336 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



portion of it must rely solely upon artificial manures, it is 

 desirable to imitate the latter practice as closely as possible, 

 by drilling some of the artificial manure with the seed, and 

 sowing the remainder broadcast. This will in a great measure 



obviate the diflSculties which are too frequently observed where 

 the turnip crop solely depends upon the artificial manures 

 drilled with the seed. 



OBSERVATIONS ON THE RE CENTL Y-INTROD UCE D MANU 

 FACTURED FOODS FOR AGRICULTURAL STOCK. 



By J. B. Lawes, F.R.S. 



In common with other agriculturists, I have been invited, 

 by advertisements in the papers, by placards on the walls, 

 and by circulars containing numerous testimonials from dis- 

 tinguished persons, to employ certain manufactured foods 

 in the feeding of the animals on my farm. These foods 

 frequently cost from 40s. to 50s. percwt. Taking, for those 

 for which it is given, the published average prices for the 

 six weeks ending July 17th, 1 cwt. of the following stock 

 foods would cost as under : — s. d. 



1 cwt. barlej' 8 4 



„ oats .0 2 



„ beans 9 4 



„ peas 9 6 



„ lentils 10 



„ oilcake 10 



,, linseed 16 6 



„ hay 4 



The manufactured foods thus cost, weight for weight, 

 four or five times as much as the most nutritive of the ordi- 

 nary stock foods on our farms.* Very undeniable evidence 

 of the superiority of the former should therefore be required 

 to induce the farmer extensively to emploj' them. But it 

 is rather strange that among the numerous testimonials in 

 general terras, no evidence based upon exact comparative 

 experiment, showing actual weights of food consumed and 

 increase in live-weight obtained, has been brought forward 

 in favour of these costly foods; nor does a reference to the 

 circulars give much insight into their composition. 



We do, however, in one circular find the report of a pro- 

 fessor of chemistry, stating that the food sent to him for 

 analj'sis contained, besides nitrogenous and mineral matters, 

 upwards of 50 per cent, of respiratory matter. It is fur- 

 ther added, that if given to cattle in the proportions stated 

 iu the prospectus, they 7nust thrive, la reference to the 

 above statement of composition, it may be observed that it 

 would applj' almost equally well to any of the substances, 

 except the hay, in the foregoing list of ordinary foods, which 

 cost only about one-fourth or one- fifth as much. 



The following is the result of an analysis in the Rotham- 

 sted laboratory, by Mr. Segelcke, of one of these foods. A 

 practical trial of the same food will be noticed further on. 



Water 12.86 



Nitrogenous substance 15.51 1 



Fatty matter 6.22 



Starch, sugar, &c 55 97 



Woody fibre 5 50 



Miueral matter 3. .94 



100.00 



Independently of the slight colouring with turmeiie, and 

 flavouriiiK with cumin, anise, or other of the stimulating 

 and carminative seeds used in cattle medicine, which these 

 foo''s frequently exhibit, the constituents as here stated 



J».* Of course the relation will vary with the market prices; but 

 the prices per cwt. can at any time Le easily cdlculated for the 

 purpose of the comparison. 

 t Nitrogen 2.45 per cent.'; 



could be supplied by a mixture of barley-meal with some of 

 the leguminous seeds enumerated, and oilcake or linseed. 

 Such a mixture, according to the prices quoted, could be 

 prepared for about one-fourth the price of the manufactured 

 cattle-'ood. 



These foods are recommended to be used in comparatively 

 small proportion to the total food consumed. The animals 

 have, therefore, still to rely for the bulk of their nourish- 

 ment upon ordinary food ; and it is stated that, with the 

 use of these manufactured foods, the quantity of corn may 

 be reduced to about one-half; and that coarse and compara- 

 tively innutritions matters, such as bran and chopped straw, 

 will, by the admixture, be rendered palatable and nutritious. 



Now bran and chopped straw contain a large proportion 

 of woody fibre, which, though required for bulk by the 

 ruminant animals, passes through their bodies in a finely- 

 divided state, but otherwise almost unchanged. More or 

 less of the soluble matters are extracted from such food 

 during its passage ; but no evidence has been brought for- 

 ward to show that these manufactured foods will so stimu- 

 late digestion as either to extract more of its already-exist- 

 ing nutritious matters, or to render the woody fibre itself, of 

 the coarse foods mentioned, more directl}' serviceable to the 

 nourishment of the animals. 



All animals require in their daily food a given amount of 

 digestible and convertible constituents, such as starch, sugar, 

 pectine, gum, oil, nitrogenous compounds, and certain mineral 

 matters. The proper amount of some or all of these must 

 be contained in the food supplied ; and no stimulant, or any 

 other device, can substitute that necessarj- amount, if the 

 animal is not to decrease in weight. If, on the other hand, 

 the animal be required to increase in weight, as iu the case 

 of our growing and feeding stock, an additioiuil amouut of 

 digestible and assimilable constituents is required beyond 

 that which, under otherwise equal circumstances, would 

 keep the animal at a fixed weight. In fact, no stimulus 

 whatever can substitute the supply of the digestible and 

 assimilable constituents in the food, whether it be required 

 for the purposes of labour, or of increase in weight. In 

 other words, the waste of matter in the body by respiration 

 and perspiiation, the loss by urine and fieces, and the gain 

 in weight of fat, fiesh, bone, &c., must all come from consti- 

 tuents actually contained in the food. 



Some years ago an extensive series of experiments was 

 conducted, at Rothamsted, on the feeding of oxen, sheep, 

 and pigs, most of the results of which have been published, 

 either in the Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of 

 England, or in the Reports of the British Association for 

 the Advancement of Science. These experiments showed 

 how much the character and productiveness of the foods em- 

 ployed depended upon the amounts they supplied of certain 

 digestible non-nitrogenous substances — such as starch, sugar, 

 fatty matter, &c. ; certain nitrogenous substances— such as 



