28o SCIENTIFIC FEEDING OF ANIMALS 



for some time, for the number of cases of colic was 

 observed to be greater the more hay was given. 



The difficulty of knowing whether the whole of 

 the hay is sound, when large quantities are 

 bought, may just as well have been the cause of 

 the sickness. 



In Middle and Northern Europe and in North 

 America oats are the chief food given to horses, 

 whilst in more southerly countries barley and 

 maize take the first place. Oats, without doubt, 

 are the most suitable of the grains, then barley 

 and finally maize. The latter has come much 

 more into use during the last ten years amongst 

 those who keep large numbers of horses. Maize 

 is said to somewhat diminish the vivacity of the 

 animals and to cause them to sweat, but recent 

 investigations have shown that the substitution 

 of it for oats did not impair the efficiency of military 

 horses. Cavalry and artillery horses which were 

 given maize as the only corn food were able to per- 

 form the same work as those on oats without the 

 least falling off. Similarly with omnibus horses, 

 where the experiment was continued for a long 

 period and the greater part of the oats replaced by 

 maize, there was nothing found to the disadvantage 

 of the maize. For large horse-owners and in farm 

 practice it would almost certainly be more profitable 

 to substitute maize for some, if not all, of the oats, 

 when the price of maize is not too high. As is 



