The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1914-01-09

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Nodes and Lnsfruefjons from Agicail
~ Oregon and Kashinoton. SpsciaA
Special to the American Type Fond
ers Association.
Oregon Agricultural College, Cor
Wallis, Ore, Dec. 23.-sThe modrr
dairy barn has bountiful light, fresh
air and provisions for sanitation ano
the comfort of the cow" said Prices
sor r. R. Graves, head of the dairy
department, Oregon Agricultural Col
lege. 'The day Of the old fashioned
barn is past. 1t had little light, nc
ventilation except through cracks in
the walls, and the stanchions we're
rigid so that when the cows laid down
they had to keep their heads pointed
straight in front of them. Or if they
were tied to the manger with ropes
they were forced to back into the fill
thiest part of the stall to lie down
and flanks and udders were plastered
with filth. The old wooden Managers
were traps where decayed feed and
dirt were caught, later becoming
breeding grounds for bacteria. In the
same barn were stalls for the calves
and horses.
I'm the modern dairy barn human
food is produced with a maximum of
cleanliness and the cow is made more
productive and therefore more profit
q
ments are such as closely to approx
mate conditions of the open pasture,
with it's abundance of. sunshine and
fresh air. This barn helps to solve
the labor problem, which is always a
worry to a man who has a large herd
OF dairy cows to be MIXED and fed
twice daily.
zone and two story barns are the
types most widely used. A few round
barns are in use but the most general
type is rectangular structure "a to
36 feet wide, with the length adapted
to the number of cows.
"The one story barn is perhaps the
most desirable type from the stand
point of sanitation. 1t is usually built
in connection with a feed barn and
seldom accommodates more than sixty
cows. 1t is used, however, in large
dairies where several hundred COWS
are kept, several such barns being
built in row with sufficient space
between for light and ventilation. In
such building system feed is brought
from one large barn in trucks running
on oyer head tracks. In other cases
one md of each barn is built two
stories high and serves for the stor-
age of feed. Where there are not
more than two one story barns they
are usually built to connect with one
large feed barn which overlaps the
ends of the COW barns just enough to
permit the feed trucks to pass.
"Often farmer wishes to remodel
his old barn along modern lines and
it is generally more economical to
use the old building for feed storage
and build a new single story one for
the cattle.
"The one story barn is all above
ground. The walls may be of stone,
concrete or wood frequently the
building is of concrete up to the win
dow stills, the remainder being frame.
Some times asbestos shingles or 1ath
are used for roof and walls. The roof
is of single pitch and is supported by
scissors truss. This avoids the ne
cessity for supporting posts and adds
materially to the appearance of the
interior. Sheeting or metal laths are
laid on the lower chords of the truss
for plastering, thus affording san
itary ceiling.
"The one story barn is perhaps
more easily ventilated than the two
story type and it is less likely to be
filled with dust than one in which hay
is stored above. There is also less
danger of fire, and lastly, the interior
has a somewhat better appearance
and cows may be faced outward if
this is desirable.
"The two story barn affords suit
able room for the cattle on the first
floor and feed storage space above
The ceiling should be tight to prevent
dust from filtering through. Hence
the ventilation must be efficient. Be
cause there are posts that support
the second floor, the cows must be
faced inward. Some economy is gain
ed by this arrangement as the sup.
porting posts are made parts of the
stanchions.
"The two story barns are now built
with the gambrel roof, incorrectly
called hip roof. It is a two pitch
roof, the lower rafters being full pitch
and the upper ones third pitch, Civ.
ing greater storage space.
BARNS of the two story type with
the feed stored above undoubtedly
lessen to some extent the labor OF
feeding. But the ventilation of the
two story barn is more difficult be
cause of the difficulty of SO placing
the out-take flues that they will not
interfere with the passing of the feed
trucks.
ssThe floors in either type of barn
are concrete. The concrete or cement
floor is durable, easily cleaned and
impervious to moisture. It's worst
fault is being too cold for the animal
to lie on in comfort, but this objection
may be overcome to some extent by
laying a wooden platform over thai
portion on which the cow stands. Cork
brick may. be laid over the cement
The cement floors should not be fin
ished so smoothly that the cows will
slip in the passage ways.
"The cows are placed In double
rows facing either way as is most
convenient.
"The gutter should be sixteen
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