Litter (device)

“ A litter then I decided I would have.
It is, I should think, the very earliest form of human conveyance. It consists of two long poles laid about as far apart as the shafts of an ordinary cart, in the middle is hung a coarse-meshed rope net, and over that a tilt of matting—the sort of stuff we see tea-chests covered with in this country. Into the net is tumbled all one's small impedimenta—clothes-bags, kettles, anything that will not conveniently go on mule-back ”

“ It is said, too, that the females which are produced by the mother in her first litter, are subject to the night-mare.1889 The best dog of the litter is the one which is last in obtaining its sight, or else the one which the mother carries first into her bed. ”

“ The covering of litter is to remain constantly on the beds, day and night, in all weathers, only be careful to examine it after hard rains, to remove the wet litter, as before observed. During the Winter season, in time of snow or cold rains, augment the thickness of the covering both of the litter and the mats. ”

“ Occasionally, as we passed, a face was visible at a window, generally either wizened and dried up, or with a white, neurotic appearance that was almost more repulsive. Everywhere dirt reigned supreme—unspeakable filth in open drains and putrid litter. ”

“ As instances of the rapid increase of rodent families we may note that the mother rat has several litters of young each year, and ten or twelve at a litter. The fieldmouse has twelve little ones a year, but all of the same litter. ”

“ So every ton of litter produced near seven tons of dung.—But this weight must [270] have been obtained chiefly by the earth of the headland absorbing the urine, of which, when fed on turnips, sheep make great quantities, and being finally mixed with their dung and litter. This recital reminds me of the recommendation, in my address to this Society, in May, 1818, to carry earth into the barn yard, once in every two weeks, from spring to autumn; adding to every layer of earth a coat of litter. ”

“ I sat in my litter on a spring cushion, lent me for the cart by a Chinese gentleman, and I endeavoured to balance myself so that the litter should not—as it seemed to me to be threatening to do—turn topsy-turvy. It made me rather uncomfortable at first, because once in there is no way of getting out without 326lifting the litter off the mules. You may indeed slip down between it and the leading mule's hind legs, but that proceeding strikes me as decidedly risky, for a mule can kick and his temper does not seem to be improved by having the shafts of a litter on his back. ”

“ The field-mouse is prolific, the female producing several litters throughout the greater part of the year. The mother carries the young-born litter about for two or three weeks, nipping the skin of her offspring at the side, half-way between the fore and hind legs. The average number of young born at one time is probably somewhere about five, though litters of nine are by no means unknown. ”

“ A board floor is not necessary if the dirt floor is filled up 6 or 8 inches above the ground level outside the house. The floors should be provided with an abundance of litter which is usually changed only once or twice during the year. As the litter tends to become dirty more litter must be added. ”

“ They should have plenty of clean litter as often as needed. With such management, there will be an almost incredible saving of food.
Tight Stables should always be ventilated. The breath and manure from animals always causes impure air. ”

“ The last of yesterday's belated shoppers was hardly out of this market-place, before the men of the cleaning squads were in upon their heels. What a mess to be tidied up! Eight and one-half hours of hard endeavor can make daily a mighty dirty store and a huge housekeeping job. There is at the best a vast litter—and yet a litter that cannot be carelessly thrust away. ”

“ Where dung is not sufficiently abundant for the above stratifications, a nitre-bed should be formed in a stable with friable earth, covered with a layer of litter; after four months the litter is to be lifted off, the earth is to be turned over, then another layer of fresh earth, 8 or 9 inches thick, is to be placed over it, and a layer of the old and fresh litter over all. ”

“ For the purpose of covering, you may provide either clean straw, or long dry horse-stable litter, sufficient to lay about half a foot thick at first, but gradually increased afterwards of due thickness to defend the bed effectually from the air, rain, and inclement weather, and to preserve a low kindly warmth. ”

“ During the winter there should be about 10 inches of dry litter in the form of straw, peat moss or shavings mixed with the straw. Small windows in the rear wall will make for better distribution of the litter, since the birds scratch away from the light. ”

“ You alight from your cloud of dust, demand a guide. "Yes; you can have the guide by paying also for the litter. This being Sunday, the entrance is free, and the government supplies no guide. You must have the portantina, or blunder about alone." The litter, with its pink gingham frill and cushion, looks hateful to you. You remember it twenty-three years ago with dislike. The sun of noon is hot upon you. The men are unpersuadable. Red and fierce as lava, you storm through the deserted streets of the ancient capital of seaside luxury. ”

“ They should frequently have fresh litter and be kept very clean, by frequently rubbing them down with a wisp of straw. But they should not be tied up or curried till they are near three years old, their skin being till then too delicate to bear the comb. ”

“ You scarcely ever feel as if any one lived in them—there are seldom any signs of occupation, especially feminine occupation, lying about, no “litter,” in fact; litter being a powerful weapon in the hands of a person who knows how to make a room look comfortable. Then I am told that litter is incongruous in a Queen Anne room, for that the women of those days had not the same modes of employment as ourselves. The [Pg 93] greatest ladies, if they were blessed with an energetic temperament, only gave it free scope with their medicine chest or in their still-room or linen closet ”

“ Inhabitants of leaf litter reside close to the surface and so must be able to experience exposure to dryer air and light for short times without damage. The larger litter livers are called primary decomposers. They spend most of their time chewing on the thick reserve of moist leaves contacting the forest floor. ”

“ The litter is weaned by simply taking the doe away from the youngsters and putting her in a separate hutch. The litter should be left in the same hutch in which they were born. They will be better satisfied and results will be better than if you move them. ”

