I^E^E^DING STUFf" INSPIlCTlON. 69 



condime;ntal foods. 



This subject is an old one and were it not for the large profits 

 in the sale of these mixtures and the credulity of the race as 

 regards nostrums, they would have long since disappeared from 

 the markets. At more or less irregular intervals something has 

 arisen to call for renewed attention to this class of usually harm- 

 less but expensive materials. The whole subject was tersely 

 stated in the first report of this Station.* "The foods have no 

 greater nutritive value than the feeding stufifs from which they 

 are made. The small quantities of fenugreek and sulphur are 

 utterly valueless to a well animal and are a poor reliance as a 

 means of curing a sick one." 



This opinion was restated in 1895! in a more ample form. 

 In 1896 a feeding experiment was made in which a herd of 5 

 cows were fed alternately for nine weeks with and without con- 

 dimental food.$ This experiment showed a slight falling off in 

 milk production in the periods that the condimental food was 

 used. In 1902 it seemed necessary to again refer to these arti- 

 cles,§ and now because of two samples submitted by a dealer, 

 who stated that his customers were dissatisfied, and wanted their 

 money back in accordance with the agreement on the package, 

 it becomes necessary to again take up this rather threadbare 

 subject. Strangely enough, 20 years ago it was the requested 

 analyses of a stock food and of an egg producer that lead to the 

 writing of the sentence above quoted. The Security Poultry 

 Food and Egg Maker, Albuminized, and the Security Stock 

 Food, Glutenized, here reported, are with some minor changes 

 Ihe same as the Imperial Egg Food, The Continental Food and 

 the English Patent Food of two decades ago. The analyses 

 of these modern marvels correspond as nearly to the analysis of 

 wheat bran as did their precursors. If it were not for the 

 sobering effects of the thought of the credulity and gullibility of 

 the public exhibited by the continued expenditure for these 

 materials, it would be difficult to treat the matter seriouslv. For 

 men to pay at the rate of $200 a ton for wheat bran to which 



*Rep. Maine Station 1885, pages 52 and 53. 

 t Bui. 20, Maine Station. 

 t Rep. Maine Station 1896, pages 51-55. 

 § Bui. 80, Maine Station, pages 62-63. 



