AS FOOD FOR CATTLE AXD SHEEP. 301 



ture. When, therefore, the temperature of the body is reduced, 

 as it undoubtedly is, by imbibing, in the excessive supply of 

 turnips, a superfluity of water generally so cold as to be little 

 above the freezing point, some of the food in the roots is used 

 up in restoring the body to its natural degree of warmth. Con- 

 sequently such of the nourishing qualities of the turnips as are 

 expended in this work of restoration are wasted in proportion to 

 the amount of superfluous cold water imbibed. We have seen 

 that there is in average turnips only 1 lb. of nourishing food 

 in proportion to every 18 lbs. of water. But when these watery 

 bulbs are given in very large quantities to live-stock, a portion 

 of the dry solid food is used up by the presence of the excessive 

 supply of cold moisture imbibed, and thus one part of the bulbs 

 counteracts the beneficial influence which the other is fitted to 

 exert. 



Inasmuch as a proportion of the food consumed by an animal 

 is spent in heating its body, food may truly and accurately be 

 spoken of as fuel. Now suppose that you pump a large quantity 

 of cold water into the boiler of an engine, an extra quantity of 

 coal or other fuel will be consumed in raising the water in the 

 boiler to the same temperature it was in before the additional 

 supply was pumped in. In the same way, when the temperature 

 of an animal's body has been much reduced by swallowing, in 

 the form of turnips, an excessive quantity of cold water, a 

 portion of the solid matter in the bulb, which is respiratory or 

 heat-producing, will as truly be hurned aioay in restoring the 

 temperature to its normal condition. Every one is aware that 

 if more water is put into a boiler than will produce the steam 

 necessary to overtake the amount of work to be accomplished, 

 the fuel spent in bringing that superfluous water to the boiling 

 point is wasted. In the same way food is wasted in restoring 

 an animal's body to its natural temperature after it has swallowed 

 an unnecessary supply of cold water ; animal heat is thereby 

 unnecessarily consumed, the fuel for which would otherwise 

 have been utilised as food. The degree of waste in each case is 

 in proportion to the quantity of superfluous water, and the way 

 to prevent the waste is to limit the li(piid to as close an estimate 

 as can be made of what is })roper and necessary. 



However, we would here take occasion to remark, tliat on no 

 account should tlie risk be incurred of leaving cattle with an insuf- 

 iicient sup])ly of water, either given separately or mixed in their 

 food. Considerable as we hold the loss to be from comi)ellin!]: 

 them to partake of a superabandant quantity, the loss would no 

 doul)t be even greater if they do not get enough to satisfy the 

 cravings of nature and to replace the moisture consumed in the 

 system. lUit the safeguard against this latter danger lies in 

 giving the cattle an oi)portunity of drinking water at least once 



