258 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



While these small yields interfere with our making a good showing 

 as to the total number of pounds of beef it is possible to produce from 

 an acre of corn either as silage or as shock corn, they do not interfere 

 with our comparing the results of feeding the corn crop by these two 

 methods. 



The shock 1 corn from the 5.33 acres was weighed as fed out. The total 

 amount fed was 29095 pounds,, or 14.55 tons, very close to one-third cf 

 of the gross weight of the sillage as led out. 



The rations were made up as follows: 



Lot 1. Silage, whole oats and mixed hay. 



Lot 2. Shock corn, whole oats and mixed hay. 



That we might be able to make as direct a comparison of the corn part 

 of these rations as possible, the same amounts of whole oats and mixed 

 hay were fed to each lot except as noted below, while the amount of sil- 

 age and shock corn fed varied with the appetites of the calves. It was 

 thought advisable too, to keep the amounts of food stuffs other than 

 shock corn and silage as small as possible, since com and its products 

 are bound to remain the greatest factors in beef production. 



As all the calves had been getting shock corn and mixed hay up to the 

 beginning of the experiment the calves in Lot 2 naturally took to their 

 ration more readily than did the calves in Lot 1 which were started on 

 silage, a food stuff with which they were entirely unfamiliar. It should 

 be said, however, that the steers in lot 1 never failed to relish their silage 

 after the first few days. 



The average daily ration for each steer at the beginning of the exper- 

 iment, February 5, 1902. was as fo'ilows: 



Lot 1.— Silage . : 15 lbs. 



Oats 2 lbs. 



Mixed hay 4 lbs. 



Lot 2. — Shock corn 11.5 lbs. 



Oats 2 lbs. 



Mixed hay 4 lbs. 



