90 



ANIMAL MANAGEMENT. 



already escaped from the shell and this is a good indication of 

 keeping condition. To roughly test the proportion of kernel to husk 

 a small quantity may be crushed beneath the boot on the floor when 

 the whiteness of the contained flour should be quite apparent. A few 

 grains chewed in the mouth should leave no bitter flavour, but taste only 

 of oatmeal, bitterness being indicative of dampness and subsequent kiln 

 drying. New oats may smell a little earthy but an old sample should 

 have practically no odour. New oats are heavier and softer than old 

 owing to the extra percentage of moisture they contain and they are 

 considered to be indigestible. 



The weight of Oats. 



Oats vary enormously in weight, some samples being as little as 25 

 pounds to the bushel, while others scale over 50. What may be considered 

 a good oat in one country, may if judged by weight only be a very poor 

 sample in another, but it may nevertheless be a very excellent and nutritious 

 feed. In England good oats may be said to weigh not less than 38 to 40 

 pounds a bushel and 36 to 38 may be taken as the weight of the oats 

 which are fed by the large horse-owning companies. In the Service the 

 contract weight is 38 pounds and at certain stations 40. The best oats 

 may run to as much as 48 or 50 pounds, and oats of this weight are some- 

 times home-grown or imported from New Zealand, Australia and Russia 

 though infrequently. 



Weighi7ig Oats. 



To ascertain the natural weight per bushel the grain should be 

 run through a shoot or poured quickly from a sack until the measure 

 overflows, and the surplus immediately struck from the top with a thick, 

 round stick, which should be long enough to afford a firm grasp at each 

 end, and so enable the striker to level the grain with the edge of the 

 measure at one stroke. By pouring the grain slowly or from a height ; 

 by shaking or striking the measure during the process ; or by allowing 

 the oats to settle before they are struck, the weight may be increased by 

 as much as four pounds per bushel, and care should be taken when 

 weighing simples that none of these things are permitted. 



Varieties of Oats. 



English. — Both white and black English oats are equally good feed, 

 although some prejudice exists in favour of the white, which it must be 

 admitted are generally produced on richer soils ; weight for weight, 



