Agricultural Chemistry — Sheep- Feeding and Manure. 281 



sheep of pens 2 and 4, which appeared however the most eligible 

 at command at the time, the 4 pens seemed to compare suffi- 

 ciently with each other, so far as weight can be taken as a guide. 

 The results will show, however, that although one of these light 

 sheep soon proved itself unfit for experiment, the other increased 

 considerably more than one of the heavier sheep on the same food, 

 and also more than several of those on the different foods. The 

 special foods selected were — for pen 1, oil-cake; for pen 2, oats; 

 pen 3, clover-chaff ; and pen 4, oat-straw chaff ; besides which, all 

 were supplied with cut swedes as many as the animals chose to 

 eat. Taking I lb. of oil-cake per sheep per day, as a fair and 

 ordinary allowance, it would in some respects have been desir- 

 able to apportion the other dry foods so as to provide an equal 

 amount of nitrogen in each. The experiments were commenced 

 however before the analyses of the foods had been undertaken, 

 so that no allotment founded on their exact nitrogenous contents 

 could be made, and it was supposed that considerably more than 

 two pounds both of oats and of clover would be required to equal 

 1 lb. of oil-cake in this respect. These quantities would ob- 

 viously be too great ; but it was decided to gain the end approxi- 

 mately, by giving to pen 2 as many oats, not exceeding 2 lbs., and 

 to pen 3 as much clover-chaff, not exceeding 2 lbs. per sheep per 

 day, as the animals would eat, and to pen 4 oat-straw chaff ad 

 libitum. It was found, however, that even the oil-cake was not 

 eaten to the full amount provided ; and, as might be expected, 

 that the consumption of oats,, and clover-chaff, did not nearly 

 approach that required to equal in supply of nitrogen that of 1 lb. 

 of oil-cake ; whilst, the oat-straw chaff was taken to such a small 

 extent, that its use was entirely discontinued after a few weeks. 



In the following table are given the average weekly consump- 

 tion of food per sheep in the several pens, and the pounds weight 

 of increase of each animal between each period of weighing 

 (chiefly weekly intervals), throughout the course of the experi- 

 ments. Wherever the minus sign ( — ) occurs before a figure, loss 

 instead of gain is indicated. 



The statement of the results thus in all their detail is useful, 

 exhibiting as it does the liability to error in judging of the feed- 

 ing value of different foods, or of the disposition to increase of 

 animals of different descriptions, unless both a sufficient number 

 of animals are experimented upon, and the trial be extended over 

 a considerable period of time. By a glance down the columns of 

 the table it is seen, that there is not a sheep which does not during 

 one or more, sometimes consecutive periods of the experiment, 

 show a gain of 4, 5, or even 6 or 8 lbs. in a week, whilst at an- 

 other period it apparently gains nothing at all, or even loses 

 weight. It is perhaps scarcely necessary to observe, that these 



