Straio-Cliaff for Feeding Purposes. 87 
Moisture 13'33 
Oil and fatty matter 1-74 
♦Albuminous compounds (fiesh-forming matters .. 2'93 
Sugar, gum, and other organic comiiounds soluble 
in water 4'2f) 
Digestible fibre 19-40 
Woody fibre (cellulose) 54-13 
Insoluble mineral matter (cliiclly silica) .. .. 3'08 
Saline soluble mineral substances 1-13 
100-00 
Containing nitrogen -47 
A comparison of the composition of ordinary ^ood wheat- 
i straw with that of straw-chaff prepared by the system pursued 
I by Mr. Jonas brings out several points of interest, on which 
i a few observations deserve to be made. 
\ 1. In the first place, it may be remarked that both kinds of 
straw-chaff contain about the same proportion of oil. The oil 
I exhausted from straw by means of ether has a bright yellow 
I colour, is sweet to the taste, and renders straw more palatable 
! and more nutritious than it would be without this constituent, 
j It is appreciable in quantity, for according to the preceding data 
I 1 ton of straw-chaff contains about 39 lbs. of oil. 
2. It will be seen that fermented straw-chaff contains rather 
j more than 4 per cent, of albuminous or flesh-forming compounds, 
I whereas ordinary wheat-straw contains in round numbers only 
■ 3 per cent. The prepared wheat-chaff, therefore, is one-fourth 
richer in materials which produce the substance of the lean 
fibre of meat, or the muscle. 
3. Common wheat-straw of good quality contains about 4J per 
cent, of sugar, gum, and similar soluble organic compounds. 
In over-ripe straw the amount of these soluble matters is less. 
On the other hand, in the sample of fermented straw-chaff 
i analysed by me, the percentage of sugar, gum, &c., amounted 
to 10-16, or to nearly two and a half times the amount which 
occurs in good unprepared wheat-straw. The much larger pro- 
portion of sugar and other soluble matters in the fermented 
straw, no doubt, is due to the green-stuff employed in its pre- 
paration ; but at the same time, the process of heating the 
mixture, it is quite probable, may have had the effect of rendering 
the chaff more soluble in water. 
Bearing in mind that the chaff prepared by Mr. Jonas con- 
tains so large a proportion of succulent matter, it is no wonder 
that cattle and sheep are fond of it, and thrive upon it in a 
much higher degree than upon ordinary wheat-straw. 
4. A comparison of the relative proportions of digestible and 
of woody fibre in fermented wheat-chaff, with their proportions 
m common wheat-straw, exhibits striking differences, which 
cannot fail to arrest the attention of stock-feeders. 
