1891).] PUBLIC DOCUMENT — No. 33. 03 



year, viz., the fowls getting it weigh less at the close of the 

 experiment than the others. This loss in weight is, how- 

 ever, far more than covered by the greater value of eggs 

 produced. 



We have now carried through five experiments, compar- 

 ing these two feeds. Two have given results slightly 

 favorable to the bone in number of eggs ; one a similar re- 

 sult in favor of the animal meal ; and two — the two last, 

 which have been the most perfectly carried out — have been 

 most decisively favorable to the animal meal. The latter 

 has also been found the safer food. The greatly preponder- 

 ating weight of the evidence afforded by these experiments, 

 which have been most careful/// conducted, is, therefore, in 

 favor of the animal meal. 



3. Narrow v. Wide Ration for Egg-production, 

 The experiments coming under this head have been two, 

 one extending from December 12 to April 30, the other 

 from May 1 to October 4. The object in view was to test 

 the correctness of the generally held opinion that the food 

 of the laying hen must be very rich in nitrogenous constit- 

 uents. As we have carried out the experiment, it amounts 

 to a substitution of corn meal for wheat middlings and gluten 

 feed in the morning mash, and the replacement of about one- 

 half of the oats and the wheat fed at night with the corn. 

 The proportions of cut clover and of animal meal have re- 

 mained the same in the two rations. 



The health of the fowls on both rations has been uniformly 

 good throughout both the winter and summer test, with a 

 single exception, — the loss of one fowl from the effects 

 of indigestion, — on the wide ration. It was found to re- 

 quire the exercise of more judgment in feeding to keep the 

 fowls on the heavier corn ration in perfect condition. They 

 were more easily overfed, and on two or three occasions lost 

 appetite for their feed for short periods. 



The Winter Experiment. 

 On December 12 the pullets, 19 in each lot, weighed as 

 follows: narrow ration, 101.75 pounds ; wide ration, 102.5 



