202 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



at once, that I was an extravagant man, and could not afford 

 to do any such thing ; and in hearing the testimony here 

 this afternoon, coming from men like Mr. Thompson, and my 

 friend Mr. Ware — every word of whose statements I can 

 believe in relation to this matter (and I feel also that I must 

 believe every word that Mr. Mills has said, for he appears 

 to be a gentleman of veracity, and certainly he is a very 

 large breeder, — undoubtedly the largest in this country) — 

 in this testimony, we have very strong evidence that a pro- 

 gressive farmer has got to look into the silo question in a 

 candid way. I am rather confirmed in my belief that a silo 

 would be more beneficial where the soil is sandy than where 

 it i^ a stiff clay, such as we have in some sections of the 

 State. We all know that corn is more easily grown on 

 sandy soils than it is on heavier soils. 



There is one other point, and then I stop. Mr. Mills 

 informed me that he had rather come to the conclusion that 

 ten tons of good grass cut at the proper time was of equal 

 value with forty tons of corn ensilaged. That is all I have 

 to say. 



The Chairman. I should like to ask Mr. Ware if he can 

 tell us how much the hundred tons of fodder that he puts 

 into his silo weighs when it is taken out. 



Mr. Ware. I cannot. I did not say I was feeding my 

 cows sixty pounds a day exactly. I do not know how much 

 loss there is ; but I cannot conceive what becomes of the 

 loss, for my silo, except on top, is water-tight and air-tight, 

 and this corn-fodder is put in perfectly green. The men are 

 cutting it in the field, the teams are hauling it, and other 

 men are cutting it with machinery to drop it into the silo at 

 the same time. It is put in perfectly green, and there is 

 no escape for any thing, except by evaporation at the top, 

 that I can conceive of, and that must be very slight. 



The Chairman. Shall you know, when you have fed it 

 out, whether you have fed out one hundred tons, or what 

 you have fed out ? 



Mr. Ware. I don't know that I can tell. 



Question. Can you tell to what density you press it? 



Mr. Ware. Sixty pounds to the cubic foot. I did not 

 weigh it in : I simply estimated as to the weight of the crop. 



Question. How do you consider it compares with corn 

 taken right from the field, and fed, in value ? 



