62 FEEDING WITH SUGAR BEETS, SUGAR, ETC. 



data is that it is supposed to enable the farmer to calculate in 

 advance what fodder is to his actual advantage. While the 

 market prices of cotton-seed meal and gluten meal may differ 

 only by one dollar, the actual feeding value may vary $10. It 

 is interesting to note that the nutritive money value as admitted 

 in the United States is veiy different from that adopted by 

 Ku'hn, who declares that if the carbohydrates are worth one 

 cent per pound, the digestible fatty substances would then be 

 worth 2.44 cents and the protein digestible constituents, 6 cents. 

 However, even the caloric basis of estimation is very mis- 

 leading, as the formation of flesh and fat, the flow of milk, etc., 

 depend upon other physical conditions than simple generation 

 of heat. It becomes evident than even in this case, it is im- 

 possible to obtain results that are more than approximative^ 

 correct. The only true basis that might be suggested is the 

 actual analysis of each fodder used, and this would be too com- 

 plicated to have any practical value. A fact too frequently 

 forgotten is that to a farmer the most valuable fodder is not the 

 greatest milk and meat producer, but the one that can accom- 

 plish this at the least possible cost. 



If of two fodders, one yields two pounds of digestible matter, 

 and the other only one pound, then the one fodder is twice as 

 valuable as the other for nutrition, irrespective of the market 

 price. The price of meat is not so variable throughout the country 

 as the price of seeds, so we may base estimates upon it. To pro- 

 duce this pound of beef, there must be consumed a certain 

 quantity of protein, fatty substances, and carbohydrates, and this 

 consumption must necessarily vary with each animal. If we could 

 establish an average, then we could approximate the value of 

 each of the elements upon which this meat production depends. 

 Purchasing feeds. It is always recommended when purchasing feeds to obtain a 

 list of market prices and determine by a very careful calculation 

 which is the most desirable for the object in view. Such efforts 

 may mean a daity saving of ten or twelve cents per ration per 

 diem. The calculation should be largely based upon the man- 

 ner in which the protein may be obtained under the most 

 economical conditions, and these data always vary not only 

 with the feed, but with the year. 



