474 EXPEHIMKNT STATION HKCOHD. 



'■ The extraction of u quill iit oiu-o sliiiiiilatos llio fj;rowtli of a new feather, 

 quite irrespective of any natural order of appearance of the feather, and thus 

 evenness of jirowth can be secured by sin)ultaneous quillinj;. 



"The second quilling may take place at about sixteen months, at which 

 time the quills are ripe; but under certain conditions the operation can be 

 delayed for several months longer. 



"The quills of the second and later quillings may l)e left for many mouths 

 within the socket, even after they are rii)e, provided the birds are not in a 

 high nutritive condition ; otherwise some feathers of the new crop will appear 

 and thus produce irregularities. 



" Eight month and twelve month systems of (luilling are very largely prac- 

 ticed according to climatic conditions, though both systems admit of consider- 

 able variations." 



For earlier work, see E. S. li.. T.), i». 1(»72. 



Egg-laying- records of ostriches, J, E. Duerden (Agr. Jour. Cape Good Hope. 

 32 (1908), yo. .'/, pp. .'/.'/.M.55).— Four series of egg-laying records for lots of 1 

 cock and 2 hen ostriches are given, extending over a period of 4 months. The 

 eggs were removed daily and artificially incubated. The maximum per hen 

 was 100 eggs in 122 days. 



" The numbers show that ostriches, like poultry, will go on laying almost 

 continuously during the breeding season if the eggs are removed as laid, and 

 the birds are not allowed to sit. The records afford very clear proof that 

 breeding birds are adversely influenced by inclement climatic conditions to such 

 a degree that the laying of eggs may cease entirely for a time." 



The influence of environment generally upon egg- production and also the pos- 

 sibility of an increased yield are briefly discussed. 



DAIRY FARMING— DAIRYING. 



Experiments in feeding daii-y cows, ,T. S. Moore (Mit^i^ifisippi Hfa. Bui. HI, 

 pp. 6). — This bulletin gives results of a number of experiments in the care <ind 

 feeding of dairy cows. Experiments lasting 16 and 10 weeks, respectively, 

 were undertaken to see if it paid to feed cotton-seed meal when cows had an 

 abundance of green feed. In the former test the cotton-seed meal gave .^) per 

 cent better returns, but this was not enough to pay for the extra cost of the 

 meal. In the second test there was no increase in the yield of milk. 



Using cows pastured at night ])ut kept up during the day, cotton-seed meal 

 Avas fed at the barn in comparison with the soiling crops, alfalfa, sorghum, 

 and .Johnson grass. In a 10 weeks" test it Avas found that 41 lbs. of green feed 

 gave an average daily yield of 14.9 lbs. of milk for each cow. while the lot fed 

 r>.4 lbs. of cotton-seed meal gave 14.2 lbs. The difference in favor of green 

 feed would have been greater if the cows had had no access to pasture. 



In a comparison of large, medium, and small rations with three lots of cows. 

 receiving respectively 13 lbs., 10 lbs., and 6 lbs. of a grain ration consisting of 

 wheat bran and cotton-seed meal 2:1, the average weekly yields were 833, 

 S73, and 743 lbs. In the last case there was also some loss of body weight. A 

 second test with three lots of 9 cows each showed that 9 lbs. of the mixture 

 yielded better results than 11 lbs. 



In a test for 4 months with. .30 cows it was found that silage resulted in u 

 saving of .$100 over a feed of wheat bran, cotton-seed meal, and Johnson grass 

 hay. 



During hot weather it was found to be of no advantage to protect cows from 

 the heat by keeping them in the barn, as they were more contented in a shady 

 pasture, 



