Annual  Report  of  the  Consulting  Chemist  for  1882.  239 
Ensilage,  probably,  may  be  practised  with  advantage  in 
localities  such  as  the  Highlands  of  Scotland,  where  the  climate 
is  too  cold  and  wet  to  allow  good  hay  to  he  made,  and  where 
corn-crops  often  do  not  ripen  properly. 
Oats  or  rye,  cut  still  green  and  put  into  silos,  in  such  places 
would  furnish  good  and  wholesome  food  for  stock  at  times  when 
such  food  is  most  wanted. 
In  most  localities  in  England,  ensilage  is  not  likely  to  become 
a general  practice  as  in  some  parts  of  Germany,  France,  and 
America. 
Locust-beans. — The  pods  of  locust-beans  contain,  as  is  well 
known,  a high  percentage  of  sugar,  but  comparatively  little 
albumen  or  similar  nitrogenous  matter. 
Composition  of  Locust-Beans. 
Pods  and  Seeds. 
Seeds  only. 
Moisture  
14-73 
14-11 
Oil  
62 
203 
♦Albuminous  compounds 
5-62 
16-94 
Sugar 
40-01 
Woody  fibre  
5-27 
8-81 
Mucilage  and  digestible  fibre  
30-99 
54-50 
Ash  
2-76 
3-61 
100-00 
100-00 
♦Containing  nitrogen  
•90 
2-71 
Locust  bean-meal  is  an  excellent  condimental  food,  and  useful 
in  imparting  to  straw  chaff,  or  other  coarse  and  unpalatable 
food,  a sweet  taste  and  slightly  aromatic  smell.  Although  the 
pods  of  locust-beans  possess  high  fattening  properties,  it  would 
be  a mistake  to  give  locust-meal,  like  bean-  or  barley-meal,  in 
considerable  quantities  to  fattening  beasts  or  sheep,  for  the 
extremely  sweet  taste  of  locust-meal  makes  fattening  stock  rather 
too  particular  in  their  choice  of  food,  and  prevents  their  eating 
as  much  of  less  palatable  but  equally  nutritious  food  as  it  is 
desirable  they  should  consume. 
The  seeds  in  the  locust-bean  pods  do  not  contain  any  ap- 
preciable amount  of  sugar,  but  a good  deal  of  albuminous 
matter  and  mucilage.  They  are  very  hard,  and  swell  up  in 
water  to  a great  size  ; and  when  ground  into  meal,  they  are  far 
more  digestible  and  nutritious  than  their  hard  condition  would 
appear  to  warrant. 
Alfala  Clover-IIay. — A species  of  clover-hay  has  been  brought 
