive and complicated,-oth
simple and yet sufficiently efficient to per
form well the operation for which they
were designed. My advice TO all my far
ming friends is to procure good chatter
and test the theory of Judge Peters at once
He was a man of inimitable good sense
..son of the soil,'' and worthy one IL
every sense. When our country produ
ces sufficiency Of such men-when tn
priest from his lofty seat in the fame OF jus
tice, proudly leaves his station to assum
the habiliments of the farmer, and exert
the power of noble mind to aid the caus
of Agriculture, and derives therefrom
accession of fame, then will our husban
S, dry be .sexalted," and the farmer be hon
Of ored according to his deserts.
St NEW CORRESPONDENT