limited use for feeding farm animals in different parts of the world; a few of these will be briefly considered in the following.

Leaves and twigs of brush and trees are a favorite feed for goats, and also used for feeding cattle and sheep in the northern part of the Scandinavian countries and Finland, being harvested and tied in bundles in the summer and fed during the winter months as a partial substitute for hay, which often cannot be obtained in sufficient quantities to carry the animals through the season. Birch, ash, and linden are commonly harvested for this purpose. The dried leaves and small twigs of these trees, fed in a limited amount, make a fair feed for the animals mentioned, as well as for goats, and have about similar nutritive value as the lower grades of hay or straw. Brush feed has been recommended as a carrier for molasses in feeding farm stock, and is used for this purpose to a limited extent. It consists of leaves, twigs, and small stems of underbrush, which are run through a cutter and crusher, and molasses is afterwards mixed with the material. Enthusiastic reports of such molasses feeds are on record, but their feeding value has not yet been determined by means of carefully-conducted experiments.

Acorns and beechnuts are used as a swine feed on the Continent in Europe, and in a small way in this country in the South and in California, the animals being driven to the woods in the fall and fattened upon the nuts that they pick up from the ground. According to the Tuskegee, Alabama, station, acorns and kitchen slop make a good feed for swine, about five pounds of acorns being fed

per héad daily. The tendency of beechnuts to make soft pork of inferior quality may be partially overcome by feeding peas, horse beans, or grain for several weeks prior to slaughtering time. The effect of acorns on the quality of the pork is similar to that of beechnuts; hogs fed exclusively on acorns have a low dressing percentage and the pork is oily and of a very low grade; “ acorn hogs” are, therefore, generally discriminated against by buyers. Both these nut and brush feeds contain considerable quantities of tannin which renders them bitter and less palatable to stock than ordinary feeding stuffs.

Icelandic moss is another material that is sometimes used for feeding cattle in extreme northern countries. It may be inferred that this possesses considerable feeding value from the fact that it forms the main and often sole feed of the reindeer in these northern regions. Its digestibility and nutritive effects have been studied

· Wisconsin Circular 30, p. 94. 2 Bulletin 93.

* Pett, “Futtermittellehre,” ii, 1, p. 569; Jr. Board of Agr. (England), 21, 511,

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by Isaachsen, of the Agricultural College of Norway. It is essentially a starchy feed, containing about 50 per cent nitrogen-free extract, 42 per cent fiber, and only 3 per cent protein.

Carob pods are the fruit of the carob tree (Ceratonia Siliqua), a legume growing in the coastal region of Central and Southern California and in Southern Europe around the Mediterranean Sea. The pods are highly prized in Europe as a feed for horses, cattle, sheep and swine and has also proved a valuable and palatable feed for calves. Trials at the California Station by the authors showed the pods to be fully equal to barley in feeding value. They contain a high percentage of nitrogen-free extract, largely sugar, which is sometimes present in 40 per cent of the weight of the pods.

Mesquite bean is another leguminous tree fruit growing in the arid Southwest and used as a feed for man and beast.

Of other materials sometimes used for stock feeding may be mentioned: Prickly comfrey, purslane, spurry, potato vines, chestnuts, stale bread, garbage, orchard by-products, cull fruits and vegetables, apple pomace, soap weed (yucca), mistletoe, sea weeds, etc.

III. Condimental Stock Feeds.-Condimental stock feeds, stock tonics, etc., are sold everywhere and in large quantities in the aggregate.

In so far as these materials claim to be feeds and to possess actual nutritive properties, they can be dismissed at once, as they are not fed in sufficient quantities to be of any importance whatever as feeds, and are, furthermore, too expensive to be used for this purpose. As regards their value as tonics and medicine, on the other hand, the examinations made of the materials have shown that they do not contain sufficient amounts of substances possessing medicinal properties to have any influence on stock one way or the other. A large bulk (one-half or more) of the stock feeds are made up of some common feeding stuffs, like mill feeds, corn meal, linseed meal, ground screenings, etc., and the balance generally consists of salt, charcoal, or sulfur, with a small amount of mild drugs, like gentian, fenugreek, sassafras, ginger, pepper, etc. The doses of these condiments which an animal receives in an ounce or two of the stock feed, fed as directed, are too small to have any medicinal effect whatever, as they make only a small fraction of the dose recognized by veterinary science, on account of the small proportions in which they are present in the stock feeds.

