The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1860-01-31 00:00:00

ftgricutturt.

CONCENTRATED FOODS.

" What's in a flamer The answer now-a-days is
obvious —" everything." How very alluring, for
damply, the words "concentrated food," how satisfac-
tory the idea of giving our animals nutriment in small
parcels, avoiding all weak, and econoinising the diges-
tive forks. Change the title into " pstent indigestible
food," and how very different the feeling with which we
scan it. There is something in us %Inch begets a faith
in the impossible; we are led somehow to hope that
where everything is promised, something may at least
be done. If Horrison's pilbi do not ruse the dead.
they may perchance remove a liver oomplaint. If
Holloway's ointment fails in CallCer, a " bsd leg" may
heal under its influence. If the estrimis concentrated
fowls promising fabulous increase of bulk do not fatten
an I.a in a mouth, they may very much assist the pro-
cess ; so without thinking or caring about the compoei-
Hon, or the action, we try them, and we (Amy that we
find considerable advantage from their arse.
•••• • •

Allowing much for iinaginat" it may still be urged
eataneive eipatiesee meet aellteetetty have toted the
natter to inskil it easy to decide whether any good
follows the employment of these feeding materials.
The hr quiry then follows. on what ,hies their value
depend? Everybody knowing anything of cattle is to
some extend eirgioismt of the feeThig valote of different
articles. as ascertained by analysis or by experiment.
He is aware that certain parts of the hood are appro•
priated to the formation of fat, and others to the coo.
straction of flesh; and that dependant upon the pre. !
lemilerance of the one or other constituent, the flesh.
forming or fattorming. will be the character of the food.
Chemistry cati precisely fix the relative proportion of the
principles contained in any given specimen, and can
assert its capabilities or can show its worthlessness.
But chemistry cannot ascertain the force of the annual"
digestive powers, nor the extent of its sasianilative
func-
tions. On the contrary, it admits that an article con-
tainitig a large proportion of flesh-forming materials
may be comparatively useless in the animal's economy,
and that an agent consisting exclusively of fatty ele-
ments may be utterly powerless to induce a disposition
to fatten. Straw, by way of illustration, is chemically
of high feeding value, but experiment shows how
inefficient it is to the support of the ayatena when given
as the sole provender. Various oils, although rich in
the requisite principles, fail to cause any disposition of
fat, and even induce an opposite condition.
80111 C kinds of food yield their nutrient properties to
the digs-live promos of one class of animals, and deny
it to another. In the case of straw as a feeding article.
it was found, during some experiments osi oxen and
horse, that the former animate olotained by digestion
inure than double the amount of nutriment 01 t mined by
the latter, but that toy neither was 11111C:1111We thaso half
the really nutritive matter appropriated by the system.
These isdists are familiar etiou,,li to all of ui, b it coins--
mow we lose sight of them vr:y often when talking
about " fr.. ding ;- we are too apt to judge I y tue abso-
lute amount ef nutritious matter known to be present,
forgetting how much of that actual quantity may be
completely wa.te.
A perfect syateui of feeding involves two considera-
tions-Ist, the quantity of available matter in a give.i
food ; 2i1.1, the existence of it in a dig, stdde form oir
otherwise. It cannot be too constantly isuereioed upon
feeders that it 1.. the quantity digested sold not the
quantity consumed that deter 11l ill the r.ind increase
.4 bulk. The value therefore of a food is iii direct

..... --
proportion to Ito iligeotibility. and not in pruport.
to the absolute amount of the nutrient pnnciple.
Iteturning to the expremion " concentrated food,"
we may aok, io it pomible to concentrate, so ao
to convey to the oyotein the exact inst.-riots required
for ito support, and exclude all matters that are not
indispenoable ? Such concentration we know to be
ritIOU posoible, but attended with ouch an expense, from
the necomary complications of the process, aa to render
it unproctical ' • besides that the active principle of the
nutriment is found to be medicinal and even powerfully
~,, in Ito action, so that the term and the idea attached
to it way be fairly abandoned in our further reasoning.
let on see if the composition of the " food" will asoist

