48 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



of fertilizing and jumped at the offer. Hundreds and thousands 

 of dollars have been spent for ground oyster-shells and other 

 worthless materials instead of ground bone. He rejoiced to 

 know that though we have been so impatient for conclusions, 

 and that Experiment Stations may have put forth premature 

 results, yet they have effected great savings to the farmer. We 

 now feed balanced rations to our stock ; formerly we attempted 

 to make milk from hay alone, and grain was looked upon as an 

 extravagant luxury, but things are different today. Plants re- 

 quire balanced rations as well as animals, and Experiment Sta- 

 tions have taught us how to provide them by chemicals in due 

 proportion. 



Professor Jordan said that agriculturists are not the only 

 class who need to attend to underlying principles. He was 

 astonished at the ignorance of well-educated people in regard to 

 common things. He spoke of a judge who would not recognize 

 milk separated by separator as skimmed milk. He asked, How 

 do we educate our farmers' wives ? The boys are sent to col- 

 leges. Girls study mathematics, French, and the like, with only 

 a little chemistry. When the new home is established, what 

 does the mistress know ? A cooking-stove will floor her ; she 

 knows nothing of bacteria or the effect of drafts of air, and puts 

 food on the table of which she knows nothing. Children are 

 less rationally fed than animals. 



A gentleman told of a neighbor who in making up rations for 

 cows omitted cotton-seed meal, as he was feeding for milk and 

 not for meat. The speaker asked Avhether cotton-seed meal 

 produces garget. 



Professor Jordan answered that hundreds of farmers have 

 been feeding cotton-seed meal for tAventy years. Garget is gen- 

 erally caused by something wrong in the management of the 

 cows. 



The gentleman said he knew of a man who bought a cow that 

 had been quarantined ; he found her down, giving only eight 

 quarts of milk daily ; she afterwards rose to fifteen quarts per 

 day. There is much testimony against the use of tuberculin ; 

 in many instances the value of cows has been lessened by the 

 process. 



Professor Jordan said that quite extended experiments with 

 tuberculin have been favorable. After nine months animals 



