154 ILLINOIS DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



live. But it is imperative that protein be supplied if we are to 

 get satisfactory results. This element is the expensive part of 

 the ration, hence it is a matter of business to know it can be 

 procured most cheaply. When oats are worth 32 cents per 

 bushel the protein in them costs us 11 cents per pound — a 

 prohibatory price. In corn at 40 cents a bushel the protein 

 costs 9 cents a pound. In buckwheat middlings at $20 per 

 ton, the protein costs 4z l / 2 cents a pound. In gluten meal at $28 

 per ton protein costs 5^ cents per pound. In clover hay at $7 

 per ton protein costs 5.1 cents per pound. In alfalfa hay at 

 $7 per ton protein costs 3.2 per pound. In corn silage at 

 $1.50 per ton protein costs about 7^ cents per pound, but the 

 succulence of silage is a greater help to the cow than the protein 

 content. It serves to keep the system in a healthy condition so 

 that the animal derives greater benefit from the grain consumed. 



There is nothing that we can add to the ration for our milch 

 cows that will give us so great a degree of satisfaction as corn 

 silage. It invariably increases the product of the cow and 

 reduces the cost of the ration. Two very important results. 

 Silage is the cheapest and best supplement to pasture that can 

 possibly be provided. With plenty of silage at hand the cows 

 will have all the feed they require, while if we are using a soiling 

 crop they are quite liable to go on short rations during a few 

 days of inclement weather or an unusual rush of farm work. 



If we would improve the dairy industry we must study the 

 value of the different feeds and use the ration that is calculated 

 to give us the best results. It is often possible to make some 

 changes in the ration which will give better results at less cost, 

 and the thoughtful dairyman will not be slow in making the 

 discovery. 



What we need most of all is better dairymen. If all the 

 men in the state who keep cows would apply to their business 

 the same degree of " get-there-a-tive-ness " that the successful 

 manufacturer does, dairying would soon occupy a higher plane 

 than it does today, that coveted increase of 100 pounds per cow 



