392 
Composition niul Nntritirc Valve of Strari\ 
exercise similar, proljably even more energetic effects, than 
this upon the crude woody fibre. The treatment with dihite 
alkalies and acids, therefore, affords a better insight into the 
digestibility of the bulk of straw than the mere exhaustion Avith 
water. 
At the same time, however, it may be noticed that the method 
of Sinclair, who endeavoured to determine the nutritive value of 
different grasses by ascertaining the proportion of matters soluble 
in water, furnishes comparative results which enable us to form 
a tolerable good opinion of the feeding value of straw. Indeed I 
find that the more nutritious samples invariably produce the 
largest amount of watery extract. 
In manv of the published analyses nothing more than moisture, 
ash, and albuminous compounds are determined ; all the rest is 
arrived at by difference. It is evident that such imperfect ana- 
lyses must lead to practical errors ; for in these analyses oil, sugar, 
and other soluble matters are thrown together with crude woody 
fibre, and the whole group is said to consist of fat and respiratory 
constituents, although only a portion of the whole exists in reality 
in a condition in which it can be assimilated by animals. 
Wheat-Straw. 
The following results were obtained on analysing a sample of 
well-harvested wheat-straw, which was neither under nor over 
ripe : — 
General Composition. 
Water 13-33 
Sohible organic matters 5"54 
Sohililo inorganic matters I'lo 
Insoluble organic matters 76'92 
Insoluble mineral matters 3'08 
100-00 
Detailed Cumposiiion. 
Water 13-33 
Oil _ 1-74 
*Albumen and other soluble protein compounds 1-28 
Sugar, mucilage, extractive matters, &c. (soluble in water) 4-26 
Digestible fibre, &c 19-40 
Soluble inorganic matter 1-13 
•finsoluble protein compounds 1-65 
Indigestible woody fibre 54-13 
Insoluble inorganic matter 3-08 
100-00 
*Contaliiing nitrogen • 206 
fContaining nitrogen '264 I 
Total percentage of nitrogen •470 
Equal to protein compounds 2-93 
Totnl ash 4-21 
