William K. David

“ The practice of preserving roots, vegetables, and plants by covering them with earth or by placing them in cellars, etc., is an ancient one, but the practical application of the principle on a large scale to the preservation of fodder-corn, clover, etc., as a food for stock is comparatively a recent practice, the first silo in this country having been built within the last twelve years. ”

“ Neubauer of Wiesbaden have proved that the introduction of the acid for the preservation of wine marks an era of great industrial progress, as it energetically prevents, even when used in very small quantities, the formation of mould germs and other circumstances which are injurious to wine, while it absolutely arrests secondary fermentation, cloudiness, etc. ”

“ Stone buildings can be converted into good silos by furring out and double boarding on the inside. In general I am adverse to stone structures for this purpose unless thus boarded. Some kinds of stone seem to do very well, but stone walls carry off the heat and moisture too rapidly to make good silo walls. If one wishes to try preserving corn-fodder and cannot afford a structure of wood, he can excavate a pit in the earth and bury the corn-fodder therein, though I am sure he will soon give up this practice as unduly expensive. ”

“ Twenty-five cows will eat up the ensilage about as fast as one man can get it out. It may be just as economical, however, to put two men into the silo for an hour or two each day during the winter, when labor is cheap, to get out the ensilage as it is to use more expensive labor in the fall to accomplish the extra work of running the feed-cutter.
“Slow filling is without doubt the best method for securing good ensilage, no matter what material we are using, be it clover, long fodder-corn, or fodder cut fine. ”

“ Agriculture never took a longer stride in advance than it did when the silo was added to the practical equipment of the farm. Most of us were slow to realize this at first, and a great many are yet unwilling to concede the advantages claimed for the silo, but the utility of the modern silo cannot be gainsaid, for without it we are left at the mercy of the elements in the handling of our great corn crop. ”

“ It is evident that if we cut our fodder at the time the corn is glazing our practice is as near correct as the present stage of investigation points out. Since the period of filling the silo will occupy several days, or even a couple of weeks, we must gauge the date of commencement to strike the best average conditions. For cutting the fodder some parties recommend the use of the reaper, but I judge from what I have been told that a good many rakes have been broken in attempting the work, and that many have given them up and gone back to the use of the corn knife. ”

“ The incubator should be raised from the floor about an inch, when completed, to allow the air to pass under and thence into the ventilator tubes.
The incubator being complete, the tank is filled with boiling water. It must remain untouched for twenty-four hours, as it requires time during which to heat completely through. As it will heat slowly, it will also cool slowly. Let it cool down to 120 deg., and then put in the eggs, or, what is better, run it without eggs for a day or two in order to learn it and notice its variation. When the eggs are put in, the drawer will cool down some. ”

“ Place about 10 inches of sawdust on the floor (or twice as much solid straw) , and build the structures solid with the ice blocks, ramming in the sawdust or other packing as the structure goes up (Fig. 3) . When finished cover it with a thickness of packing nearly equal to that at the sides. It is important that there be free ventilation over the top, which the loose brush will not prevent. If there is a slab roof the air must blow freely between this roof and the top covering. The slab floor will allow a free drainage of all the water which runs down through the packing from the melting ice. ”

“ It is a well-known fact that, especially in hot weather, meat, poultry, and game, although apparently quite fresh, prove, on closer examination, or often only when cooked, to be tainted and of bad odor. This can be entirely removed by either watering and washing the meat in a lukewarm solution of salicylic acid (three to four teaspoonfuls of acid to two quarts of water) , or by adding a small pinch of the dry acid in powder, during the cooking. ”

“ At any rate let those parties who either from choice or necessity do not wish to use the feed-cutter hesitate no longer in regard to the silo if they wish to try it, but go ahead and place the whole fodder in one, and I am confident they will not be disappointed in its feeding qualities. The only difficulty with long fodder comes at the time it is to be taken out for feeding purposes ”

“ Ordinary milk cannot be kept good for a long time, especially in hot weather. If milk were concentrated in this country, and heated with the boroglyceride, carriage would be saved, and the milk might be kept good and fresh for a fortnight and more; all it would require would be to reduce it again to its original strength. If fresh milk be treated with this preservative it can be set for cream for several days, even in hot weather. The cream which rises will keep, and the skim-milk will remain sweet for several weeks; this I have tried in the dairy at Beaumont College. ”

“ If the fodder dries out rapidly, from four days to a week is amply long for it to stand in shock, while if the weather is somewhat damp or the fodder quite green it may even stand ten days with no loss. One of the advantages of cutting and shocking is that when it is over the force of men employed in this operation can be changed to filling the silo. If the corn is cut and placed in the silo at once quite a force of hands is needed, but by cutting and shocking first we can avoid this double force. ”

“ For the preservation of fish use the same as for meat, only the solution should be allowed to become cold before using. To keep oysters stir into them 3 ounces of the solution (cold) to each gallon of oysters. Cider will be kept sweet if there is added to each barrel 1 quart of the solution immediately after the cider comes from the press. Milk to be kept sweet should have the powder first named, viz.: nitrate of potassium, salicylic acid, and chloride of sodium, each 1 ounce, added to every 16 gallons. ”

