and then one-eighth of a metzen* of turnips cut to pieces and mixed witn chaff; at 3 again steamed chaff and potatoes, at 4 drink, at half past 4 again one eighth of a metzen of turnips mixed with potatoes, and at night I maize straw. From the commencement of April to the middle of May, the cattle get instead of turnips a like quantity of potatoes cut to pieces and mixed with chaff; after this, the green fodder commences, in the order in which it is cut.

At Kinza, the young cattle during the winter, receive per head, in the morning, seven pounds of steamed chaff and potatoes mingled, at 7 drink, at half past 7 o'clock, one-sixteenth of a metzen of potatoes, cut to pieces and chaff, at 3 P. M. again seven pounds of steamed chaff and potatoes, at 4 drink, at 5 again one-sixteenth of a metzen of potatoes, cut to pieces and chaff, and at night coarse hay. During the summer, green fodder is given here likewise in the stall.

Calves one year old receive during the winter daily, in the morning, five pounds of hay, second quality, at 7 o'clock drink, at 8 three pints of oats soaked in water and mixed with chaff, at 3 P. M. again five pounds of hay, second quality, at 4 drink, at 5 again three pints of oats soaked in water and mixed with chaff, and at night two pounds of hay, second quality. Gelded calves under one year of age, receive both in the morning and afternoon one pound of hay less than those immediately preceding.

Draught oxen receive from the beginning of November to the end of February daily per head sixteen pounds of steamed chaff mixed with onetenth of a metzen of potatoes. In order to keep the draught oxen in full strength during the hard work of spring, the cattle for draught receive from the commencement of March to the middle of May, besides the fodder above enumerated, every morning three pints of buckwheat meal and at noon five pounds of millet straw.

Milch cows get every week two ounces of salt to lick, calves (according as it may be required) from two ounces to two and a half and even three ounces every second week, per head.

Horses receive in the winter three times during the day, three halves of a metzen of bruised oats, and six pounds of hay, four pounds of oat-straw, and five pounds of steamed chaff without potatoes. During the summer the horses get at noon, green fodder instead of chaff. From the second week of their age, the foals receive a little oats, which portion is increased from day to day, in such a manner, that in their fourth month, they receive already one and a half metzen. From that time their portion of oats is increased until their sixth month to three metzen, and the oats henceforward are mixed with a third part of carrots. Of hay the foals obtain two pounds a day, and weather permitting, they are led daily to their grazing place, which is specially assigned to them, and which is surrounded with a fence.

The difficulty of obtaining good horses, the frauds so frequently practised in selling horses, and the great expenditures from procuring fit, faultless and durable horses are the reasons why on the manor of Alcsúth the stock of horses is used both for working and breeding, and so its demand for horses from time to time is supplied by its own breeding. The principal steed is the Göbö Jâra's out farm. Here studs only are used on the farm. A broad breast, a straight back, healthy faultless feet, a well-shaped light head constitute the appearance of these horses. The steed used here as

"One metzen is equal to one and three-quarters of an English bushel

stallion is from the Bábolau stud. He is of noble descent, his frame is strong and vigorous, and the Arab blood predominates. The studs are used for working every day throughout the year, with the exception of Sundays; they are spared however a fortnight, both before and after foaling. The thriving state of the studs and foals is the best evidence of the suitableness of the established order of feeding. The stable is plain and neat; it is high and light, in one word it is to the purpose and economical; the platform, obtained, by boards doubly folded one in the other, constitutes an arched vault, which is varnished to prevent bad air from perspiration, and there are wooden pipes arranged for leading off unwholesome vapors. For the greater convenience and to protect against colds, the watering is arranged in the stables. The watch is strict and punctual; to every two horses there is one man. For the attendance of the foals and the cleansing of the stables there are special servants.

Agreeable as the general impression must be, which Swiss cattle at the Marienthal dairy makes upon the stranger, it is nothing when compared to the sight reserved here for the farmer, of the fine stock of Mürzthal cows. This race combines nearly every one, if not every excellence:-abundance of milk, disposition for fattening, and great strength for draught; and is raised here in its highest perfection. The full-blood of this race is characterized by the small shaped head with broad forehead and broad mouth, short and fine horns, extended body, broad back and handsome neck, high and slender tail of considerable length, fine bluish hair, big udder, and on the whole by the stately and soft entire appearance.

