Morning journal and courier., 1882-09-12
Filling the SjlOs.


 spanking team, 8 good road and twenty minutes brought us to Valley Farm, situated on the Waterbury road one-half mile beyond Harper's paper mill. l.. G. Hemingway, it's proprietor, is an old time farmer. His ear Hest experience was with B. Benjamin, (now Geo. H. Ford) where for seven years he ap- piled himself closely to agricultural pursuits. Afterwards he turned his attention to the rich Connecticut river bottom, and for four years longer dug and delved under the very
 shadow of the old State House where Hart ford now stands. Later on we find him in
 Virginia. ploughing the soil with his heavy
 guns, where he won the rank of Major of artillery. We met him yesterday and as he beamed on us with one eye, through his 34 lens (which he lost during the war, clad in
 homespun and hayseed, we could hardly tell which he personated the best, soldier, far mer. judge or doctor. AS he led the way to ! the barn we asked, How is this new system likely to affect the management of dairy farming The Major said: 'T cannot speak for others. My plan is to give my milch COW the benefit of the only two months of good pasture we have and the other ten months feed from the silo, then they will have near ly the same kind of food the year round and their productions will be of uniform quality ! and quantity, giving as good results in Janu- ary as in June. That is the advantage io ensilage, the cattle will have rich succulent food twelve months in the year, which will give better satisfaction to both producers 1 and consumers of dairy products" On our way to the barn we passed the large milk house with its stone tank of ice water for cooling milk, it's long rows of shining cans 1 and cream pails and other dairying applisn. ces, the horse barn with seven horses and 1 nules the piggery with thirteen pure Essex | pigs not a white hair among them. A few steps further and we are I at the COW barn for milking COWS only; a substantial building, S4 by 52, double sided. concrete floor and tin roof. On entering the broad door we found on our left two long platoons of cows arranged with military pre-. ! cision, at their head the Ayrshire bull ''Fa- ! vorita." On the right the walls of 2, POO tons ! silos showed their massive proportions, while l the din of machinery told us that the process 1 of filling was going on. The farmer described | it as follows Three men cut the corn in all l it's green luxuriance, two heavy teams cart it
 immediately to the barn, where two stout, | actlVe fellows feed It to the cattle, which IS
 driven with lightning speed by one of Gov. Bigelow's six horse vertical engines. This
 cuts it three. .eighths of an inch long, carrier
 takes it over the walls into the silo. When
 full it is pressed with heavy weights and will
 keep good for years. And truly it was g
 pretty sight The enormous bundles oi
 corn were thrust into the throat of the
 sturdy little machine which threw il
 out in sheets upon the carrier. This
 carried it in rolling pillows of green l over the silo walls falling ir
 showers below. We asked the farmer wha, ! is the capacity of this machine? He said,
 That machine is Baldwin fodder cutter, the
 largest size, made by c. Pierpont tS Go. in ! New Haven, and when her digestion is good
 and she is in good humor with herself she
 will swallow forty tons of green corn day,
 and chew it fine, provided there is sixty pounds of steam to make her do it. We were satisfied, and as we rode slowly home
 we unused on the advances of the age and wondered if it was true that we could eat June butter made fresh in January and drink
 rich and fragrant milk the year round. If | any of your readers are interested in the new | system, visit to Valley farm will show all l it's practical workings. ***