28 BULLETIN 182, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. ~ ai 
The average yield of potatoes was over 291 bushels per acre, re- 
sulting in a total of 91,660 bushels. Of this amount, 55,110 bushels | 
were used for the distillery, 7,350 bushels were reserved as seed 
potatoes, 18,300 bushels were distributed among the laborers, 1,800 
bushels were sold, and 9,100 bushels were used as feed. In the year 
1907 the potatoes for the distillery were valued at 18.6 cents per 
bushel, including the spent mash. These potatoes were not sorted. 
The new distillery, constructed by a Breslau firm after the plans _ 
of the building section (Bauabteilung) of the Society for Spirit 
Manufacturers in Berlin, cost about $42,500. The net profits in 1906 
were $1,200, but the computation does not include the interest on the © 
investment and a 10 per cent depreciation of machinery, due to wear 
and tear. According to the inspector the value of the distillery, 
therefore, lay in the utilization of the potatoes whenever desirable. 
This crop, however, as has been pointed out, is a necessary factor in — 
the proper cultivation of the light soil. | 
The allotted output of the distillery is 12,150 gallons.1 The mash- | 
tub capacity is about 790 gallons with a twofold operation and with 
the possibility of a threefold operation. Eight gallons of spent mash 
are fed daily to each milch cow and about 59 gallons to the young 
stock. In addition to the spent mash, hay, etc., each cow gets the 
following ration: 1 pound of wheat husks, 1 pound of peanut cake, 
1 pound of cottonseed cake, and 1 pound of sunflower cake.2 As a 
result of this plan of feeding a daily average of over 2 gallons of milk 
per cow is obtained, averaging 34 per cent of fat. The milk is sold 
to a dairy which pays in accordance with the fat content. 
About 660 gallons of milk are used on the estate, and about 50,190 
gallons are sold to the dairy in Polkwitz (about 44 miles distant) 
at an average of 2.5 cents per quart. The owner, who is also one 
of the principal stockholders of the dairy, receives between $200 
and $225 in dividends as additional profit. 3 
In addition to the 100 milch cows there were on the estate 150 
head of young cattle, 50 draft oxen, 40 horses, 500 sheep, 100 
chickens, and 100 geese. Pigs are kept on the estate only by resi- 
dent servants. The value to the estate of these numerous animals 
can best be appreciated if one sees what quantities of manure are 
spread over the fields. The carting is done by the men and the 
spreading by the women and girls. 7 
1 Formerly it was 15,850 gallons, but it was diminished because of the erection of new 
distilleries. This increase in the number of agricultural distilleries would seem to in- 
dicate that the estate owners are convinced of their value, even though the benefit de- 
rived be but indirect, at least in certain years. 
2These materials are now purchased through a large corporation, an agricultural con- 
cern with headquarters at Berlin, which not only has branch depots in all large railroad 
centers but which also controls both price and quality by having analyses made. This | 
cooperation has proved a serious loss to certain traders but is of benefit to agriculturists. 
