60 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



which they are fed. Therefore, in determining which crop 

 furnishes the most nutrition in exchange for the cost of pro- 

 duction, we have to deal only with the nutritive qualities, or 

 flesh and fat producing properties, of the various crops. And, 

 Tor the sake of convenience, I have prepared a table showing 

 the relative flesh and fat forming qualities of our most com- 

 monly cultivated roots. Though my results differ somewhat 

 from quite generally received statements, I believe they are, 

 so far as is at present possible, perfectly correct ; for the 

 calculations are original, and the analyses upon which they 

 are based were derived from foreign sources, and have never 

 before appeared in English. 



The most reliable chemical analysis of the important root- 

 crops gives the following results : — 



Total Amount of Nitrogenous 

 or Flesh-forming Material. 



In 1,000 pounds of potatoes 

 In 1,000 pounds of mangolds . 

 In 1,000 pounds of sugar-beets 

 In 1,000 pounds of turnips 

 In 1,000 pounds of carrots . 



Total Amount of Carbonaceous 

 or Fat-producing Material. 



In 1,000 pounds of potatoes 

 In 1,000 pounds of mangolds . 

 In 1,000 pounds of sugar-beets 

 In 1,000 pounds of turnips 

 In 1,000 pounds of carrots 



By a comparison of these figures, it will be seen, that, as a 

 flesh-producer, the potato stands first \. while the sugar-beet 

 comes last, containing rather less than half the amount of 

 nitrogenous matter found in the former. As producers of 

 fat, potatoes stand first, closely followed by carrots and beets, 

 while turnips and mangolds are far in the rear. It therefore 

 appears, that, were the nutritive qualities of roots the only 

 basis for our decision, potatoes would be pre-eminently the 

 best root-food for all classes of animals, and that next to 

 them stands the frequently despised carrot. But there is an 

 item in guiding to the selection of the best root -rop, if possi- 

 ble, of far more importance than the amount of beef and 

 fat forming elements it contains ; namely, the cost of produc- 



