Ca ee 
258 Report oF THE First ASSISTANT OF THE 
General Observations. 
These feeding trials here reported, though many of them for 
periods necessarily rather short, were repeated for several seasons 
and are the average results from a number of different cows, so 
that the indications which they all give of the value of alfalfa 
can hardly be considered accidental. 
The average of all the analyses made of the fourteen lots of 
alfalfa used in these feeding trials will give an idea of the general 
~ composition of alfalfa forage. The average composition of three 
lots of mature corn forage might be considered beside that of the 
alfalfa for comparison‘as follows: 


| Alfalfa Corn 


forage. forage. 
Fer cent. of moisture... s ¢s a4 seco ek oe eee ee 10540 71.80 
Y OL ashait sci, Aig i eee ee 2.28 £230 
FS Of protein. Ee cow, wei esis Aas gether eee oe 4.48 2.27 
oh of true albuminoida ai..na wh eee ee SVbor 1. OF 
43 ol crude fibre 20 Ce ele ee Oe 6.59 5.17 
ef of: N: free extracto<ie o.214 Ps OS eee 10.26 18.46 
‘: OF Tats yb Ris ae Se Pitarce Wk pees ee 1.29 1.10 



In determining the cost of milk, for purpose of comparison, for 
each period reported in the preceding tables, the cost of the food 
only was considered. The manurial values of the foods were not 
taken into account, although under favorable conditions the net 
cost to the farm of milk would be much influenced by the ferti- 
lizing values of the foods. The manurial values of rations con- 
taining alfalfa and of those containing highly nitrogenous grain 
foods would be much greater than of most rations, but except — 
where special attention is given to careful handling of manure, — 
only asmall proportion of the possible amount would berecovered. __ 
When alfalfa forage was substituted for some other food or 
the amount of alfalfa in the ration increased, there followed in 
10 instances a decrease in the cost of the milk, in twoinstances 
a very slight increase in cost, and in two instances the cost of 
milk was practically the same. There was an increase in the 
yield of milk in seven instances, a decrease in four instances of 
‘about what might normally be expected to occur without change 
of food, and little change in yield in three instances. 

