54 



HATCH EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



Narroio v. Wide Ration for Egg-production^ Summer Test. 



Total dry matter in foods (per cent.). . 

 Number of hen days, not including males, 

 Number of hen days, including males. 



Gross cost of food, 



Gross cost of food per egg (cents). 

 Gross cost of food per hen day (cents), 

 Number of eggs per hen day. 

 Average weight per egg (ounces), 

 Total weight of eggs (pounds), . 

 Dry matter consumed per egg (pounds), 

 Nutritive ratio,* 



White 

 Wyandotte. 



Narrow Wide 

 Ration. Bation. 



510.41 



2,945 



3,245 



$7 50 



1.03 



.23 



.25 — 



1.88 



85.89 



.70 



1:4.20 



534.22 



2,913 



3,213 



$5 86 



.64 



.18 + 



.31 + 



1.90 



108.70 



.68 



1:6.30 



Barked Plymouth 

 Rock. 



Narrow 

 Ration. 



412.44 



2,400 



2,573 



$6 14 



1.00 



.24 



.26 — 



1.82 



70.40 



.67 



1:4.40 



Wide 

 Ration. 



446.35 



2,555 



2,735 



$4 91 



.60 



.18 



.32- 



1.77 



89.94 



.55 



1:6.30 



* The term nutritive ratio is used to designate the ratio existing between the total nitrog- 

 enous and the total non-nitrogenous constituents of the feeds used, the former being 

 regarded as a unit, and fat multiplied by 2.5. 



It will be seen that the results of this year's experiments 

 are in every particular similar to those of the experiments 

 carried out in 1898. 



The following are the most essential facts : — 



1. The wide (rich in corn) ration appears to be much 

 superior to the narrower ration. In all experiments, both 

 summer and winter, the hens receiving corn have laid many 

 more eofo:s than those receivino; wheat. 



2. The differences this year in favor of the wide ration, 

 upon the basis of an equal number of hen days, are as fol- 

 lows : — 



White Wyandotte, winter test, 

 White Wyandotte, summer test. 

 Barred Plymouth Rock, winter test, . 

 Barred Plymouth Rock, summer test. 

 Last year the winter difference was 

 Last year the summer difference was 



41 per cent. 



24 per cent. 

 91 per cent. 

 23 per cent. 



25 per cent. 

 33 J per cent. 



3. The total cost of feeds was less for the wide ration, 

 and of course the cost per q^^ was much less. In the pro- 

 duction of one dozen eggs the saving amounted to from 4| 

 to 16| cents. 



4. The fowls on the wide ration gained more in weight 

 than the others. Although laying many more eggs, they 

 averaged at the end of the summer test nearly one-quarter 

 of a pound each more than the others, 