Those cattle that remain barren, are removed to Kinza, and are there used for draught, until they again grow ardent. The whole farm is managed by three persons who attend not only to feeding and milking, but also to the mowing and gathering of the green fodder. The cows are milked twice a day. On an average, each head gives seven hundred and fifty measures of milk; this at first sight may appear little, but it is owing to the fact that in the period of suckling, the cows are spared as much as possible. The bulls are used for copulating only to their fifth year, and are then sold. The cows are not coupled with the bull until they have completed two and a half years. Bull calves are put to the yoke after being over three years of age. The arrangement of the cow house on the farm unites every thing that necessity and convenience require, and there is no where else in Hungary any thing like it. It is arched, high and well lighted. The mange s through its whole length, in such a manner as to leave a plastered space of six feet in the rear, and of eight feet in front. The right wing of the farm contains the milch chamber, the filter and the milk cellar, together with the ice house. In the filter-room there is a well which furnishes the water to clean the vessels. All the reservoirs and so likewise the steps, staircases and benches are of red marble. The cleanliness observed here is exemplary, and deserves being imitated. The right wing of the farm is devoted to the calves, and contains the fodder chamber, where in summer the green fodder is spread on wooden scaffolds, in order to secure it from becoming heated.

The spacious yard is covered with sand, and the enclosure is not of stone or wood, which might cause the caule to suffer iniury, but is made by a double line of ropes which, in order the better to stand the weather are tarred every year. Inside of the enclosure are the summer stalls or stands for the COWS. At the entrance of the stable and in front of every stall, there is a

dung hole lined with stones, and having a channel for the fluid, and above it a well. This hole, for the sake of cleanliness, is covered with boards in which suitable openings are made, in order, by means of the draught of air, to promote the decomposition and fermentation of the dung.

There are two zebus, (male and female,) which were obtained direct from India, and which are kept here in Marienthal. These animals belong to the genus of horned cattle, and are of the height and size of a middling heifer. The horn of the male is round and has the color of wheat bread; while that of the female is flat, and of a bluish, ash gray color. It seems, these animals form in India two different varieties of the same kind, as in Hungary, for instance, the Mürzthai and Hungarian cows.

This species of horned cattle is distinguished, particularly, by its fleshy half-saddie which is found on their back at the root of the chine, above the two shoulder blades. The zebu, then, in a measure, is the camel of the cattle genus, an epithet to which it is well entitled, even on account of its tameness and playfulness. They are treated like the other cattle, except that during the winter, they leave the stall only on fine warm days, as they require a higher degree of warmth. Moreover, they are in perfectly good health, and the female zebu, having made a miscarriage the first time, is at present, for the second time, in the state of pregnancy. The next foaling will, therefore, disclose interesing data, as to the capacity of this animal for breeding and milk production. There were a pair of zebus formerly on this farm, which were rather larger; they did exceedingly well, they were continually in good health, until all of a sudden they died some few years ago. Previously to this the zebu bull was coupled with a Mürzthad cow. The little bull born in consequence by the latter was free from the oriental knob; in color and vivacity he resembled the father, though as to shape and height he was like his mother. It would have been interesting to make attempts at propagating this bastard kind, but, unfortunately, the young zebu had been castrated in consequence of gross inattention on the part of the herdsman. However, the oriental blood, thus condemned to the yoke, even in this low sphere acquired for itself the fame that it excels over its Mürzthat zompanions, by its speed and perseverance in drawing the yoke.

The draught cattle of the manor are supplied by this farm, and any deficiency is made up from the wild breeding flocks of Hungarian cattle. Among all the horned races of Europe there is none which, with an equally colossal frame approach so near the speed of the horse, as do the Hungarian oxen. It is a race of cattle, which, by dint of their high and stately growth, their long horns, (nearly six feet in length,) their proud and bold look, theirbroad breast and handsome white color, changing slightly into blue, and, lastly, the beautiful proportion of all their limbs, may fairly be pronounced to be one of the most useful and handsomest productions of generating

nature.

