CALCIUM AND PHOSPHOEUS IN THE PEED OF DAIEY COWS. 11 
The manner in which the cows were fed and treated subsequent to 
the birth of their first calves has already been discussed at some length 
(pp. 1 to 3). It is only necessary to add a word about the actual 
amounts of grain, hay, and silage given. The manner in which the 
mature dry cows were fed has already been given (p. 2) . The mature 
milking cows were generally fed 1 pound of grain mixture B or C 
to each 3 pounds of milk given, 6 to 8 pounds of legume hay, and 
as much corn silage as they would clean up. They usually gave 
about 25 pounds of milk a day when they were fresh and at this 
period they commonly got 8 pounds of grain mixture B, 8 pounds of 
legume hay, and 30 pounds of corn silage. They usually got a little 
thin with the progress of their lactation and were then fed somewhat 
more grain in proportion to the milk yield. In the course of the year, 
as has already been stated, they got a little more protein and total 
nutriment than is required by the Eckles or Savage feeding standards. 
The bone-building elements can probably be supplied in sufficient 
quantity in two different ways — either by feeding the ordinary ma- 
terials much more liberally than the feeding standards require or by 
adding calcium and phosphorus in the form of inorganic salts di- 
rectly to the rations. We are confident that the latter method will 
finally be adopted and will effect a great saving in the cost of pro- 
ducing milk. 
But so radical a change in feeding practice ought, perhaps, to be 
introduced slowly and with caution; the more conservative dairy- 
man will probably prefer to keep to the ordinary farm feeds until 
the effects of feeding inorganic salts of calcium and phosphorus have 
been more fully worked out by the experiment stations. 
Our experience at Beltsville indicates that with many cows a 
liberal ration fed for 4 to 6 weeks before calving easily pays for 
itself through the increased flow of milk in the subsequent lactation 
period, and we think that there are many cows throughout the country 
which are far more valuable than their owners suppose them to be. 
Those dairymen who have been feeding their animals according to 
the standards or less should try giving each cow a period of two 
months dry and feeding her during that period three or four times 
the protein and two or three times the total nutriment required for 
maintenance. The feeds used should contain plenty of calcium and 
phosphorus — legume hay and a liberal proportion of bran and cotton- 
seed or linseed meal. If dairymen find that the milk yield of any 
of their cows is doubled by this process, they will run no risk of 
reducing their profits by feeding those cows even 50 per cent more 
