PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH 

 EDITION 



THE scientific foundations upon which the 

 principles of animal nutrition rest are, like 

 all other experimentally derived data, of general 

 applicability and not restricted to one country alone. 

 It is true that climate influences the weights of 

 crops and the nutrients contained in them, but 

 the laws governing digestion, metabolism, effect of 

 foods in the production of flesh, fat, milk, wool, or 

 utilisable energy are the same whether the animals 

 are kept in the north or south, east or west. Any 

 facts therefore which are brought to light in Germany 

 or France are practically applicable to Great Britain, 

 the United States, Canada, Australia, etc., for in 

 temperate climates the differences of heat or cold 

 only influence to a very small degree the needs of an 

 animal for a given purpose. For this reason any- 

 body who is well acquainted with the general laws 

 which underlie the feeding of animals will always 

 have an advantage over one who relies upon rule- 

 of-thumb, and will be able to raise animals more 

 cheaply than a competitor who follows the practices 

 of his grandfather. 



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