40 Report of Department of Animal Husbandry of the 



chicks were taken at one time by crows and at another by rats that 

 confidence was not felt in the significance of the results until it was 

 strengthened by supplementary feeding trials. 



When the death of any weaker chicks is apparently effected or 

 hastened by unusual ration the final net production of the lot is the 

 better indication of the efficiency and practicability of the ration, but 

 when numbers are lost through accident obviously unrelated to the 

 food, the average individual results from the different periods are 

 the better guide. The general appearance of health and vigorous con- 

 dition or its opposite counts for much with the feeder though not al- 

 ways indicated plainly by the mathematical data collected. In some 

 feeding trials there was more contrast apparent than the rates of gain 

 in weight alone would suggest. 



It sometimes happens with small lots of chicks that one is favored 

 as the age increases by the preponderance in number of males over 

 females not distinguishable at the start. This seldom occurs with 

 larger lots. Fortunately in these experiments contrasted lots seldom 

 differed much on this score, possibly because of the rery careful 

 division of the lots of young chicks. 



The feeding trials usually extended over ten or twelve weeks begin- 

 ning with chicks from one to three weeks old. 



The several experiments reported in this bulletin were made at dif- 

 ferent times when opportunity offered, during several years. Various 

 rations were used for the different groups ; but all contrasted lots were 

 fed alike except for the added sand or mineral matter. 



The data from the several feeding trials are given in the tables 

 which follow, averaged for periods of two weeks. Nearly all the 

 chicks used were Leghorns and attained only moderate weights dur- 

 ing the time covered by each feeding trial. 