The Mürzthal oxen, however, are considered on all hands as better fitted, under a proper climate for conveying heavy loads slowly and for moderate distances. From 1836-9, the murrain made its ravages in the regions of Alcsúth, and wrought terrible destruction; yet it never showed itself among the cattle of the manor, there being in such times the strictest seclusion maintained on the farms. It would be an utter impossibility for this sickness, if it should prevail in the neighborhood, to occur at Alcsúth; such is the cleanliness strictly followed here, such the abundance and uniformity of healthy food, such the constant employment of the cattle according to their strength. On the Kinza farm in 1838, a few head perished by the murrain,

as some of the servants neglectful of their duties had come in contact with the infected region. The draught oxen, whose hoofs are worn out, are then shod.

There remains to be mentioned the Chinese pigs kept on the Kinza farm, which are raised principally with a view to serve as food to the laborers employed in mowing and cutting the grass. This species is well known in different parts of the country. It is of small size, its long belly rests on very short legs, its bones are tender, its color is a dark bluish gray, it increases very fast, is easily fattened, and its flesh grown over with fat, has a fine flavor. The Hungarian domestic breeds, moreover, are much larger and superior. In England a much valued new race of pigs has been produced by a crossbreed of the domestic with the Chinese pigs; still the original Hungarian race of pigs is far superior to the English and is much more like the Chinese. It is, therefore, very probable, that a coupling together of these two races would produce a happy result.

XXI.-Description of an Apparatus for steaming food for cattle, with the estimate of the gain in feeding steamed chaff and fodder.

If the nourishing particles contained in straw in its compact state, and which, especially on account of their great quantity, cannot be dissolved by the animal organs of digestion in the short space of digesting and ruminating, are prepared and rendered more digestible by being previously boiled or steamed, they will be found to give the cattle a much greater degree of nourishment..

Setting out from this undeniable position, there have been established at all the larger farms at Alcsúth well-constructed steam apparatus for steaming the cut straw before its being given to the cattle, i. e. for boiling it in hot steam, in order thereby to change it to a fodder at once more digestible and more nourishing.

The following is a description of the apparatus: (See Figs. 53. and 54.)

29 feet

The upper boiler (a) is 5 feet in width below, its bottom trailed up 9 inches, and the sides are 15 inches high to the bend. The steam is conducted from the boiler into the casks b, b, by means of a pipe c, which leads into two

arms, d, a, and which, by means of two stopcocks, c, c, give the steam an outlet into either of the vessels. The casks made of pine wood are in form of a cone; they are bound with hoops of iron, and are placed with their wider bottom upon stone sockets one and a half foot high. These casks are 7 feet high; their diameter is 7 feet 6 inches below, and 6 feet 10 inches above. In the top of the casks is a round opening of f, 15 inches in diameter, which serves to fill the casks with chaff from the loft above.

There is also on the lower side of the casks a square opening, g, by which the chaff when steamed is again taken out. To both the openings are covers of wood, which are trimmed with coarse cloth or strong linen, and which are fastened by wooden or iron cross rails, so as to keep the openings the better closed. The small copper pipes marked h, serve for the escape of the steam after it has completely penetrated the chaff. Finally, behind the boiler stands a wooden vessel i, which is placed in the earth, and which is loaded with beams; and from this vessel the water contained therein is conducted into the boiler by means of the pump k, and the funnel pipe l. The chaff is steamed either by itself alone, or it is previously mingled with potatoes cut into small pieces; in this latter shape it is used as fodder only for cattle. The chaff is to be one-half wheat and the other half oat straw. For horses and sheep it is cut half an inch long, for cattle a full The hay of second and third qualities is likewise cut into chaff and nixed up with the chaff straw; it is put into the steam casks, whereby its aste is improved and its nourishing power much enhanced. A steam vat holds from 750 to 800 lbs. of chaff. For cattle, there are mixed to one barrel of chaff three bushels of potatoes. Within an hour the whole is steamed, and 30 such decoctions require, for firing, one-half cord of hard wood. One man is sufficient to attend to the apparatus.

An apparatus so extensive and costly, to be sure, can be made use of