334 ANNUAL RECORD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 



gested by noticing the eagerness with which both domestic 

 and wild fowl devour the nettle-leaves and seeds whenever 

 the opportunity is afforded. This proclivity is believed to 

 be the reason why, with the enormous yield of seeds on the 

 part of the nettle, comparatively so few plants spring. It is 

 stated also that in Denmark the seeds and leaves of the net- 

 tle are fed very carefully to horses, after having been collect- 

 ed, dried, and ground : three times a week, morning and even- 

 ing, a handful of this nettle-dust is mixed with the oats, in 

 consequence of which the horses are said to become fleshy 

 and sleek, and their hair to grow unusually long, and to as- 

 sume a remarkably beautiful, silky lustre. 8 (7, January, 

 1871,3. 



FEEDING UNBROKEN GRAIN TO HOGS. 



Dr. Lehmann has lately communicated to the Agricultural 

 Association of Saxony the results of some experiments of feed- 

 ing unbroken grain to hogs, the animal to which the test was 

 applied being a three-year'old pig, of an English breed, which 

 had previously been fed, for a year and three quarters, exclu- 

 sively with rye bran. Four pounds of bran w T ere given to it 

 every twenty-four hours, and on each of the first two cTays of 

 the experiment an addition was made of one pound of the 

 grains experimented upon, the rations being furnished in only 

 a slightly moist condition. The first of the undigested grains 

 were passed off at the lapse of from twenty-four to twenty- 

 five hours, the last of them appearing at various intervals, as 

 at the end of sixty-two hours for oats, seventy-two hours for 

 barley, seventy-eight hours for rye, and the same for peas. 

 In reference to the quantity of undigested and unaltered 

 grains found in the excrement, it is stated that in one hun- 

 dred pounds there appeared unchanged and entire 50.6 of 

 oats, 54.8 of barley, 49.8 of rye, and 49.4 of peas. From these 

 results it will be seen that in general only half of the entire 

 grain is used in the process of digestion, and that every one 

 who furnishes food in this manner has to supply twice as 

 much as is actually necessary, at, of course, double the neces- 

 sary cost. It is therefore very evident that a due regard to 

 economy makes it expedient to reduce the food to a more or 

 less fine condition before it is given to such animals. 8 C, 

 January, 1871. 



