1890.] PUBLIC DOCUMENT — No. 33. 13 



larger number of cows (nine) than in any of the preceding 

 years took part in the trial ; not more, however, than six 

 cows at any one time. Whenever the daily yield of milk 

 of any particular animal fell below from six to seven quarts, 

 on account of advanced milking period, a new-milch cow 

 was substituted, to secure, as far as practicable, correspond- 

 ing conditions throughout tlie entire experiment. Grades 

 of various descriptions, yet of a similar quality Avitli regard 

 to the production of quantity and quality of milk, constituted 

 our herd. They varied in age from five to eleven years ; the 

 mean in case of nine cows was seven years. Each served 

 from two to seven months for our observation. 



The course adopted in preparing the daily diet was essen- 

 tially the same as in the preceding year. English hay, fod- 

 der corn, corn stover, corn ensilage, sugar beets and carrots 

 served as coarse fodder articles ; and corn meal, wheat bran 

 and gluten meal as the supplementary feed stuffs to secure 

 the desired relative proportion of digestible nitrogenous to 

 non-nitrogenous substances in the daily fodder rations 

 (commonly called nutritive ratio). The fodder corn, corn 

 stover and corn ensilage w^ere cut to an even length (one and 

 one-half to two inches) before fed. The daily amount of 

 fodder corn left behind unconsumed was, on an average, 

 two and one-half pounds, and that of corn stover and ensilage 

 about three pounds. 



The same variety of corn, Pride of the North, a dent corn, 

 served for each trial. The corn ensilage used on these 

 occasions has been produced in every instance from a corn 

 crop of the same variety and the same state of maturity as 

 the one which furnished the dry fodder corn ; /. e. , at the 

 beo;inning of the srlazing over of the kernels. 



The experiment was subdivided into nine feeding periods, 

 extending over a period of seven months. The same quan- 

 tity of corn meal, wheat bran and gluten meal (three and 

 one-quarter pounds each) was fed daily, from the beginning 

 to the close of the trial. Corn ensilaije and roots were fed 

 in different proportions, with one-half or one-fourth of a full 

 English hay ration. Fodder corn and corn stover were fed 

 most of the time by themselves. 



The quantity of different fodder rations stated ])elow 