“ The question of stacking ensilage is sometimes raised, being urged upon our people by the practice of our English friends, who are experimenting quite largely in this direction. It will be no more profitable to stack ensilage in the Northern States than to stack hay, and even less so in my judgment, for the waste would be very considerable and no one would relish the job of handling it during bad weather. ”

“ Corn-fodder may be preserved in a perfectly satisfactory manner without running it through the feed-cutter, and may be drawn from the field and deposited directly in the silo. The expense of putting corn-fodder through the feed-cutter, first and last, is not far from half of all that incurred from the time of cutting the fodder to closing the silo. To fill the silo with long fodder let it be drawn in the usual manner and lifted at once into the pit, which can be accomplished in several ways, either by hand or the horse hay-fork carrier and slings. ”

“ No sawdust, tanbark, or other filling should be used, as a dead-air space is a better non-conductor for our purpose and less expensive than any of these. The partition can be built of narrower studding than those used on the sides of the building, and one thickness of boards used on each side, together with building paper, as in the first instance, is sufficient. To prevent lateral pressure bulging the silo two iron rods should be run through the partition walls joining the sides of the building, placing one about two feet above the partition sill and the other about four feet above that. ”

“ Silo filling may go on for two or three weeks, or until the pits are filled, when they should be covered after standing a day or two to allow the last layer to heat. For covering material there may be placed over the ensilage building paper upon which may be placed sand, earth, chaff, cut straw, marsh hay, long straw, sawdust, or almost any material which will help keep out the air. If one wishes the pits may be left uncovered, in which case something like a foot of the ensilage will decay and form a covering and protection for that beneath. ”

“ This is an apparatus which an itinerant physicist might have been seen a few years ago exhibiting in the squares and at street corners. His method was to have a spectator draw a card, which he then placed between the four sheets of paper which, folded crosswise, formed the flaps of his portfolio. When he opened the latter again a few instants afterward the card had disappeared, or rather had become transformed. Profiting then by the surprise of his spectators the showman began to offer them his magic portfolio at the price of five sous for the small size and ten for the large. ”

“ Probably very few stone silos will be built in the future, for experience shows that a stone wall chills the ensilage during the curing process and if it does not seriously injure that portion next to it to a thickness of several inches it renders it at least less palatable than ensilage nearer the middle of the silo. One reason, in my judgment, that the silo has not won more friends in the Eastern States is owing to the common use of stone in its construction. ”

“ The modern wooden building is not only less expensive but vastly superior to the original cellar or stone structure and every year’s experience is throwing light in hitherto dark places, so that in a short time the progressive dairyman or beef-raiser will think no more of filling his silo than our fathers did of filling the barn with hay, and with proper facilities for handling the corn no part of the silo work will be as hard as pitching hay over the ‘big beam.’” * * * Supt. ”

“ Maintain the mixture to a temperature of about 200 deg. centigrade as long as water is given off. When the mass cools it becomes a yellowish, transparent, glacial substance, tough and deliquescent. This dissolves in water, but when boiled in large quantities of the same it is decomposed into glycerine and boracic acid. In order to employ the compound prepare a solution either in water, alcohol, or other suitable solvent and immerse in or impregnate with such solutions the organic substances to be operated upon. ”

“ Pure baking powders are very simple in composition, care being used in preparing them and procuring pure ingredients. According to the advertised statements of the various leading manufacturers we are forced to make our own if we desire a pure and wholesome article. As the essential ingredients of the best baking powder are baking soda and cream of tartar we need only be careful in buying of honest grocers or druggists who will guarantee their purity. It is not difficult to procure pure soda, but the cream of tartar is frequently adulterated, and care must be used in its purchase. ”

“ From the cream so prepared butter was made, and was kept for several weeks without a particle of salt, and was eaten by members of the college. I also wish to show another method by which meat can be preserved and cheaply transported. In South America, about Buenos Ayres and the River Platte, many cattle are killed simply for the hides and fat; the flesh is thrown away. Now, if this flesh were cut up in small pieces, and put into the preserving liquid for a night, it would, even in that hot climate, keep good for some time. ”

“ An excellent brooder may be made with a tank of hot water, covered well, the same as the incubator. A piece of muslin or woolen cloth should be next the bottom to prevent burning the chicks. Keep the heat among the chicks at about 90 deg. Let the tank rest on inch boards with no opening under it, but in front; a fringe should hang in front for the chicks to run in and out under the tank. ”

“ Where a stream or lake is inaccessible from which to procure ice for filling ice-houses, especially where a small quantity is stored, the ice can be frozen with water from the well in boxes or other contrivance made especially for the purpose, which we leave to the ingenuity of those who are interested. ”

