162 THE dairyman's manual. 



of bran per day two cows at the Texas Agricultural Col- 

 lege increased three and four and a half per cent, re- 

 spectively, in a twenty days' trial. At first they re- 

 ceived bran and ran on good pasture. Next they were 

 made to depend on grass exclusively. The Iowa dairy- 

 man should remember that the manure from a well-fed cow 

 is worth probably twice as much as the manure from a 

 grass-fed cow." 



It has already been stated that the results of feeding 

 vary with circumstances. The character and quality 

 of the herbage vary ; and necessarily, as grass is the basis 

 of a cow's feed, any variation in this will affect the re- 

 sults of the grain feeding and make some modification 

 necessary. Iowa is a leading dairy State, and this experi- 

 ence of Professor Muncy, a most capable and enthusi- 

 astic dairy expert, will be valuable for Western dairymen. 



To observe the effect of feeding, some tests will be 

 found useful. A dairyman should be very inquisitive 

 and observant, for his profit depends uj^on it. He should 

 count, measure and weigh everything ; and the quantity 

 of food given, its cost and its results, should all be care- 

 fully noted. The manner of testing cows described in 

 the previous chapter has been constantly practiced in the 

 author's dairy, and has been found of the greatest use. 



In practice in the dairy there are times when it is 

 impossible to feed hay and other rich foods, on account 

 of scarcity in adverse seasons. Farmers have a large 

 quantity of rough material to dispose of. Corn fodder, 

 straw, coarse hay, and even marsh hay at times, are the 

 sole dependence for feeding. In such cases these inferior 

 fodders may be made up by the addition of the richer 

 foods which can l)e purchased and used at such a profit 

 as will be satisfactory to the dairyman. And in feeding 

 these coarser fodders, the use of roots with them will be 

 found exceedingly valuable. The succulent roots, being 

 almost wholly digestible, aid very much in the digestion 



