— 95 — 



not enough by far to counterbalance the extra cost of the grain 

 ration. 



A difference will be noticed in the milk yield of the different 

 lots in the two years. While in both years there was, as was to 

 be expected, a continual decrease in the flow of milk, in 1S89 the 

 decrease in the grain fed lot was much greater and more rapid 

 than in the lot that had only pasture ; but in 1890, the decrease 

 was much more nearly even and was slightly less in the grain fed 

 lot. 



There was also a difference in the varying percentages of fat 

 in the milk of both lots in the two seasons that may be, and 

 probably is, due to the difference in the state of the weather and 

 the pastures. The season of 1889 was very wet throughout and 

 the grass in the pastures never once lacked for water or ceased to 

 grow, but the month of August was drier than any of the others 

 and in this month the percentage of fat in the milk of both lots 

 increased but much more in the grain fed lot than in those that 

 had only pasture. In 1890 in the early part of the season the 

 grass was fully as luxuriant as in the same period in 18S9, but be- 

 ginning a little before the middle of July a severe drought set in, 

 accompanied by an appreciably higher temperature than any ex- 

 perienced in 1889. This drought lasted for about a month during 

 which time the pastures suffered so severely that second growth 

 clover had to be cut and carried to the cattle in the fields. Dur- 

 ing this period the fat in the milk of both lots ran down, but not 

 so much in the grain-fed lot as in the other. When the rains 

 came and the grass started up, the percentage of the fat in the 

 milk rapidly ran up, but the grain-fed lot maintained the lead 

 that they had secured during the drought. 



It was urged by some who carefully studied the report of the 

 experiments last year that the effect of a grain ration would prob- 

 ably be more marked with cows that had been poorly wintered 

 and came into milk in the spring thin in flesh, than with our cows 

 that are kept in good flesh all the year round. For this reason, 

 two thin cows (No. 3 in each lot; were bought specially for this 

 experiment. They were very much alike in general build and 

 appearance, one was three and the other five years old, both had 

 calved at about the same time and both were very thin in flesh. 

 They were on the farm and fed in the stable the same as the other 

 cows for a little more than a month before the experiment began. 



