THE FEEDING STUFFS 583 



fiber and poorer in easily digestible carbohydrates. Such bran 

 is more valuable as a source of protein than the more floury 

 bran, but at the same time contains less total digestible mat- 

 ter, and probably has an inferior value as a source of energy. 



Middlings, as the name indicates, are intermediate products 

 between bran and flour. In modern methods of milling, va- 

 rious grades are produced, in the names of which there is a 

 considerable lack of uniformity. The " brown " middlings 

 contain more of the seed-coats (bran) than the " white " mid- 

 dlings, which approach the low-grade flour (" red dog " flour) 

 in character. Shorts seem to be substantially the same as 

 middlings. Because of their smaller content of hulls, mid- 

 dlings are decidedly more digestible than bjan, while scarcely 

 inferior to it in percentage of protein. 



Buckwheat middlings, a by-product from the milling of buck- 

 wheat, contains nearly twice as much protein and fat as aver- 

 age wheat middlings, and correspondingly less carbohydrates. 

 It is sometimes called buckwheat bran, but this name is also 

 applied to the tough, innutritious hulls of the buckwheat, which 

 have little feeding-value and which are not infrequently used 

 as an adulterant of the middlings. The middlings are credited 

 with a tendency to ferment or become rancid when stored in 

 bulk, and also with producing a soft, oily butter-fat when fed 

 in large amounts. 



Rice bran resembles wheat bran, but contains less protein 

 and fully twice as much fat. The pure bran is sold largely 

 under the name of rice meal, while the commercial bran con- 

 tains an admixture of varying amounts of rice hulls. The 

 hulls, which are separated from the kernel as the first process 

 in the milling, contain about 40 per cent of fiber, and are heavily 

 impregnated with silica and covered with hard, silicified fibers 

 which are liable to cause severe and even fatal irritation of the 

 digestive organs. Their presence in the bran to any large 

 extent is to be regarded as a dangerous adulteration. 



Rice polish results from the polishing of the rice grains after the 

 removal of the bran and germ. It contains somewhat less fat and 

 protein than the pure bran, but is considerably more digestible. 



All these rice by-products contain more or less grits or 

 fragments of the kernel, which have been found to be rather 

 difficult of digestion. The rice products are also rich in fat, 



