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period his cattle sell for enough to pay for the original cost of the 

 cattle, the feed consumed and the interest on the investment. It is 

 not a question of profit from feeding cattle, but rather a question of 

 the most profitable method of disposing of farm crops. 



Indiana is especially adapted to the production of high class beef 

 cattle, as is shown by the large number of prizes won by Indiana cat- 

 tle in the show rings of the various state fairs and live stock exposi- 

 tions, also by the great number of high class cattle marketed annually 

 by Indiana feeders. A large portion of the State lies directly in the 

 corn belt ; blue grass grows abundantly all over the State and much 

 of the land is especially adapted to growing clover, cowpeas and 

 other leguminous crops with which to balance the corn in the ration. 

 There is abundance of good water available, favorable feeding sea- 

 sons and comparatively no contagious or infectious diseases of cat- 

 tle. In addition to these natural advantages, Indiana has the greatest 

 live stock markets in the world right at her door. It seems then 

 that with the ability to produce good cattle, abundance of the best 

 recognized food-stuffs, favorable climatic and market conditions, and 

 soil that needs building up, beef production should be profitable in 

 Indiana. 



Object. 



The main object of this experiment was to test the efficiency of 

 various combinations of corn and other feeds for fattening cattle, 

 such as corn stover, oat straw and clover hay, commonly available on 

 Indiana farms. The comparisons were also planned so as to clearly 

 demonstrate the importance and value of feeding fattening cattle 

 some nitrogenous feed, either in the form of roughage or concen- 

 trate, to supplement the corn of the ration. 



Corn is recognized as the cheapest of fat forming foodstuffs and 

 is used as the basis of the grain ration in this test. Oat straw and 

 corn stover were chosen for roughage because of their great abun- 

 dance and cheapness. Clover hay was used in the comparison owing 

 to its nitrogenous character, palatability, and the fact that the crop 

 can be most profitably disposed of by feeding. The Station also de- 

 sires to encourage the growing and feeding of clover, as it undoubt- 

 edly should find frequent use in any judicious system of cropping in 

 many sections of the State. 



Plan of Experiment. 



The experiment was planned with the view of using n steers 

 to the lot, with just enough hogs following to consume the undigested 

 corn in the droppings of the steers. It was decided to use simple meth- 

 ods in preparing the feed, in order to make the conditions of the test 

 comparable with those of the average feeder as far as possible. To 



