104 ANoSrUAL EEPOKTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGEICULTUEE. 



ing; at the same, time, none of the calves had scours, a symptom 

 which is commonly believed to be produced by cold skim milk. 



A test of iron compounds to overcome the toxic properties of 

 cottonseed meal showed that the iron compounds failed to accom- 

 plish the object intended. 



Effort has been made to ascertain what constituent of prickly 

 pear is responsible for the diminished percentage of fat in milk when 

 that feed is used. The results indicate that the quantity of water 

 taken in the pear is not alone the cause of the reduction. The fact 

 that fish meal had the same effect on the fat content strengthens 

 the belief that mineral elements are the cause; yet when bone meal 

 was used this in itself did not decrease the fat percentage. 



It Avas found that beet pulp injures the flavor of milk if the milk 

 is held for several days. 



Work with the Office of Public Roads and Rural Engineering is 

 being conducted to ascertain the best materials, mixtures, and coat- 

 ings for concrete silos. 



During the year the east wing of the cow barn was remodeled, the 

 west wing and administration building were completed, and a large 

 open coAv shed was built. 



DAiHY ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING. 



A new plan has been prepared for a cheap dairj^ stable to meet 

 certain conditions in the South, and this has been found very helpful 

 in the field work. Plans and specifications were also prepared for a 

 combination creamery and milk-«liipping station to be used in the 

 New England States. Blue prints of plans already in stock, aggre- 

 gating 970 sets, have been sent out on request. 



Plans have been drawn, and in many cases specifications, bills of 

 material, surveys, and inspection service have also been furnished, 

 for construction and engineering work in connection with various 

 enterprises of the division and some outside of the division, includ- 

 ing building construction, road making, electrical equipment, refrig- 

 eration, machinery, and water supply. Such work was done for the 

 dairy demonstration farm at Denison, Tex. ; the live-stock experiment 

 farm at New Iberia, La. ; the experiment farm at Beltsville, Md. (in- 

 cluding mess house, small animal house, 30,000-gallon concrete reser- 

 voir and cooling tower, house for fire apparatus, heating system for 

 superintendent's house, refrigeration and dark-room equipment for 

 administration building, electrical equipment, refrigerating plant, 

 ynd pumping plant) ; the Naval Academy dairy at Gambrills, Md. ; 

 the experiment creamery at Grove City, Pa. ; laboratories at Wash- 

 ington for the. Dairy Division and the Bureau of Entomology; refrig- 

 erating plants for the Bureau of Animal Industry and the Bureau 

 of Plant Industry ; and for a city milk plant to be located at Louis- 

 ville, Ky, 



Experimental work has been done on pasteurization of milk in 

 bottles by means of circulated hot air. 



Some of the architectural and engineering work has been trans- 

 ferred to the Office of Public Roads and Rural Engineering, and the 

 future work of the Dairy Division on these subjects will be mainly 

 of a research nature. 



