THE INFLUENCE OF CHEMISTRY. 115 



stances, nor can one definite number state correctly their 

 relative feeding value. A former practice of agriculturists 

 to consider a good meadow hay the standard crop for a de- 

 termination of the relative or absolute feeding value of other 

 •crops rests largely on a misconception, for it confounds the 

 market price of the article with its feeding value. 



The value of an article of fodder may be stated from two 

 •distinctly different standpoints, namely : 



1. From an economical standpoint, its cost or market 

 price ; and 



2. From a physiological standpoint, its feeding effect or 

 nutritive value. 



I. The market price of our fodder articles depends on 

 the supply and the demand in the general market ; its deter- 

 mination is beyond the control of the individual farmer. 

 The market price of hay of the same quality may vary widely 

 in different years and in different localities ; its feeding 

 value remains materially the same, under correspondiug cir- 

 cumstances, year after year. 



The chemical analysis of fodder crops has been turned to 

 account to ascertain their comparative approximate market 

 value in a similar way as the analysis of commercial fertil- 

 izers, by assigning to each class of their principal food con- 

 stituents, as far as their digestible portion is concerned, a 

 value deduced from its costs in a leading fodder crop of a 

 ^ood average quality. The ton price in principal depots 

 serves best for that purpose, and the calculated price refers 

 to similar market conditions ; the proper retail price may be 

 best determined in each locality with proper consideration of 

 its facilities of market, transportation, etc. This practice, 

 which has been of late introduced into Germany, has the ad- 

 vantage of telling us whether any particular lot of a fodder 

 article is cheap or not, at the price "we are asked for 

 it, and whether the present price of a commercial article of 

 fodder is a fair one or an extraordinary one ; it also can 

 teach us, after a careful consideration of our home resources 

 of fodder, what particular commercial fodder material would 

 best supplement our stock of fodder on hand, to benefit our 

 special farm industry. According to present rules , nitrog- 

 enous fodder constituents and fat are counted about five 



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