TRANSFORMATION DURING SILOING. 



163 



one obtains a mass that is grayish in color, with here and there 

 certain spots of more or less blackish appearance, pasty in tex- 

 ture, and after a reasonable period no longer possessing the 

 characteristics of the original pressed residuum, all its primitive 

 structure, organic, etc., having disappeared. 



The principal centers for change in silos are along the sides 

 and in corners; and no well-built silo should have angular 

 corners, otherwise a thorough cleaning when emptied would be 

 impossible. The shape of a silo has consequently an important 

 influence upon the keeping of the cossettes; most experts say 

 that the sides should be vertical, so that there will be a regular 

 pressure of the pulp by its own weight. The writer much 

 doubts if vertical sides accomplish all that is desired; an in- 

 verted truncated pyramid would be better. No experiments 

 have been made in this direction, so it should not be attempted 

 unless there be in advance some certainty as to results. 



According to Liebscher, fermentation diminishes after the 

 sixth day of siloing, and when the fifteenth day is reached the 

 temperature of the mass undergoes little or no change, and is 

 about the same as that of the ground in which the ditch has 

 been made. These transformations, as regards the chemical 

 composition of the products, are shown in the table which 

 follows, as given by Maercker: 



EARLY CHEMICAL CHANGES DURING SILOING (MAERCKER). 



From this data one may conclude that during the keeping of 

 the residuum its percentage of dry substances, such as ash, fatty 

 constituents, cellulose and nitrogenous elements, is materially 



