Practical Experiences in the Preparation of Food for Stoclc. 461 
[For Schedule of Questions, see page 448.] 
Mr. Robert Turnbull — continued, 
soft water, and to fi-equent change of pasture, especially where sheep are 
concerDed. I prefer seeds for sheep to old pasture ; white clover when the 
land is strong and rich. 
13. When hay and straw are chaffed there is less waste when the quality 
is second rate. Hay, if at all mouldy, should not be given to breeding stock 
iti any form, or to young stock. It should be steamed as well as chafied, and 
given to strong store bullocks. When roots are given to cows sliced the 
milk tastes strongly of the roots, but if the roots are pulped and mixed with 
chaffed hay and straw, and allowed to stand twenty-four hours without 
being fed, the milk is not unfavourably affected, no matter whether fed 
before or after milking. As before stated, I prefer sliced roots for fattening 
cattle, but if hay and straw have been much exposed in harvesting, chaffing 
and pulping must be resorted to. 
14. Not as a rule. I believe steamed food to be the best for cattle that 
have weak digestions and for newly-calved cows that are heavy milkers, 
or that have defective teeth. I would not buy cattle for summer grazing on 
any account that had been fed on steamed food in covered yards. 
15. Hay, meal, bran. Bran and hay tea are excellent for newly-calved 
deep-milking cows. 
16. Barford and Perkins, of Peterborough, have given special attention 
to this matter. The waste steam from an engine can be economically used 
in steaming hay by turning it through a false floor. 
17. I believe that by giving newly-calved cows food in the most digesti- 
ble form the risk of milk fever is greatly reduced ; and that in the case of 
cattle with defective teeth, the food consumed is more readily digested. 
When plenty of poultry and pigs are kept there is little actual waste of food, 
as the manure, if thinly spread on the raanure heap, is carefully picked over. 
18. Aged cows, newly-calved cows, cattle that have defective teeth, cattle 
that have weak digestions. 
19. I have found that cows milk more abundantly when the chill is taken 
off the water in cold weather. 
Mr. Clare Sewell Read, Honingham Thorpe, Norwich. 
3. Yes. 
4. I have two covered yards, and so economise the litter for bedding cattle. 
5. All the oat-straw is chaffed, and some of the best barley-straw ; cut 
with steam power and trodden into old barns and a little salt added, and 
occasionally a small quantity of vetches, clover, or grass, but sometimes this 
addition causes mould or too much heat. 
6. All the hay save that used for the riding stable is chaffed. 
7. You cannot get the cattle to eat a large quantity of long straw, and 
by mixing pulp or shredded roots with the chaff they will eat any quantity, 
and so you give the necessary bulk of food at a little cost, and can keep more 
stock upon your farm. 
8. The lean cattle have only roots and straw chaff". The fat stock and 
cows in milk have hay and straw chaff, and such roots, cake, meal, and 
malt as you allow them. 
9. Apportion the roots and artificial food to the different kinds of stock 
and allow them to eat as much chaff as they please ; they are fed three times 
a day. Crushed malt will sweeten a large quantity of dry unpalatable chaff. 
10. Cart-horses are fed with hay-chaff (a little straw aud corn-chaff 
added), crushed oats, and a few roots in winter; in summer, crushed oats 
and chaffed lucerne. Fatteninrf beasts : in winter — roots (all cut into fingers 
or shreds), hay and straw-chaffj. linseed and decorticated cotton-cake, meal 
