FOODS FOR USE IK THE DAIRY. 137 



The meal has a decided!}' inflammatory effect on the milk 

 glands, and therefore is to be used only in yery moderate 

 quantities. The author has fed it to cows from four 

 pounds daily down to one pound, and while feeding two 

 pounds a day, with twice as much bran and corn meal, the 

 butter product of a cow experimented upon ran up to two 

 pounds per day; when four pounds daily was fed, with 

 the same quantity of corn meal and bran, the peld of 

 butter Avas only 1.83 pounds per day for a few days, when 

 an attack of garget was brought on, and for fourteen 

 days afterwards the yield was less than a pound, (See 

 chapter on Feeding. ) As this result happened frequently 

 with other cows in the dairy, while hired men could 

 scarcely be restrained from using too much of it, and a 

 fine litter of Berkshire pigs were sacriflced to this temp- 

 tation to feed the meal to excess, its use was discarded. 

 With oue pound only, used with twice the quantity of 

 corn meal and bran for a single ration, cotton seed meal 

 may be used safely ; but as any excess over that is apt to 

 be injurious, it is advisable to mix the feed in bulk, so 

 that the ration cannot be exceeded by any accident. 

 This meal gives a high color, great solidity, a fine, waxy 

 texture, and a rich nutty flavor to the butter. The latter 

 fact seems to corroborate the belief that the oils of the 

 food really go into the milk unchanged, through the 

 digestive organs, in which they are emulsified. 



As the digestibility of a food is really the measure of 

 its value, and the analyses above given have no reference 

 to this point, it is a most important part of the dairy- 

 man's business to make careful tests in his dairy of the 

 effects of food in regard to the quantity and quality of 

 the product. Animals differ very much in respect of 

 their digestive ability. Some cows will make a very fair 

 profit from the same food upon which other cows will 

 make a serious loss ; and these results, vital to the 

 interests of the owner, can only be ascertained by most 



