790 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



20 liters per day. The author believes it probable that continued feed- 

 ing of large amounts of molasses would have an injurious effect on the 

 hear! and the kidneys. 



The discussion of the mineral balance is reserved for a special article. 

 From the results of these investigations the author draws the following 

 conclusions: 



(1) The feeding of corn is in every respect advantageous to milch 

 cows in the production of milk and the maintenance of live weight. 

 Following this, wheat bran, cotton-seed meal, and peanut cake range 

 in value in the order given. 



(2) Poppy cake appears to diminish the percentage of fat in the milk 

 and to be in general inferior for milk production to the other feeding 

 stuffs tested. 



(3) Beet molasses appears to have a stimulative action on the milk 

 glands, so that for a time more and richer milk is yielded than on 

 rations richer in total nutrients and in albuminoids. 



The cost and feeding value of the dry matter of dried corn 

 fodder and of silage, E. B. Vookhees and C. B. Lane (New Jersey 

 Stas. Bui. 122, pp. 16). — Twelve acres of a 15-acre field of corn was cut 

 and placed in the silo the first week in September and the remaining 3 

 acres were shocked in the field and carted to the barn early in October. 

 The cost of handling the silage and the corn fodder is given. Observa- 

 tions were made on the amount of silage lost in the silo by molding, etc., 

 and analyses were made of the fodder and silage at different times. 



"The changes that took place in the silo resulted chiefly in a change in the pro- 

 portion of fiher and nitrogren-free extract, though a slight increase was noticed in 

 the content of ether extract. The determination of the alhuminoids showed that 

 98 per cent of the protein in the green fodder was in the form of alhuminoids, and 

 tli.it 95 per cent was in that form in the dried fodder at time of storage, and when 

 the dried fodder was fed 89 per cent was in that form — that is, relatively slight 

 changes had taken place in this compound; whereas in the silage the alhuminoids 

 constituted hut 37.5 per cent of the total protein as compared with 98 per cent 

 when put into the silo. In drying fodder, therefore, the changes due hoth to 

 mechanical and chemical causes resulted in an increase of woody fiber and a decrease 

 in protein and nitrogen-free extract, and did not seriously affect the character of 

 the nitrogenous matter, whereas in the silo the chemical changes resulted chiefly in 

 a small loss only of nitrogen-free extract and in a very marked change in the 

 protein, causing a serious loss of albuminoids. These results confirm conclusions 

 already reached, particularly concerning the loss of alhuminoids in the silo." 



A feeding experiment was made with 2 lots of 4 cows each to com- 

 pare the silage and dry corn fodder. The lots were fed for a period of 

 11' days, one on the silage and the other on the corn-fodder ration, and 

 then in a transition period of 5 days were reversed and the feeding 

 continued for 12 days. The plan was to furnish the same amounts of 

 dry matter in the 2 rations, one-half of this being in the form of either 

 corn fodder or silage; but this was found to be impracticable, as the 

 animals ate more of the silage than of the corn fodder. They ate the 

 grain and finer parts of the corn fodder, but left the coarser parts. 



