480 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



"From a theoretical point of view, when we consider that the pentose sugars 

 formed may be less assimilable than the hexose, and that cellulose digestion may in 

 part bo due to destructive fermentations, it is reasonable to admit the possibility of 

 unlike nutritive values for a unit of digestible material from these two sources; but 

 the demonstration of this fact, if it be a fact, is a difficult matter. A large difference 

 in the value of two rations may be shown, perhaps by ordinary feeding trials, but small 

 differences may be obscured by the errors to which such experiments are subjected.'" 



Aii experiment was conducted with 2 lots of 5 milch cows to learn 

 "whether the milk-producing capacity of a ration is modified by the 

 sources of the digestible compounds, other conditions being uniform.'' 



Some of the animals were in the early stages of lactation, but u none 

 were so far advanced as to endanger the reliability of the data." After 

 a preliminary experiment of 5 days the test, which covered 2 periods 

 of 30 and 33 days, respectively, was begun March 2. Daring the first 

 period lot 1 was fed ration 1 mentioned above, and lot 2 was fed ration 

 2. In the second period the rations were reversed. 



The amounts of food eaten and the yield of milk and milk solids for 

 each cow during each period are recorded. On ration 1 the cows con- 

 sumed on an average per day 15.20 lbs. of digestible matter and pro- 

 duced 2.74 lbs. of milk solids, and on ration 2, they consumed 14.8 lbs. 

 of digestible matter and produced 2.73 lbs. of milk solids. 



"The results furnish no testimony in favor of the superior quality of ration No. 

 1, i. e. — in favor. of the ration containing the larger proportion of easily digestible 

 carbohydrates that belong to the hexose group. . . . 



"If a certain class of carbohydrate compounds possesses a superior nutritive value, 

 the fact must, be brought to light through some method of iuvestigation more search- 

 ing than feeding experiments of this character. 



"It is certainly shown that in one case at least the commercial feeding stuffs of 

 the by-product class were successfully substituted for such grains of high quality 

 as oats and peas. 



"Moreover, a much larger percentage of the digestible dry matter of the ration 

 was supplied in timothy hay and silage in the first ration than in the second ration, 

 the proportion being about 70 : 55 in the 2 cases, but as has been stated no evideuce 

 appeared that the secoud ration was inferior to the other. Such an outcome is 

 encouraging to those farmers who wish to avoid the purchase of cattle foods by 

 feeding largely home-grown fodders and purchasing sparingly such grains as are 

 best calculated to supplement hay and silage.'' 



Agricultural feeding stuffs, their feeding value and use, together -with direc- 

 tions for preparing rations for farm animals, E. Haselhoff (Die landivirtschaft- 

 lichen Futtermittel, ihr Futterwert and Hire Verwendang, nebst Anleitung zur Aufstellung 

 von Futterrationen fur die landwirtschaftlichen Nutztiere. Neudamm: J. Neumann, 

 189S, pp. 173). -Preface by O. Konig. 



Market prices of commercial feeds, E. B. Vookhees and J. P. Street (Neiv 

 Jersey St as. Rpt. 1897, pp. 78, 70). — The market prices during the past few years of a 

 number of commercial feeding stuffs are reported. 



The amount of nonpioleid nitrogen in straw and chaff of various sorts, P. 

 Holdefleiss (Ueber den Gehalt dcr reifen Stroh- und Spreuarten an nichleiweissartigen 

 stickstoffhaltigcn Stoffen. Inang. Address. Halle: C. A.Kammerer fy Co., 1897; abs.in 

 Cenibl.Agr.Chem., 27 {1898), No. 8, pp.. 532-534).— The author reports the determina- 

 tion of the total protein (by the Kjeldahl method) and the albuminoid nitrogen (by 

 the Stutzer method) in a large number of varieties of straw, hulls, etc. The results 

 are arranged in tabular form. 



