St. Landry democrat., 1886-06-19
Comm uRicdtcd.
Mr.. EDITOR :

MI LDlloh
Our object in describing English
farming is, if possible, to point out
something which may be OF use to us,
and as you have turned ont to be Il real
practical farmer we would uather rely
dom theories of those who come and go
by return train or ride over the country
at forty miles per day.
AS you know, one OF real troubles
here with our milk cows is their sudden
falling off in milk in beginning Of
winter from the killing of the grass.
In English dairies, in summer, they
always feed with hay while milking {:
one object is to keep them quiet but it
really makes them accustomed to dry
food so that when grass is suddenly
checked they feed readily on dry food
falling off but little in milk.
When on aCvisit to my brothers farm
in Indiana, observed him giving, each
day in summer, bundle OF oats,
asked him Why waste your food that
way when you have plenty OF grass Ill
your meadow, he said he found 1t best
to do 80, that in the fall the cows took
readily t. dry food and fell off but little
in milk, and | witnessed this to my sat
isfaction in the fall, Is not this worth
first of September some two months
before winter.
There is an old plan of making liquid
manure wi ich have not seen since |
was boy. Their farm yards are al
ways on a slope Ono level ground there)
the barn, grain and hay stacks are built
round on the northern sides, at the
lower sides pond is dug into which all
the liquid drains, over the yard racks
are built into which the hay, oats straw
etc, are fed, the waste, with the drip
pings. being tramped underfOot which
produces solid manure which is carted
out in spring, the liquid draining out is
taken out in water-carts like We sprin-
kle st eets and sprinklcd over the lands
There they have three times the wet
days but only onethird the raiEfalls,
inst sufficient to make this liquid, our
drenching rains would probably over
flow both yard and pond, thereby dilut-
ing the liquid and render it valueless as
at present we lose the best of manure.
We now give some comparisons in
labor. Pay, which is small in money
value, 45 cents per day, but this only IA
part of pay, when compared. For eX-
ample, each man has much skinned
milk and butter milk as he may wish, Il
cottage at low rents with garden for all
vegetables needed. The wife and
daughters make pillow lace. Here they
are self-supporting, DO lost time on
iuries or roadwork, no doctor bills,
parish doctor, for these little ailings go
to doctor. My mother raised seven
boys and two girls only once i'll four
teen years did | see doctor i'll the
village to our little sister with injured
spine. With such health why do so
many leave those healthy countries.
Necessity has her unylelding laws, us
there is no more land to clear, no more
farms, hence, all but one son must seek
other parts, no more stores needed
hence five out of my six brothers raised
had to 90 to other employment so with
laborers. This law is Il good one, the
parish must support all in it, so funds
are subscribed to enable the surplus TO
leave this has been the building up of
the English colonies. But | can from
experience say that it men could al
lowed to fOreSee what he would have to
pass through; many would stay on half
allowance, in preference to emmigra-
ting. None but those who seek new
countries know what the majority have
to suffer, have alone paid more doctor
bills, taken more medicine than all my
rorefathers for hundreds of years-th
is stubborn fact yet still live at "A.
j. GIBBs.
Opelousas, La.