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10 AGRICULTURAL SURVEY

Ground floors are generally laid with stone or brick chamber floors almoft always with plaster, which is a great preventive against fire. Excellent plaster is got at Beacon Hill near Newark, and is run at nine-pence per square yard, or six-pence a strike. There is generally a good fold yard, and in the Clays North of atone very frequently a large good dove-cote. It is the custom of this country to put corn mostly into ticks, often set on stone staddles, or brick pillars, about three or four feet high, with stone caps; some- times on brick hovels, open on one side, with pillars, or timber frames, about eight feet high, which leaves underneath a good shelter for cattle, or for carts and waggons. This custom, besides being thought to keep the grain sweeter and freer from vermin, is a great saving in the barn room expected in southern counties. It is of late come much into use with good farmers, in building stables or cow houses, to leave a space parted off three or four yards in width, behind or between two stables, into which the hay seeds fall from the back of the rack, and are saved for use, cal- led a fother room; the rack is upright in the stable, and imclined on the back side. In improved cow-houses, the standing is made no longer than the cow herself. She stands on a kind of step, so that the dung falls down below her. Mr. Calvert of Darlton, has built some in this manner, but it is mote used in Yorkshire.

Mr. Chambers of Tibshelf, in a letter to Sir Richard Sutton, describes a particular method of laying barn floors, as under:

STR,

About twenty years ago I laid a barn floor with oak beams, fourteen inches square, and three inch oak plank, the plank was fourteen inches hollow from the ground, and the beams about two feet asunder; in two years after, some part of the plank broke down, without any other use than common thrashing upon; I examined the reason, and found the under side of the plank decayed by the damp rot,