ferent experiment stations, and the results obtained in the trials are given in the publications of these stations and may be studied by all interested. The author made an investigation of the main stock feeds on the American market several years ago and compiled the results obtained on all experiments that were conducted with them up to that time in this and foreign countries. In these experiments 992 farm animals were included in all, viz., 78 steers, 81 dairy cows, 604 sheep, 112 pigs, and 117 hens. Out of the 23 different trials compiled, only two showed the stock feed to possess any merit, and the interpretation of the result of the two exceptions is open to question. The evidence is, therefore, practically unanimous against the use of condimental stock feeds, and goes to show that, when fed under conditions similar to those that prevailed in these experiments, the addition of a stock feed to the ration is a positive disadvantage, both with reference to the production of the animals and the relative cost of the production.

Home-made Stock Tonics. If a farmer considers it necessary to use stock feeds for animals in poor condition of health, off feed, or ailing in one way or another, that is not plainly a case for a veterinarian to attend to, it would seem that the better plan would be to buy the separate ingredients at a drug store and mix them in the proportions indicated below. He will save money thereby and will have the satisfaction of knowing just what he is feeding his stock and of feeding it in a much more concentrated form than in the case of commercialpreparations. The following three mixtures of drugs, etc., have been suggested by the Vermont and Iowa stations 8 :

Formula 1.—Ground gentian, one pound; ground ginger, 14 pound; powdered saltpeter, 44 pound; powdered iron sulfate, 44 pound. Mix and give one tablespoonful in feed once daily for ten days, omit for three days, and feed as above for ten days more.

Formula 2.-Fenugreek 4 pound; ginger, 4 pound; powdered gentian, 42 pound; powdered sulfur, 14 pound; potassium nitrate, y pound; resin, 42 pound; cayenne pepper 14 pound; ground flaxseed meal, 3 pounds; powdered charcoal, i 42 pounds; common salt, 142 pounds; wheat bran, 6 pounds.

Formula 3.- Powdered gentian and ginger, 1 pound each; fenugreek, 5 pounds; common salt, 10 pounds; bran, 50 pounds; oil meal, 50 pounds.

Summary":-The evidence at hand with regard to condimental stock feeds shows that there is practical unanimity of opinion among scientific men who have given the subject special study, in regard to these so-called feeds or tonics.

1. They are of no benefit to healthy animals when fed as directed, either as to increasing the digestibility of the feed or rendering it more effective for the production of meat, milk, wool, etc.

2. They are of no benefit as a cure-all for diseases of the various classes of live stock; neither do they possess any particular merit in case of specific diseases, or for animals out of condition, off feed, etc., since only a small proportion of ingredients having medicinal value is found therein, the bulk of the feeds consisting of a filler which possesses no medicinal properties whatever.

3. Exorbitant prices are charged for these feeds, as is natural, considering the extensive advertising the manufacturers are doing and the liberal selling commissions they pay. The large sales of stock feeds are doubtless mainly to be attributed to these facts.

4. By adopting a liberal system of feeding farm animals and furnishing a variety of feeds, good results may be obtained without resorting to condimental stock feeds. If a farmer considers it necessary to give stock feeds at times, he can purchase the ingredients at a drug store and make his own at a fraction of the cost charged for them by the manufacturers.

The preceding conclusions may be said to give the case against the condimental stock feeds. It is only fair to state, as the other side of the case, that the suggestions for better care and feeding of stock which have come from the advertising matter issued by stock feed manufacturers, or from their agents, have doubtless beon of value to many farmers and have been productive of results. As many people are not disposed to heed advice that is given without cost, it may be that indirectly the money spent for condimental stock feed has not in some cases been wholly wasted.

QUESTIONS 1. What is a proprietary feed, and to what extent is it wise to use such PART III PRODUCTIVE FEEDING OF FARM ANIMALS

CHAPTER XXI

CALF FEEDING

Feeding Standards for Calves. The following tables give the feed requirements for growing cattle, according to the standards of Wolff-Lehmann and of Armsby:

1. Wolff-Lehmann Standards for Growing Cattle—1000 pounds live weight

Birth Weights of Calves.-New-born calves weigh from below 40 to over 100 pounds each, according to the size of the parents. The average birth weights of calves of the dairy breeds are approximately as follows: 1 Ayrshire, 70 pounds; Guernsey, 70 pounds;

Connecticut (Storrs) Report, 1907; Maine Bul. 274; Illinois Cir. 202; Eckles, Dairy Cattle and Milk Production, p. 174; unpublished data from California Station.

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