— 8 — 
over a longer period, tends to increase the percentages of 
ash, protein, and crude fiber. In the second cutting of i8g6, 
the ash and protein are high, but the crude fiber is low and 
th^ crop was light. 
The conditions obtaining later in the season of i8q6, 
were more nearly normal for our locality and the third cut- 
ting grew fora longer period, matured more slowly, and, 
while the proteids are high, we have an increase of about 
six per cent, in the crude fiber of the later sample. There 
is no such increase in the other series for this or for preced- 
ing years. While there is in general an increase in the per- 
centage of woody fiber, with the development of the plant, 
we have found it neither so great nor so regular as is shown 
in Bulletin No. 8, of this station, and also by others. We 
speak of the plant during the period in which it is fit for 
making hay. In this instance, however, we have a decided 
increase which, I believe, is fully accounted for by the ex- 
planation offered, i. e., the season conditions which deter- 
mine the rate at which the plant matures. If this view be 
correct, it follows that the same piece of ground will pro- 
duce hays of different qualities in different years even when 
we take hays of the same cutting, and the total of these 
seasonal influences is correctly indicated by the differences 
in the composition of the respective samples. This influ- 
ence seems to be large enough to determine the relative 
desirableness of the different cuttings which, under ordi- 
nary conditions, stand pretty close together. In speaking 
of the crop of 1894, we state that the first and second cuttings 
are about equal in value, so far as the proteids are con- 
cerned, and subsequently we call attention to the fact that, if 
we reject an entirely green sample because of its immatur- 
ity, the results are then in favor of the second cutting. The 
seasonal effects do not have to be very great to determine 
which of the cuttings shall have the more desirable compo- 
sition. 
The following table, presenting the averages for the re- 
spective cuttings for the years 1894, 1895, and 1896, will 
serve to make these differences plain and show that for a 
given district there is a comparative constancy in the com- 
position of this fodder. 
These averages, to which is appended averages for the 
usual three cuttings, taken from Bulletin No. 48 of the Utah 
Agricultural lUxperiment Station, which I have recalculated 
to a common water content of 7.5 per cent., instead of 1 2 per 
