284 



EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



lai^ting from 4 to 6 weeks at least, when either raw or emulsified cotton-seed oil was 

 used. Since the same changes were brought about when raw oil was fed as followed 

 the use of emulsified oil, it is safe to say that in these trials emulsifying was without 

 influence as a means of feeding fat into milk. 



" The feeding values of ■medium and uide rations. — (o) Grain rations equal in amount. — 

 The fodders and feeds used were hay, silage, and mixed feed No. 1, or the same 

 roughages and Quaker oat feed. Nutritive ratios averaged 1 : 5.8 and 1 : 9.0. The pro- 

 ducing power of a unit of dry matter was 7 per cent greater in the former ration. 

 The fat content of the quality of the milk remained essentially unchanged. 



"(6) Grain rations unerjual in amount. — The fodders and feeds used were hay, 

 silage, and 8 lbs. of BuffaLj gluten feed, or the same roughages with 2 lbs. of corn 

 meal and 1 lb. of bran. Nutritive ratios averaged 1:5.5 and 1:9.7. The unit of dry 

 matter eaten in the medium ration made 5 per cent more milk than did that in the 

 wide ration. Less but richer milk seemed to be produced by the scant ration. 



" The feeding value of buckwheat middlings. — The fodders and feeds used were hay, 

 silage, corn meal, bran, and buckwheat middlings, the same roughages with mixed 

 feed No. 1 or corn meal and bran. A unit of dry matter eaten produced about 3 per 

 cent more milk, solids, and fat in ration No. 1, and about 4 per cent less in the corn 

 and bran ration than when the middlings were fed. The quality of the milk 

 remained generally uniform, with, however, two exceptions. 



'^ TJie feeding value of artichokes. — Hay, silage, and mixed feed No. 1, or hay, arti- 

 choke tubers and mixed feed No. 1 were fed to one cow. To the unit of dry matter 

 eaten 10 per cent less milk was made on the silage ration. 



" Watering at tmll or at intervals. — Cows fed a uniform ration were in alternating 

 periods watered at will or at intervals, and in the former case made 2 per cent more 

 milk. The effect upon quality can not be stated for reasons given in the body of the 

 article. 



"T/ie grooming of coivs. — Cows fed a unifomi ration were in alternating periods 

 groomed or left uncarded without appreciable effect either upon milk yield or 

 quality. 



^^Experimental error. — Uniform rations were fed and uniform proiluction ensued. 

 A unit of dry matter made essentially the same milk, solids, and fat at one time as 

 another, lactation changes being equalized. It is proljably unsafe to lay stress on 

 ajaparent differences in feeding values of much less than 5 per cent. 



^^ Relative values of various grain rations. — Assuming that two-thirds of the inanurial 

 ingredients reach the soil, and allowing 20 cts. per hundred for skim uiilk, the total 

 and the daily net gains of one i-ation over another in butter, skim milk, and manure, 

 expressed in dollars and cents, are as shown in the table. In each case the ration 

 first mentioned proved superior to its competitor: 



Relative superiority of different rations. 



"The Buffalo [gluten] ration proved superior to the others, the cotton-seed-linseed 

 ration ranking second." 