“ While litters are generally large, it should not be taken for granted that Nature intends the mother doe to raise all that come. Many will die in the natural state and old plainsmen tell me that the jack rabbit seldom raises more than a pair to the litter. ”

“ Should a party traveling with pack animals, and without ambulances or wagons, have one of its members wounded or taken so sick as to be unable to walk or ride on horseback, a litter may be constructed by taking two poles about twenty feet in length, uniting them by two sticks three feet long lashed across the centre at six feet apart, and stretching a piece of stout canvas, a blanket, or hide between them to form the bed. ”

“ They store food but remain active under the ice all winter long.
Very prolific, they produce from two to five litters a year, with from four to as many as a dozen young in each litter. There is a reason for this. ”

“ In nature, litter is decomposed in a way similar to what happens in a vermicompost pit. Litter (consisting of leaf material, twigs, bark, dead wood, flowers, fruits and other plant and animal material) that falls on the ground is constantly moistened by dew or rain. Decomposition then sets in with the help of microbes, fungi and microarthropods.
Microarthropods are of two kinds-the detritivores that feed on the litter attacked by the microbes and fungi and the predators that feed on the detritivores. ”

“ In my own stables no litter is ever suffered to remain under the fore feet during the day: on the contrary, the horses stand on the bare bricks, which in summer are watered to make them more cool. Behind, a little straw is strewed, because horses are apt to kick and break the bricks with their hinder feet, and because, when no gratings exist, or no slope is present, the litter thus placed sucks up the moisture of the urine, which would be detrimental to the hinder feet, which are more liable to thrushes than contraction. ”

“ The boarders don’t keep their rooms just as spick as might be.”
Boarders! In this unkempt house! It was a litter. The best pictures were flyspecked lithographs or chromos. The floors when they were laid with anything were covered with earthy looking rag carpets—creaky, yellow, nondescript furniture. A litter and crush of useless things—tin and glass lamps, papers, cheap pamphlets—a red tablecloth or two—and there were flies and odors and unmade beds. ”

“ One doe can produce four litters a year without seriously crowding her. But this is not the best practice. We will, however, take it for granted that the fancier wants to get all he can out of her. Four litters with six in each litter will give him twenty-four rabbits in one year from the same mother doe. ”

“ On occasion of changing their abode, they must be well cleansed from the litter, laid upon beds of fresh leaves, and supplied with an abundance of food every six hours in succession. In shifting their bed, a piece of network being laid over the wicker plates, and covered with leaves, the worms will creep up over them ”

“ The young of the second litter are less successful than those of the first litter and make up only a small part of the breeding population the following year. In 28 litters of young the average was 7.4, but probably some of these litters had already sustained losses. ”

“ If the doe has a large litter of five or six she will need this help throughout the nursing period as the average doe, even though she be a good milker, does not have enough to adequately supply a large litter. ”

“ The mule-litter is a goodly-sized palanquin, not quite long enough for lying at full length, but high enough to allow the passenger to sit erect. There is a box or false flooring in the bottom, to accommodate baggage in small parcels that can be easily stowed. A good litter has the sides stuffed to save the occupant from bruises; and with plenty of straw and a couple of pillows, he generally finds himself quite comfortable. The body is fastened to two strong and flexible poles that extend fore and aft far enough to serve as shafts for a couple of mules. ”

“ One end of the litter is made fast to the sides of the animal, while the other end is left to trail upon the ground. A projection is raised for the feet to rest against and prevent the patient from sliding down. Instead of canvas, the Indians sometimes lash a large willow basket across the poles, in which they place the person to be transported. The animals harnessed to the litter must be carefully conducted upon the march, and caution used in passing over rough and broken ground. ”

“ They will hide under the litter in the darkest corner but soon start without apparent cause, turn around and lie down again, or they bound up with grunt or scream and rush off as if pursued, push or leap against the wall, stand with ears pricked as if listening, and start violently at any noise or a flash from a lantern, trembling, squealing, or having muscular jerking. ”

“ There is much contrariety of opinion relative to the propriety of permitting horses to stand during the day on litter; and there are cogent arguments for and against it. Litter entices horses to lie down during the day, which relieves fatigue, and is favourable to the recovery of over-strained limbs: it also prevents an uneven or hurtful pressure on the feet when it is cobble-paved. On the other hand, gross feeding horses are apt to eat their litter, which is not desirable. ”

“ The young are fully furred and have their eyes open when born. They are active but stay hidden close by one spot for the first two or three weeks. There are usually about four to the litter and there probably is more than one litter each year, at least in the warmer sections of their range. ”

“ The floors intended for litter are further protected from dampness, by being elevated one inch from the rear to a line parallel with the trough, and about two feet from it. The litter is held on this elevated part of the floor by a guard, 2x4 inches, around its edge. Hanging partitions separate the entry from the pens. Fat [Pg 296] hogs are easily and quickly loaded, by merely lifting the partitions and driving them through the entry into the open end of a wagon box, placed at the rear end of the entry. ”

“ The seat of this litter is covered with several deer-skins, and to its four sides are fastened four bars which cross each other, and are supported by eight men, who at every hundred paces transfer their burden to eight other men, and thus successively transport it to the place where the feast is celebrated, which may be near two miles from the village. ”

“ In ordinary use, when dirt beyond the reach of mere dusting with a camel’s hair brush has stuck itself to the exterior of an objective, a succession of tufts of absorbent cotton or wads of lens paper at first dampened with pure water or alcohol and then followed lightly, after the visible dirt has been gently mopped up, by careful wiping with the same materials, will keep the exterior surface in good condition, the process being just that suggested in the beginning of this chapter as the ordinary cleaning up preparatory to a thorough examination. ”