easily digested, but will obviate the necessity of
watering after meals. Many object to watering after the horse has eaten,
because the fluid carries the grain into the intestines where it can not
be digested. But if grain and forage are dampened, the horse will not
require watering after a meal. He will rarely drink if water is offered
him, and the moisture will aid digestion. This is surely better and more
humane than to give a horse dry food and then work him for six or seven
hours in the hot sun, afterward, without any drink.

Of the quality of water given to the horse there is not much to condemn.
He generally gets better water than the hog, or sheep, because he is
very fastidious in this matter and will not drink foul water unless
driven to do so by dire necessity. But I believe that three times is not
often enough to water a horse at work in hot weather, though this is the
common and time honored practice. The stomach of the horse is
small--very small in proportion to the size of his body. When he has
labored in summer for half a day his thirst is intense, and when he is
permitted to slake it he drinks too much, producing really serious
disorders. No valid objection can be urged against watering five times
per day. The arguments are all in its favor.

The errors in stabling are fully as grievous as any we have noticed. I
have lately written of the evils of lack of light and proper ventilation
in these columns, and also discussed the problem of currying in various
phases, so shall not repeat here what I have heretofore written. One of
the other evils of stable management often allowed, is the accumulation
of manure. It is not within the scope of this article to notice the evil
the neglect to save manure works to the farm and the farmer. But that
the accumulation of the manure in the stable is a hurt to the horse, no
sensibly reasoning person can doubt. Its fermentation gives off
obnoxious gases which pollute and poison the air the horse is
compelled to breathe, and thus in turn poison the animal's blood. This
is a more fruitful cause of disease than is generally supposed. The
gases prove injurious to the eye, and when we consider the accumulation
of manure and the exclusion of light, we are not apt to wonder much at
the prevalence of blindness among horses. The manure should be cleaned
out in the morning, at noon, and again at night. Use sawdust or straw
liberally for bedding. It will absorb the urine, and as soon