The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1872-01-12
Farm and Garden.

COWS, ETC., VINO by cnance get leg
broken, is entirely unnecessary, and a
cruel needless waste of life and prop
erty. have seen such cases where by
the aid of broad suspending belts to
prevent their lying down, with splints
and bandages which kept the broken
bone in its place, in short time the
limbs become sound and good"
Mich Cows-The extreme sensitive
ness of the mammary functions in COWS
to the influence of cold, fatigue and ex-
element, unpleasant odors, etc, is in.
deed surprising. We have been greatly
interested in observing the effects of
cold upon milk secretions as seen in
the herd of cows upon the farm.
During the past summer, in the hot
days in July and August, the animals
resorted TO the lake to drink and after
shaking their thirst they would wade
into the water and remain sometimes
an hour or two with the legs half inn
mersed This habit it was found inva-
riably diminished the flow of milk at
night, and in order to learn the extent
of the diminution careful observations
were made. 1t was ascertained that
standing in the water an hour dimin-
ished the flow to the amount OF eight
or ten quarts In herd of thirteen cows.
The loss was so great that when they
resorted to the water they were driven
away again to the pasture at once. We
have learned that from simply turning
the herd into the yard on q cold day in
the winter, and allowing them 10 remain
fifteen minutes. the flow Of milk was
diminished to serious extent, and
consequently the animals are not now
allowed to leave the warm stables du-
ring the entire winter, except for a
brief period upon warm, sunshiny days.
Water is brought directly from a well
into the barn, and the drinking vessels
are arranged so that the animals have to
move but a step or two to supply their
wants. The nature of the water supply,
and convenience of access, are most i'm
portant points in the management OF
mich COWS. A draught of ice.cold wa
ter taken by cow in winter cuts short
the supply of milk from one to two
pints for the day. Well water drawn
into vessels, and allowed to stand few
hours covered in the warm barn, has
its temperature raised several degrees,
and this practice should be adopted by
all thrifty farmers. 1t would undoubt-
edly pay we'll to slightly warm the wa
ter, but this is attended with considera
BILE inconvenience where large herds
are kept, unless steam apparatus is
used The influence of cold current
of air, and cold drinking water, upon
COWS in milk, is not of a transient ma
tura; it extends for a longer period than
or a week. Many fine animals
ar ruined by careless exposure every
year, and self-interest and feelings Of
humanity should prompt all COW owners
to keep diligent watch over their well
fare and comfort.
Cows in milk are often greatly in
jured by rapid driving from pastures by
needless boys and unthinking men,.
They should never be urged faster than
walk. Gentleness and kindness of
conduct toward COWS have a wonderful
influence upon the milk-pail, and also
upon the progeny of the animals. A
bad.tempered,i rascible man ought never
to be allowed in constable. A man
who will kick a cow in a passion, ought
himself to be kicked into the barn-yard
and forever prohibited from again com
ing in contact with the noble animal.
The right person placed in charge Of a
herd of twenty COWS which have been
the Tactical product so that the increased
cash returns will pay his wages. This
is statement which has been verified
more than once.--BoSt0n Journal Of
Chemistry.
The Manure Heap.-The prize essay
of the Illinois Agricultural Society, by
r. Giddings, details the cheapest and
most practicable plan of increasing the
farm manure pile and saving its ele-
ments from waste, which should be
adopted by every farmer. His plan is
simply to save every particle Of the ami
NAL excrements. liquid and solid, with
all its fertilizing elements intact, free
from waste by washing, evaporation and
fre.fang. TO do this, he fills a stall, or
large bin, in his stable, during dry
weather, with pulverized clay, road
scrapings, or common soil. With this
he covers the floor of each stall three
inches deep, and then places the litter
of the animals bedding on it; by this
means, all the urine will be absorbed
and it, wealth of nitrogen saved and
such is the absorbing power of dried
earth, that one three inch flooring will
not be so thoroughly saturated in a
long time as TO require replacing. He
says his experiment required but one
large bin OF pulverized earth to absorb
the urine of ten or twelve during the
stabling season and that TWO men with
team filed the bin in one day. Dried
clay was applied also to the pgpen
and hen-roost, with the same ammonia
saving results; and if applied to the
privy or earth-closet, which is now
being adopted, great manuraI as wei
as sanitary result would follow. The
inducements for the use of dry earth
are: lst-That it requires no apparatus
or cash outlay. 2d-That the hquc
manure Of the cattle is worth more thar
the solid, and is usually lost; but, under
this practice, all is retained. 3d-ThC
dry earth retains within it all the value
of which one-third or onehalfis lost 10y
fermentation, teaching, or evaporation
4th-it gives much larger bulk of ma
nure, each load of which is of doubl,
the value of ordinary farm-yard ma