Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1868-09-23
agricultural.


1t has become quite common among farm
ers to use sand as a bedding for their ami
mails. 1t is spread each day upon the floors
and cleaned away with the droppings of the
stock on the next day.
Two reaosns are urged to sustain this
practice first, to secure softer bedding
than the bare plank, and, second, to absorb
the liquids that fall into 1T.
Not much thought has, probably, been
given to either of these reasons. 1t certainly
Is true that it makes a softer bed than the
planks, but it is very doubtful whether it
makes lrdrner one. On this point there
are some excellent statements in late num-
Der of the Country Gentleman, which We
give below -
There is in one of your late numbers
description of pattern farmer, and among
other things it is said of him that he is the
first farmer in Eastern Massachuset that
introduced sand as bedding for stock Sand
has been used for bedding a long time in the
section live in, and the longer it is used the
less 1t is liked. Sand is a very cold article,
there il nothing colder, and being very soft,
the animal sinks deep into, it thereby bring
ing large part OF the surface of It's body IN
contact with this cold substance. The wri-
ter of this has seen it tried in the case of
horses with almost ruinous consequences, and
therefore concludes that if it is absolutely ru-
inOus to horses that are worked, it cannot
possibly be very good thing for neat stock,
though of course they feel its effect in much
less degree.
Suppose a horse has been on the road all
day. hauling timber from the woods, and
comes in at night somewhat fatigue1 and
thoroughly warmed throughout the whole
system. After eating his evening meal he
lies down upon a bed of sand an inch thick,
in order to relax all his muscles and give
rkar, III hot oil 81
how rapidly the heat is distracted from your
hand when you take hold of a piece of iron
marble in a cold day, you can not doubt
what follows The sand is much like the
marble OF iron, and as is said above, g is a
very cold article The operation that then
goes on, is, for the animal to communicate
Its heat to those portions of the sand which
come in contact with its body, and the sand
passes 1t along from particle to particle, 1T
some measure. still farther off. This process:
goes until the outside temperature of the
animal and the sand are the same. Instead
of communicating heat it abstracts it, add
that IN no small degree.
The second reason for using it is. to Absorb
the liquid droppings and prevent their beins
wasted IL does prevent their running off il
measure, but probably notso much al
absorbent. Sand has little CT nothing of thi
property of peat to absorb liquids but tn
PARTICLES being small and coming close to
gether, prevent liquids from flowing ava,
with any facility, and being aided by tn
vegetable portion of the manure these ar
held back and preserved. This is better tina
nothing, and where it is used as a top dress
ing on low lands has a decided and permanen
effect in improving them. For all uplands
however, with the exception of those whic
are quite clayey, one cord of good peat would
be worth more than mary cords of sand
Next to charcoal, peat has the largest absorb
ing power of any substance which is at tn
command of the farmer in any considerable
degree Even on high, rich loans, it will
produce the happiest results when properl
prepared and applied and on sandy land i
viii work a complete revolution.
In hot weather, we can see no objection t
the use of sand as bedding, for animals no
heated by labOr.-.N f. Farmer