28 
IMPERIAL COLLEGE OF 
The daily consumption of food, excretion and digestion 
is calculated as hereafter :— 
Dry 
matter. 
Grams. 
Organic 
matter. 
Grams. 
Crude 
protein. 
Grams. 
Eat. 
Grams. 
Fibre. 
Grams. 
Nitro¬ 
genfree 
extract. 
Grams. 
Sheep No. I. 
Hay given. 
692.00 
645.43 
127.47 
25.19 
260.05 
332.72 
„ left. 
92.55 
86.06 
8.51 
1.63 
58.42 
17.50 
,, consumed. 
599.45 
559.37 
118.96 
23.56 
201.63 
215.22 
Excreted . 
243.80 
214.71 
29.13 
12.24 
108.88 
64.46 
Digested . 
355.65 
344.66 
89.83 
11.32 
92.75 
150.76 
Sheep No. II. 
Hay given. 
692.00 
645.43 
127.47 
25.19 
260.05 
232.72 
„ left . 
63.99 
59.50 
5.90 
1.13 
40.39 
12.10 
„ consumed. 
628.01 
585.93 
121.57 
24.06 
219.66 
220.62 
Excreted . 
247.51 
218.55 
32.62 
13.17 
108.29 
64.48 
Digested . 
380.50 
367.38 
88.95 
10.89 
111.37 
156.14 
Digestion coefficients : 
Sheep No. I. 
59.33 
61.61 
75.51 
48.04 
46.00 
70.05 
„ „ II. 
60.58 
62.69 
73.17 
45.26 
50.70 
70.77 
Average. 
59.96 
62.15 
74.34 
46.65 
48.35 
70.41 
As these results show, the early cut soy bean hay is 
richer in crude protein, fat and nitrogenfree extract, but 
poorer in fibre and accordingly also more digestible than 
that which is cured when the pods are out. It contains, 
percent of dry matter : 
Digestible crude protein 
„ fat. 
,, fibre . 
ni trogenfree extract 
13.69 % 
1.70 „ 
18.16 „ 
23.68 „ 
Although a better and more digestible fodder can be 
obtained by cutting earlier than it is at present the custom 
to do, it cannot be recommended to cure the soy beans 
before they have completed the growth of the pods, because 
as a very important practical fact the quantity of dry 
matter increases still very considerably after the flowering 
period of that plant. At an investigation which we made 
on another occasion we observed that the total dry matter of 
