148 
Straiv as Food for Stock. 
for horses and sheep. Bean- and pea-straw are consumed almost exclusively 
by sheep, though I think its value is under-estimated. No doubt much more 
stock could be kept on straw, with corn, cake, or roots. The market value of 
straw not being very high here, we require no substitute for litter. I know 
only one or two farms where Mr. Jonas's system is adopted ; no doubt it is a 
good plan." 
Mr. F. T. Ivimy, of Basingstoke, Hants, considers that about 
one-half of the straw in his district is employed as food, and 
adds : — 
" The cart-horses have as much oat-straw as they can consume, also the beasl s 
in the yards, but in both cases whole. I should say the consumption of cut 
straw in loose boxes would be greater than if it were used whole, and as it 
would be more difficult to remove, there would be no economy. Wild ferns 
are often used by small farmers as litter." 
Two correspondents, neither of whom gives name or address, 
speak favourably of Mr. Jonas's system of chaff-storage. One 
remarks : — 
" The method has been adopted with good results, especially where hay 
is not plentiful and when the straw is good. When the root-crop is bad, 
straw is more valuable, and is more used." 
The other gives his testimony : — 
" Mr. Jonas's system of converting straw-chaff is a good one, and is found 
to be most advantageous ; I have tried it with satisfactory results, the chaff 
being cut in the summer months for the ensuing winter." 
An erroneous impression would seem to prevail that the 
system of cutting and storing straw-chaff originated by Mr. 
Jonas must necessarily entail a heavy cost in the process. Thus 
Mr. R. Vallentine, of Leighton Buzzard, gives me the following 
reasons why it is not adopted in his locality : — " The cost is 
considered too much ; very few farmers could manage to cut 
straw into chaff under 11. per ton, it would frequently be more, 
and could not under ordinary circumstances add so much addi- 
tional value to a ton of whole straw." 
But farmers in other places are accustomed to cut straw into 
chaff at a cost of about 6s. a ton, and in Stephens's ' Book of the 
Farm' it is stated that the operation can be effected at a still lower 
rate by steam power. But this topic need not be enlarged upon, 
as the statement of Mr. F. M. Jonas, embodied in the present 
paper, shows that it is possible to carry out his method so as 
to realise a considerable saving on the ordinary method of 
stacking straw as it is delivered from the threshing-machine. 
From the foregoing replies to my questions it would appear 
that great diversity of practice exists as to the relative pro- 
portions in which straw is utilised as fodder and litter. This 
is only what might naturally be expected. Deep fertile soils 
