102 . 



ly useful deduction throwing new light or valuable suggestion 

 upon the subject in hand. Very likely this Committee may 

 not haye made the most judicious discrimination ; but they 

 finally decided upon the following awards : First premium, 

 |10, to Jos. S. Howe, Town Teams; second, of $8, on the 

 deterioration of the apple, to Joseph How ; third, of $6, to 

 T. C. Thurlow, on peaches, grapes, and assorted fruit. • 



Qommittee — N. A. Horton, Salem; D. E. Safford, Hamil- 

 ton, Hamilton ; Charles P. Preston, Danvers. 



ESSAY ON THE COMPARATIVE VALUE OF CROPS AS 



FOOD FOR CATTLE. 



BY ANSEL W. PUTNAM, OF DANVERS. 



The feeding value of crops depends upon the conditions 

 under which they are fed, as well as upon the character of 

 the crops. There may be conditions under which a ton of 

 meadow hay, worth in market $15, has a higher feeding value 

 than a ton of upland hay, worth in market $25. 



Fodder crops are now classified according to their ratio of 

 albuminoids to carbo-hydrates. Animals to be fed are divided 

 into two classes, — those at work and those at rest. Animals 

 that are being fatted, or that are giving milk, are classed as 

 work animals. The fodder tables, published hj Professor 

 Atwater, of the Connecticut Experiment Station, which are 

 founded upon German experiments, show that it is not good 

 economy to feed animals at rest with food rich in albuminoids ; 

 such food should be saved for the work animals. 



The results of a winter's experience with these tables may 

 interest some members of the Society. The summer of 1876 

 was very hot and dry ; the hay crop and crops for soiling 

 were short, and when winter came there was very little in the 

 barn. Whether to sell stock or buy food was the question to 

 be answered. After a careful study of the tables, and of the 



