quantities as to make the cattle attractive to buyers. If the cattle 

 under these conditions sell for a sufficient price to pay for themselves 

 and market prices of feeds consumed, the feeder has, in addition to 

 the profit from growing crops, a large amount of manure with which 

 to maintain the fertility of the soil and increase the yield of crops. 



During the winter of 1909-10 the Pennsylvania State College and 

 Experiment Station has followed its usual practice of feeding a suffi- 

 cient number of cattle to consume the stover, corn silage and hay and 

 utilize the straw produced on the College Farm in the customary four 

 course rotation. A limited amount of cottonseed meal was purchased 

 in order to improve the farm-grown feeds. In addition to the cattle 

 kept for instructional work, forty-eight head of steers were purchased 

 upon the open market at the Union Stock Yards, Chicago, Illinois, 

 December i, 1909, to be used for experimental purposes. 



Description of Cattle. 



These steers were two-year-old grade Herefords and Shorthorns, 

 averaging approximately 825 pounds per head, costing $4.65 per cwt. 

 They were blocky, deep-bodied cattle of good quality, but lacking the 

 weight, flesh, and breeding necessary to bring the best price as "feed- 

 ers." They were shipped to State College immediately after purchase 

 where they were fed shredded stover, mixed hay and corn silage until 

 they had recovered from shipment. 



Method of Experimentation. 



For experimental purposes they were divided into four lots as 

 nearly equal as possible in age, type, breeding, quality, condition and 

 weight and fed as follows : 



Lot I. Full feed grain, one-half feed corn silage and rough- 

 age according to appetite. (Fed in barn). 



Lot II. Two-thirds feed grain, full feed of corn silage and 

 roughage according to appetite. (Fed in barn). 



Lot III. Full feed of grain, full feed of corn silage and 

 roughage according to appetite. (Fed in barn). 



Lot IV. Full feed of grain, full feed of corn silage and rough- 

 age according to appetite. (Fed in open shed). 



These methods of feeding permit of comparisons between Lot I, 

 fed a concentrated ration, and Lot II, fed a much more bulky ration, 

 in which the proportion of digestible nutriments to dry matter is much 

 larger ; between Lot I, fed a concentrated ration with a limited amount 



(4) 



