The Ottawa free trader., 1873-10-11
FARM AND GARDEN .

The Live Stock Jouudi says;

The Lave Stock JOurt'dt says:
The following statement of Mr.. VIM Blr
ME of Springfield, Mass, has great force
having been continued for so long pcrioC
with result SO satisfactory, In recent let
ter TO Us he says:
| still continue to steam the feed for my
stock, as | have done for more than fourteen
years, and every year confirms more strongly
my convictions OF the great economy in foo,
as well IA the comfort and thrifty growth o
the cattle For milCh COWS It's advantage
can not be too strongly urged. The saving il
fully 30 per cent
EFFECT UPON HEALTH.
| have seen the question raised as to the et
feet of cooked food upon the health Of til,
animals | can only say, as to this point
that | hayc IL humber ot COWS from seventeen
wears old and dOwnwards, that have nevel
been fed in any other way, except during the
season of green feed, While they are now il
perfect health and vigor. 1t is not, perhaps
too much to say that no more healthy stock
of COWS can be found than my herd Of abou
fifty head, which has had the cooked diet fol
SO many years. This system enables me tC
get as good yields Of milk in winter rs il
summer with the quality excellent
BARN AND sTEAMING APPARATUS.
My barn is built on side hill, and Is three
stories high in some parts. The floor OF the
principal story is on level with the ground
on the highest side and is used for storing
hay, grain, etc. The story below opens on
the barnyard and Is used for stables, and the
part under ground for a root ccller. Under
this Is manure cellar eight feet deep. IL
the stable story is located my apparatus tOl
steaming. My boiler is an upright tubular
of about the capacity of four horses, situated
"a pt thiA nuIpr thp UrDllDu
in room about ten feet square. The chin
ney is built of brick ON the outside and eX
tends about SIX feet above the roof The
steam box in which the cooking is done is
built of brick and extends TO the story above
1t is lined with two inch plank, tongued and
groovcd, six feet square inside and eight feel
deep, with lid the whole size OF the top, and
opening on u level with the floor above. Ii
has u door four feet square on one side near
the bottom, out OF which the feed Is taken
The steam pipe runs directly from the boiler
to the steam box, extends around the four
sides and across the middle, some six inches
above the bottom. This pipe, inside the box
is perforated with small holes for the escape
of the steam. A cask holding TIVE hundred
gallons is conveniently located a. one side and
over the stcam.boX, which, by pipe, is kept
full of water for wettDg the feed and filling
the boiler.
The fodder is cut by horse power, shoyeled
into the steam box, mixed with bran, or what
ever is fed with it, and well wet. The fire is
first started under the boiler, and then the
fodder is cut while the steam is getting up
only steam twice per week, finding that the
feed will keep warm three days IN winter;
this saves much labor and fuel Ny plan has
usually been to feed steamed rations morning
and evening, with dry hay at noon This
about three tons of coal for the seasons cook.
ing A change from cooked to dry food tor
single day has sometimes caused Il marked
shrinkage in milk.