DIGESTION AND ASSIMILATION 9! 



Influence of habit on digestion. The influence of 

 habit on the digestion of food, its assimilation and the de- 

 position of its nutrients finds illustration : ( I ) In the 

 character of the flesh produced by animals of the various 

 breeds devoted to the making of meat; (2) in the quan- 

 tity and quality of the milk yield; (3) in the degree to 

 which muscle and energy respectively are produced in 

 horses; and (4) in the degree to which flesh and wool re- 

 spectively are produced in sheep. The difference in the 

 extent to which these characteristics are held in breeds is 

 marked and what is more surprising in individuals of the 

 same breed. The beef breeds of cattle while being fattened 

 intermix fat and lean in a considerable degree. They do 

 not possess this quality in equal degree, nor do the animals 

 of the same breed possess it equal in degree. But they do 

 possess it in sufficient degree to furnish the breeder a 

 reasonably sure guide when determining the breed that 

 he shall grow to furnish meat of a specific character. While 

 all meat-making breeds of cattle have this characteristic, 

 it would seem to be more marked in the Aberdeen-Angus 

 breed than in some other meat-making breeds. Such de- 

 position of fat and lean adds to the juiciness and tenderness 

 of meat. The dairy breeds on the other hand are much 

 prone to deposit the fat internally and otherwise less inter- 

 mixed than in the beef breeds. Somewhat akin to this in 

 principle but not exactly in kind, is the depositon of fat 

 and lean in the bacon and other portions of the carcass in 

 the lard and bacon types of swine. The differences in the 

 texture of meat are also considerable, more especially when 

 there is much difference in the size of the respective breeds 

 which furnish the meat. The muscle in large breeds is more 

 coarse in texture than in those that are small. 



The difference in the quality and quantity of milk 

 produced by the average of the respective breeds is very 

 marked. The Channel island breeds are proverbial for the 

 richness 01 their milk, the Holland breeds for the quantity 

 produced, and it would seem correct to say that the milking 



