AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 475 



growing bones and muscles of the fcetus, these bones and muscles 

 may be increased by administering proper food to tlie mother 

 while in calf. After the calf is born, milk is the most perfect* 

 food that can be given to it, as it contains the curd which is to 

 form the muscles, the l)uttcr which is to supply the fat, the 

 phosphates which are to build up the bones, and the sugar which 

 is to feed the respiration. There is nothing wanting in milk, A 

 dairymen once informed me that he never added water to his 

 milk, yet never sold his customers milk that was not excessively 

 watered. His plan was to feed his milch cows on succulent 

 food, containing at least eighty per cent of water, thus adding a 

 very large percentage to his milk. 



The size and condition of an animal will regulate the quantity 

 of food necessary to sustain it. The larger the muscles and bones, 

 the greater will by the daily waste, and consequently the greater 

 the quantity of food necessary to be given it. If you wish to 

 convert the hay, straw, &c., of your farm into manure, keep large 

 animals, and feed them generously in dark stables, this prevents 

 them from being disturbed, and becoming restless; anything that 

 excites, or causes an animal to become alarmed, increases the 

 natural waste, and diminishes the effect of food. In India the 

 habit prevails of sewing up the eyelids of animals intended to be 

 fatted. The absence of light, however produced, soothes and 

 quiets all animals, disposes them to rest, and makes less food 

 necessary. 



Sour feed fottens animals more rapidly than sweet, green herb- 

 age of all kinds, collected and allowed to get sour in water, will 

 fatten pigs that would not thrive on it before, because lactic acid, 

 the acid of milk, is formed, which favors the growth of the pig. 

 Brewers' grains when sour, will fatten cows and other animals 

 more rapidly than when sweet. Eoiled or steamed potatoes, 

 turnips, carrots, &:c., is a far more economical food for growing 

 stock, and even working horses and oxen, than when fed raw. 



It is a curious fact that the age of food affects its value in the 

 nourishment of animals. New oats for example, are not fit food 

 for horses until they are seven or eight months old, they affect 

 the heels, legs, and kidneys, and make the horse unfit for work. 

 You may even dry new oats in a kiln, and they will still be un- 

 fit for use. In the time specified, some unknown chemical change 

 takes place in tlie interior of tlie grain. The potato on the other 

 hand, by keeping, loses much of its nutritive value, even before 

 it begins to sprout; turnips, carrots, parsnips, &c., which have 



