236 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



most advantageously purchase depends upon the ruling prices. 

 There are no hard and fast relative values which can be applied to 

 a determination of the materials which it is wisest to purchase. It is 

 possible to base a rational decision upon a comparison of the propor- 

 tions of digestible material in feeding stutTs of the same class. This 

 does not apply, however, when comparing feeding stuffs of unlike 

 classes. To illustrate, it would not be possible to compare the value 

 of corn meal and cottonseed meal on the basis of the proportions of- 

 digestible matter in the two materials, because the digestible matter 

 ill the one so greatly unlike that in the other. 



MIXTURES AND ADULTERATIONS. 



No more important topic in connection with this general subject 

 can be brought to your attention than the present quite prevalent 

 practice of compounding mixed feeds which contain an inferior in- 

 gredient and of adulterating many of the valuable feeding stuffs 

 which now appear in the markets. Let us consider some of the facts 

 which are well known to those who are investigating the feeding 

 stuff trade. 



Let me say, first of all, that I have known of very few instances of 

 the adulteration of linseed meal. Up to the present time no feeding 

 stuff has been more uniform in its quality than has this one. Infe- 

 rior cottonseed meals appear in the market quite frequently however, 

 Here the degredation of quality is accomplished by grinding hulls 

 with the pure meal. Some so-called cottonseed meals have been 

 found on sale carrying less than 30 per cent, of protein, whereas the 

 proportion should be above 42 per cent, at least. When such mix- 

 tures are sold for w'hat they are, as for instance in the case of cotton- 

 seed feed, no fraud is perpetrated, and the consumer is left to make a 

 free choice. 



So far as I have observed, the only danger of unfair dealing in the 

 sale of the wastes from the manufacture of starch from the maize 

 kernel lies in a failure to understand clearly the differences in these 

 articles and consequently of buying corn bran instead of the more 

 valuable gluten feed or gluten meal. I suspect that in some in- 

 stances finely ground corn bran has been sold under the name light 

 gluten, or special gluten, and it would be very easy to mix such finely 

 ground corn bran with gluten meal or gluten feed to the advantage of 

 the dealer, because of the lower price of the bran. 



One of the most notorious adulterations now practiced is the mix- 

 ing of ground corn cobs or ground broom corn waste with wheat 

 bran. A sample of this character came into my hands the other day. 

 One of the feeds licensed in the State of New York is such a mixture 

 and is guaranteed to contain only 11.8 per cent, of protein, whereas 

 pure bran contains from 15 to 16 per cent. This adulteration may 



