THE STALK CROP. 185 



While, therefore, the proprietor supposed he was 

 feeding his cattle equally all around, he was virtually, 

 and in effect, giving to one class thirteen pounds, to 

 another about seventeen pounds, and to another nearly 

 twenty-one pounds. 



If, now, instead of fixing his mind so exclusively 

 on the remnants, he had paid more attention to the 

 food they ate, and to the effect produced by it ; if he 

 had pushed his experiment further, and continued the 

 feeding a few weeks longer, weighing his cattle at 

 regular intervals, to determine the increase of flesh 

 resulting from each mode of feeding, he would then, 

 indeed, have fairly tested, on philosophical principles, 

 the theory which he now supposes he has demolished 

 with a few pounds of remnants. 



In regard to the amount of stover left unconsumed, 

 the motive for rejection was not the same in each 

 case. The cattle fed with the whole stalks, abandoned 

 the last portion of them through fatigue and impa- 

 tience. They found the labor of mastication too 

 great, and the process too slow and. tedious, and they 

 gave it up in despair. On the other hand, those that 

 received their fodder in better condition, relinquished 

 the last part of it from mere satiety. They found 

 their food so nutritious and satisfying, that less than 

 the whole was sufficient for their requirements. All 

 that is necessary to prevent waste in such cases, is to 

 dimmish the amount of food. 



An animal receiving twenty-one pounds at a meal, 

 is much more likely to leave a portion of it, than one 

 receiving only thirteen pounds ; and if a part is left 