“ In cold weather it should be left longer, as it requires more time for the composition to absorb the ink. Remove the original carefully, and a reversed impression will be observed on the pad. To take off copies lay dry sheets of paper on the reversed impression, press gently, and remove quickly.
When you have taken all the copies you require wash the ink from the surface at once with a sponge and plenty of lukewarm water; never use hot water. The surface of the composition will allow considerable rubbing without fear of tearing it, if not done roughly and carelessly. ”

“ A good black ink can be made by boiling 3 pounds of logwood with sufficient water to leave a residue of 5 quarts. When cold add 3 drachms of yellow bichromate of potash and stir thoroughly. To prevent thickening add a few drops of solution of mercury salt. It flows freely from the pen. Its color at first is of a dark indigo-blue tint, changing soon into a permanent black. A beautiful gloss may be given to this or any other black ink by adding a strong solution of shellac and borax.
Fine Black Ink. [FROM ANILINE.]
Dissolve the negrosine in a quart of hot water ”

“ Station.
* * * A silo is a place where fodder is preserved in a succulent condition. It may be a pit, a box, a mow, a tank, a building, or a trench in the earth. Silage is the word denoting the fodder so preserved. Ensilage is the term applied to the process or system. Ensile is the verb expressive of the action of making silage. Ensilor stands for the person using the silo to ensile fodder for silage by the process of ensilage. ”

“ Frederic S. Barff of Kilburn, England, it seems was the first to combine boracic acid with glycerine, and to produce a preservative compound known as boroglyceride, which is soluble in water and alcohol. As boracic acid is but slightly soluble in water and other common solvents this combination with glycerine—which is also a useful agent in arresting the growth of germs—is peculiarly valuable. It is tasteless and inodorous and imparts no dis­agree­able taste or odor to the substance being treated. ”

“ Now fasten the three apartments (ventilator, egg drawer, and tank) together, with boards nailed to the sides and back and front (of course leaving the opening for the egg drawer) , care being taken to drive no nails in the egg drawer, as it must move in and out, and should have a strong strip to rest on for that purpose. Having completed these preparations make a larger box to go over all three, so that there will be a space on the sides, back, front, and on top; but as the ventilator must be filled with sawdust to within 1 inch of the top of the tubes, it serves for the bottom packing. ”

“ Turn the eggs half way round twice a day at regular intervals. Let the eggs cool down for fifteen minutes once every day, but do not let them cool lower than 70 deg. No sprinkling is required if the sponges are kept moist. If the heat gets up to 110 deg. or as low as 60 deg. for a little while it is not necessarily fatal. Too much heat is more prevalent than too little. A week’s practice in operating the incubator will surprise one how simple the work is. The tank will be troublesome to fill at first, but the matter will be easy after it is done, as it can be kept hot. ”

“ Sawdust is the best material for packing, but in its absence chaff, chopped straw, or even straw unchopped may be made to answer the purpose.
Fig. 1.
A costly and elaborate building is no better than the cheapest structure for keeping ice, if care is only taken to have it properly packed, which is very easily done after one “knows how.” We have never seen ice better preserved through a long and hot summer than in a board shanty with only one thickness of siding, and that full of cracks and crevices. ”

“ The salicylic acid kills all kinds of germs, and destroys the growth and action of any yeast which may still be present; it is therefore of incalculable value in effectually preserving wine, and as a preventive of the deterioration to which this liquid is subject.
Must, fresh from the press in autumn, can be kept without fermentation perfectly fresh, bright, and sweet for six to eight months by the addition of 1 to 1 1/2 ounces per 50 gallon, or of 3/4 ounce per 100 bottles. Sparkling Must requires an addition of 6 to 7 ounces of salicylic acid per 100 gallons. ”

“ Two doorways should be left by cutting out a single studding in each compartment upon the most convenient side. These doorways reach to within three feet of the ground, and should be about seven feet in height. They need not reach to within five feet of the top of the building. The ensilage will settle in the silo several feet, and when the time comes to pass it out through the doorway it takes but little time to dig down two or three feet to the top of the door and make an opening large enough to pass out the upper layer. Fig. ”

“ To fill a silo with clover is indeed a most simple process. By having two divisions the pits can be filled alternately, each layer of material heating up to the required temperature before the next is placed over it.
“For fodder-corn the processes are a little more complex, though in reality very simple. The fodder-corn should be allowed to approach maturity, the best point for cutting being not far from that at which we would ordinarily cut any shock. ”

“ This cross wall should be so worked into the side walls as to hold them securely, and thus prevent the silo from spreading on the sides. A little ingenuity will make the foundation and sills secure. If possible the sills should be as wide as the wall upon which it rests, but if this cannot be conveniently done the wall of stone or brick should be raised above the ground but a very few inches at most, as the ensilage in settling on the shoulder made by the jutting wall is almost certain to spoil at that point. ”

“ As soon as the question is settled in favor of having a silo a cutter should be selected and ordered, and it should be set up and run in a test trial not less than a week before actual filling is contemplated, so that repairs or changes can be made. To run a feed-cutter properly requires considerable experience and some knowledge of machinery, and many persons have suffered serious losses by not giving this side of the subject due attention. ”