No. 10. 



Best Mode of Feeding Cattle. 



317 



the hands of the potter] It is from her it 

 may be said to take its set. Hence the mu- 

 tual and reflective influence between her 

 and the state of society in all ages. How 

 important, then, to agriculture, regarded as 

 I have endeavoured to present it, as a fit ex- 

 ercise for the mind as well as the body, that 

 daughters who are to be the future mothers 

 of the Republic, should have some insight 

 into botany and natural history, and what- 

 ever may fall within the comprehension of 

 their children until they leave the paternal 

 roof, that they may be early inculcated with 

 a love of floriculture and horticulture, and 

 all the elementary branches of agricultural 

 literature, and so be taught 



To make a meditative joy, and find 

 Religious meaning in tbe forms of nature. 



On the best Mode of Feeding Cattle. 



By Professor Johnston. 



The following is the substance of a lec- 

 ture delivered at Inverness, before the High- 

 land Society of Scotland. After a few pre- 

 liminary observations, the lecturer observed: 



That he appeared before the meeting as 

 the representative of the Agricultural Che- 

 mistry Association of Scotland. They had 

 all heard of that Association, and many of 

 them were members of it. The object of 

 the Association in having this meeting was 

 two-fold. Every one, acquainted with the 

 state of agriculture in different parts of 

 Great Britain, cannot have failed to observe 

 certain practices in operation, in various 

 parts, of which agriculturists in general 

 might profitably avail themselves. By going 

 into different counties, they found practical 

 men possessed of knowledge, the diffusion of 

 which would be of the greatest possible ad- 

 vantage to the general mass of the agricul- 

 tural community. Now, the purpose the 

 Agricultural Chemistry Association had in 

 view — in connection with these general ob- 

 servations — was to collect all the inforina- 

 tion in their power, through their officers or 

 organs, or through meetings such as this; 

 and having collected that knowledge, their 

 next great object is to diffuse it in such a 

 way as to be productive of the most benefi- 

 cial results to agriculture in general. Like 

 scattering seed through their fields, the dif- 

 fusion of that knowledge would produce ve- 

 getation in sprmg, and fruit in autumn, and 

 the more liberal the deposit, the more abun- 

 dant the return. They were here met to- 

 gether, consequently, in possession of a mass 

 of knowledge in regard to the objects of the 

 Association, so that the agriculturists present 

 might aid them in the diffusion of knowledge. 



In selecting topics for discussion at these 

 meetings, they looked at the character of 

 the country, and inquired of practical men 

 in the district, what topics were best suited 

 for the purpose of affording useful informa- 

 tion; and as the question of the use of pre- 

 pared food for cattle was one of very gene- 

 ral interest in this as well as in other parts 

 of the country, it was to form the first sub- 

 ject of this morning's conversation. The 

 second subject, on the other hand, being one 

 rather pastoral than agricultural, had a direct 

 bearing upon questions of great interest to 

 the farmers of Southerlandshire, and in other 

 districts around Inverness, and in this re- 

 spect was peculiarly appropriate. In refer- 

 ence to the first question — the feeding of 

 cattle — no district in the island was more 

 interested than this. He could not tell 

 them how much stock was shipped from In- 

 verness last year, but he trusted Dr. Nicol, 

 or some other gentleman, would be able to 

 furnish them with information on the sub- 

 ject. He believed, however, it was to a 

 very large amount indeed ; and he had no 

 doubt but it was increased since, by the 

 greater facilities of communication with the 

 London and other markets. As a cattle im- 

 porting district therefore, the extension of 

 sound information in regard to the economi- 

 cal use of food, must be of the very greatest 

 importance; that is, in what way they could 

 grow the greatest amount of beef or mutton 

 at the least possible expense. This he was 

 prepared to show was to be effected by the 

 use of certain mixed food, and prepared food. 

 An individual going from one end of the 

 country to another to observe the state of 

 agriculture, will look not merely at the kind 

 of stock, but he will more particularly ob- 

 serve the implements of husbandry in use 

 throughout the various districts. In order 

 therefore, to form an estimate of the degree 

 of attention paid to this matter of prepared 

 food in England, on his visit to Newcastle, 

 at the great cattle-show recently held there, 

 he turned his attention particularly to the 

 examination of the implements exhibited, 

 having a bearing upon this point. Amongst 

 these he found chaff-cutters, a peculiar ma- 

 chine for crushing corn and other seeds, and 

 other instruments; all showing how much 

 regard was being paid to this subject by 

 practical men. There was no doubt but 

 that the subject of the quantity of food 

 which cattle require to produce a certain 

 weight of beef, was beginning to attract 

 general attention ; but before he entered 

 upon the few points which he meant to no- 

 tice in connection with this question, per- 

 haps it would be necessary to explain short- 

 ly the general composition of food. In all 



