386 PRINCIPLES OF AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTRY 



silo. The amount of moisture present in the crop had the follow- 

 ing effect in one experiment : 



Moisture, per cent. Loss, per cent. 



71.67 8.63 



74.61 10.01 



80.66 16.66 



An excess of moisture thus causes a greater loss. Water is 

 sometimes added to crops siloed when they do not contain enough 

 water to make good silage. 



As regards the nature of the crop, King found the necessary 

 loss for corn to be 5 to 10 per cent., and for clover 10 to 18 per 

 cent. Corn well matured and in good condition for shocking, but 

 with leaves still green, is in the proper stage for silage. Silage 

 from immature fodder is more acid than that from more mature 

 plants. 



Feed Laws. Many of the States have laws regulating the sale 

 of concentrated commercial feeding stuffs. The laws usually re- 

 quire the feed to be true to name, and prohibit the sale of un- 

 wholesome feed. A guaranteed analysis is usually required, but 

 some states require a guarantee of protein and fat only, others 

 require crude fiber in addition to protein and fat, and still others 

 require a guarantee of nitrogen-free extract in addition to the 

 others. A guarantee of protein and fat is not sufficient to show 

 the quality of the feed, and laws which require only such guar- 

 antee cannot be considered to provide sufficient protection. 



It is not sufficient that the feed should come up to the guar- 

 anteed analysis, but it should be composed of the ingredients 

 claimed, and no one should purchase a feed without knowing the 

 feeding stuffs present. It is possible to make up the guaranteed 

 analysis by means of substances of high composition but of low 

 digestibility and low feeding value. Mixed feeds are often put 

 on the market which contain ingredients that could not be readily 

 sold separately, and are often sold at prices far in excess of their 

 real feeding value. 



The guaranteed analysis of a feeding stuff must, therefore, be 

 regarded as a guarantee of the quality of the particular feed 

 claimed to be sold. The fact that the feed comes up to the 



