Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1885-03-12
Inspection Of SiIos.

III ItrlioiSt ~ Oll ~ bt fAS'-AAe 81
an inspection of his silos Though the day
was cold, the pleasant parlOrs were cheerful
with blazing open fires, radiating heat ard
comfort to every part of the room. An hour
or two was passed in social chat and then
came the request, Gentlemen please walk
out to dinner" Everybody at once accept
ed the invitation, and no one, we think, was
disappointed. For variety, excellence of
material and delicate and toothsome cookery
/ it was dinner hard to excel.
The dinner over, and the slaves of the
weed satisfied the party adjourned to the
/ splendid barn to inspect the silos. These
are three in number. They are about eigh-
teen feet square, and twenty feet deep, oc-
cupying the bay on the west side of the barn.
One of them has been emptied and filled
with ice for summer use a second Is about
half emptied, and the third has not been
opened. We descended into the half emp
tied one and stood on the surface of the en-
siage At depth OF ten to twelve inches
the temperature was found to be sixty to
seventy degrees, steam rising freely from a
fork full of il exposed to the air. 1t has a
mild, sub-acid smell aud taste, not at all
disagreeable. We were shown lot Of
calves which had been kept exclusively
upon it. They were plump and seemed to
he thriving eXcellently, rs did also the sheep
which had in addition daily feed of hay
All the animals seemed 10 eat itwith avid
ity. From It's great cheapness, as compared
with any other feed, it seems to Us that ii
ought speedily 10 come into general use.
The sio Il, proposed by Mr.. Carskadon is so
cheeply and easily constructed as to be
within the means of the poorer class of far
mers and we are sure that if farmers and
stock-growers will adopt it, and with it the
custom of sheltering their stock, their profits
will be greatly increased and their losses
quite as greatly diminished About this
subject we shall have more to say in the
neas future.
OF the editors of the State, large num-
Der of whom were invited, only very few
were present Mr.. Hart, of the Wheeling
HteHgeacer, was promptly on hand, mani
testing much interest in the matter. In his
paper of Monday he dcvotes two columns to
this affair, and the subject OF the many
other editors invited we are sorry that so
few responded to the polite invitation OF
Mr. Carskadon. We regret this on more
would have been of value to their agricu
tural readers. The farmers of tie State
will be benefited by the discussion Of new
ideas, and the introduction Ofnew methods.
In the matter of shelter to stock and of
cheap and wholesome food for them, reform
is evidently much needed, and the country
newspapers ought to advocate il. To this
humanity and scf-nterest alike urge
The value of the Slo is no longer a de-
batable question 1t has passed the exper-
mental stage and may be regarded among
the proved and adopted appliances of the
farm. An acre ofgood land will produce
twenty tons of ensilage Every ton of this
is worth from one-third to one-half a ton of
good hay. Putting it at the lowest ratio,
an acre of ground will produce a value Of
ensilage equivalent to about seven tons of
good hay. The cost Of ensilage Is from two
to two and a-half dollars per ton. 1t will
be SEEN then, that enslage will cost very
much less than hay, which has hitherto
been regarded As the most profitable food
for stock.
Mr.. c., who is the pioneer siloist in West
Virginia, after a careful trial for two years,
and aftera careful study Of the experience OF
Others, is convinced that the capacity of
land for supporting stock is at least doubled
by the use of ensilage. He invites any
doubters to come to his barn and see the
stock fed.
Col. lie Grand Cannon, of Connecticut,
SAYS g do not suppose or estimate, but
BY careful testing know that ensilage is
j3l per cent cheaper than any other mode
| have ever been able to discover for feed
ing stock"
J. Gregory Smith, ex-governor of Yer
mont, says After careful experiments in
raising cattle know that the gain Is at
least 80 per cent over any other food known
to me-"
Co. Morris, of Oakland Mills, Nd, the
pioneer siloist in Ameaica, using from six
to eight hundred tons per year, says: " En-
silage at least doubles the capacity Of my
land for carrying -tock" Col. VI. is, after
an experience of eight years, As enthusiastic
as ever.
Letters expressing regret at their unavoid-
able absences were received from Hon.
LLOYD Lownde- and Major Shaw, of Mary
land. ex-senator II. G. Davis, Hon G.. W.
Atkinson, of Wheeling, \. b. White, Esq,
of the Sate Journal, J. T Riley, of the Mar
tinsburg HeraH, and others.
On the whole it was a very pleasant af-
/ fair. Besides Mr.. Hart and Mr.. Douglass
of .be T-iJme, there were present DR.. y
Gerstell. who with his humorous remisicen-
ces and witty sallios was the life Of the par
ty. DR.. r. Gerstell, F. VI. Reynolds, Esq
D. ". Babb and C. " Ba5b, OF Grant Co.,
Okcy johnson, Esq, of Patterson's Greek,
Mr.. Rees, Hon. J. T. Vance, Of Hampshire