THIRD ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART VI. 



319 



The first trial lasted from November 1. 1897, to February 13, 1898, 105 

 days, five two-year-old steers being in each lot. Results: 



OPEN 



SHED. 



Oorn eaten, bushels 



Hay eaten, pounds 



Gain per lot, pounds 



Daily gain per steer, pounds 



Gain per bushel of corn, pound- — 

 Digestible dry matter per pound gain. 



In this case the steers in the open shed consumed nearly 9 per cent 

 more corn and nearly 14 per cent more hay, but gained 17 per cent more. 

 In other words, a bushel of corn produced on steers in the barn 4.5 pounds 

 of gain and 4.83 pounds on those in the open shed. In the second trial, 

 lasting from November 2, 1898, to February 18, 1899, 109 days, four steers 

 in each lot, a bunch of steers which was required to stay in the open lot 

 was added to the experiment, with the following results: 



OPEN 

 SHED. 



OPEN 

 LOT. 



■Corn eaten, bushels 



Hay eaten, pounds. 



Gain per lot, pounds. , 



Daily gain per steer, pounds , 



Gain per bushel corn, pounds 



Digestible dry matter per pound gain 



100 

 5, 521 

 1,010 

 1.83 

 5.32 

 10.92 



219 



4,360 



1,250 

 2.30 

 5.73 

 9.02 



203 



5,475 



1,250 

 2.29 

 6.15 

 9.24 



In this case the steers in the open shed ate 15.3 per cent more corn 

 than did those in the barn, but gained 24.2 per cent more and ate consid- 

 erably less hay. Those in the open lot ate 6.5 per cent more corn than 

 did the barn steers and about the same amount of hay and gained 23.7 per 

 ceDt more. A bushel of corn produced: 



In barn 5. 32 pounds of beef. 



Lnopensh°d 5. 73 pounds of beef. 



In open lot 6. 15 pounds of beef . 



THE SKIM-MILK CALF. 



Wallaces' Farmer. 



It is an old story that we have told over and over again, but the large 

 increase in our subscription list compels us to tell it again. It is possible 

 to grow a skim-milk calf which at six months old will be of equal value to 

 one that runs with the cow. On $60 land it is not profitable to keep a 

 cow for the chancy of a calf unless it is a pure bred and has a breeding 

 value over and above its meat value; therefore, you must get out of the 

 calf raising business or else learn to grow calves by hand. 



Thousands of farmers say this cannot be done. With all due respect 

 to them, we say it has been done for generations and is being 

 done by thousands of farmers, and is being done now more 



