52 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



Question. Have you ever tried parsnips ? 



Mr. BowDiTCH. Yes, sir. 



QuESTioisr. Do they impart any peculiar flavor ? 



Mr. BoWDiTCH. If fed in any large quantity, they do ; 

 but they do not help the color of butter at all. That is not, 

 perhaps, of so much importance, now that we have as many 

 good coloring-matters as formerly ; but if you do not like to 

 use any coloring-matter, if you have any pride about that, 

 you want to feed your cows something that will give a good 

 color to the butter without any extract. 



Mr. Slade. Do I understand you to say, that, when one 

 cow in twenty ate shorts, the result was detected in the 

 butter ? 



Mr. BowDiTCH. Yes, sir. 



Mr. Slade. Without the use of a microscope? 



Mr. BowDiTCH. I don't know what he had, but he in- 

 formed me of that. I like to feed certain cows in my herd 

 oil-meal. I can feed oil-meal to one cow without his finding 

 it out, but he will find it out if I feed it to two or three. 1 

 cheat him as far as I can in that way without cheating my- 

 self. 



Question. Does he find any difference between the new- 

 process linseed-meal and the old oil-meal which we used to 

 get ? The consignee in Boston told me that the new-process 

 meal was either soaked in benzine or naphtha for the purpose 

 of getting the oil out of it ; and it does get it out too. Is 

 there any difference between that and the old oil-meal ? 



Mr. BowDiTCH. There is so much difference that I would 

 not think of feeding the new-process meal. 



Question. Can you get the old ? 



Mr. BowDiTCH. Yes, sir. 



Dr. Wakefield. Do you, or do you not, find that there 

 is a difference in the milk or cream or butter that you pro- 

 duce in the winter by this food ? Does, or does not, a given 

 quantity of milk give a greater quantity of butter than it 

 does in the summer ? 



Mr. BowDiTCH. I think there is very little variation in 

 that. One reason that would make you think so is, that in 

 summer a majority of your cows might be new milch, and 

 in the winter, perhaps not farther along from calving, they 

 would not give as much milk, but it would be very much 



