EXCAVATION
Barns are now usually built with a basement story. This implies that the building is to be placed on more or less sloping ground, in which case the removal of some earth will be necessary. The basement story should extend well above ground, to economize construction and to secure dry walls and floors. It is a great mistake to place animals in cellars. The dotted line in [Fig. 97] shows an incline rather too steep; and in [Fig. 98] one that is not steep enough. It is better to place the barn where wanted, even if the incline has to be changed, than to place it in an unhandy position that the best slope may be secured. It is not difficult to construct a basement barn on level or nearly level land. In the latter case, all of the basement walls may be of wood, since provision can be made for a driveway to the second floor by means of a retaining wall built some ten or twelve feet from the barn; the space between the wall and the barn may be bridged ([Fig. 99]). Cast-off steel or iron rails form durable and excellent sleepers for such a bridge, the plank being kept in place by spiking two-inch pieces, one on either end on top of the bridge plank. In case no retaining wall is built, and the earth lies immediately against the basement wall ([Fig. 100]), dampness may be largely prevented from reaching the stable and the animals by building a second wall across the side or end of the barn, inclosing a space or room for roots immediately under the driveway. The floor over this root-cellar should be deafened to prevent frost entering from above ([Fig. 101]). The second wall will remain comparatively dry, since no damp earth rests against it. This location of the root-cellar makes it convenient for unloading the roots through trap doors in the floor, which are kept partly open for a time after the roots have been put in, to prevent them from heating.
Fig. 99. Bridge into the barn.
Fig. 100. An embankment entrance, with retaining walls holding the corners.
Fig. 101. Deafening or packing the floor, to keep out cold.