Without attempting to decide upon the particular I
kind of " meal" that forms the basis of the various. ,
" cattle foods." whether ground lentils or beans or any-
thing of the kind, we feel tolerably secure in asserting '
that they all contain some form of spice, carminative or
condiment, or whatever else we may chose to call it.
Such condiment we believe to consist 'mealy of tur-
meric, although we see no reason to restrict ourselves to
this agent. In the pre.euess of this condiment lies, we
conceive, the secret of the whole matter. By its devour '
it provokes appetite, and is consequently !wind useful
to hard-worked horses. tempting them to eat when from
sheer exhaustion they would scarcely be inclined to du
so without something to entice them. It thus supplies
the place of the " cordial ball" which the groom would
give with the same object HI view. By its contract
with the membrane of the atomic,' it excites secretion,
tending to soften the mass and facilitate digestion. The
bandits of this act oil would be more apparent in the
case of the ox than the horse, from the extent and low
sensibility of the membrane in the find three stomacha
of the former. There seems to be no difficulty in ex-
plaining the effects of the " foods" on this isrinciple.
I If it be urged that the natural digestive power in a
healthy MOWSI ought to be sufficient without the inter-
ference of stimulants to excite the secretive functions,
the answer is at hand : the natural digestive !weer in a
healthy subject is quite adequate to supply the wants
of the isystein ; but it is not by necessity equal to the
task of fattening a beast for a Chriatinas allow in a
remarkably abort spaoe of time ; it is not equal to the
sussimilation of unnecessary nutriment. nor is it equal
to the digest of ordinary food when the body is ex-
hausted by exposure or exertion. The functions can-
not be said to be acting naturally or healthy under such
circumstances, and most consistent with the laws of
the organisation is the use of a seasoned diet then. So
far from concentrated nutriment being necessary, wit
can imagine the so-called concentrated food to be
finally or more valuably. without one particle of nutri-
tious matter entering into its composition. Given, as
it always is. in association with the ordinary provender,
its effects are to be sought in the eondiments it con'
tame, and in them alone.—G. T. B.
REPEAL OE THE WAR DUTY ON Hope.—flu Wed.
neaslay a numerously Attended and induential
public
electing of the landowners and proprietors of planta-
tions in the Imp districts of Kent and Sussex Was hell
in the market-room at the Railway Hotel, Maplehurst,
for the adoption of measures to procure a remission of
the prevent duty on hops, and to memorialise the -.7han-
cellor of the Exchequer to provide in the neat budget
that a fixed duty of Id. per lb. shall in future be levied,
in lieu of the existing duties. The chair was occupied
by the Rev. South Marriott, rector of Hssreemondeii.
Kent; and among those present were Lord Holmdel'.
M.l'. for West Kent; Messrs. Osborne, of Mard Pun-
nett, of Sutton ; Partridge, of Yalding; Perry, of Canter-
bury; Reeves, of Robertsbridge ; and other large hop plan-
ters. The Chairman observed that Sir Edmund "Meier,
M.l'. for West Kent, lied fully intt tided to be present. hut
was unexpectedly compelled to attend to imporant busi-
ness elsewhere. The Rev. .1. Deed., Mr. Hussey. of
Scutney Castle. and other influential friends of the
m movement were also compelled to be absent. The
Chairman proceeded to allude to the various burdens
which lie said pressed upon the agriculturists, and to
time steps which had been taken by the hop planters at
various periods hi order to procure a diminution of the
hop duty. He advised them to be film and united,
and continue to agitate for the repeal ssf the war mluty
on bops, and he slid not despair of success. Mr. G.
Putinett moved the first resolution. expremive of the
deternsinathei of the hop growers to abide by the disci-
:Mu arrived at by the great county meeting held at
Penenden-heath in May last —namely, • repeal of all
existing duties, and the imposition of a uniform duty of
Id. per lb." Mr. thibunie. of Malden, seconded the
resolution. Lord Holmeadale. who was well received,
observed he must coulees that a short time since the
prospect of a repeal of the war duty on hops appeared
remote, and last year the Chancellor of the El=
obtained an additional income-tax to used the large
liabilities. His opinion was now souiewliat changed so
to the probability of getting the tax removed, and,
from a variety of causes, this appeared to be • most op-
portune time fur pressing the matter upon the attention
of the o:hancellor of the Exchequer. The resolution
was agreed to. Addresses were then delivered by Mr.
Reeves, of Robertabridge ; Mr. Perry, of Canterbury;
Mr. Hayes, and other planters, and a memorial was
' adopted for presentation to the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer. A committee was appointed to carry out uses-
bums for • continued agitation of the subject and after-
, a vote of cheeks to the cheinuan the meting Napa-
' rated.