New Yoek Agricultural Experiment Station. 117 



fore been unable to do on rations wliolly of vegetable food or on 

 such rations supplemented bj a liberal amount of skimmilk curd. 

 Tbe bone ash appeared therefore to partly supply a deficiency 

 which had existed in some other rations, but it did not bring 

 the ration anywhere near to the efficiency of the ration contain- 

 ing animal meal. The contrasted rations were nearly alike in 

 chemical composition so far as the groups of constituents are 

 ordinarily considered in feeding, 



EXPERIMENT WITH LAYING HENS, SECOND SERIES. 



The two lots of laying hens which were fed the contrasted 

 rations were Leghorns and had been laying well for two or three 

 months before the experiment began. The two lots were alike 

 at the start. The ration containing animal food was fed to Lot 

 XXI and the vegetable food ration to Lot XXII, The hens 

 were liberally fed but not more than was promptly and readily 

 eaten. Chopped alfalfa hay was fed during the first period and 

 green alfalfa during two others. For about three months the 

 hens were allowed to get their green food from grass runs and 

 the amount eaten was estimated from the amount of green forage 

 eaten at other times when it was freely fed. An inten-ogation 

 point accompanies the statement of amount of green fodder for 

 the periods when it was estimated. The records of feeding and 

 the results obtained are stated in condensed form in the accom- 

 panying tables. 



RELATIVE EFFICIENCY AND ECONOMY OF THE RATIONS FOR HENS, 



The difference in food consumption under the two rations was 

 practically nothing. For the thirty weeks there was only about 

 one-half per ct. difference in the total dry matter of the food. Up 

 to the beginning of the last period the total consumption was 

 exactly the same. The rations were intended to correspond very 

 closely in regard to the proportions of constituents, and this they 

 proved to do, although there were slight differences. The animal 



