The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1899-04-20
AS TO STOCK FEEDING
LIGHrIHROwS OK THE -URJEci
BY STATE CHEMIST J.
VI. M'CANDLESS.
rlATTER AN IMPORTANT ONE
A Young Farmer Discouraged With
Farming aud the Low Prices of
Cotton Is Given Advice.


To the State Chemist, Atlanta, Ca:
Dean SIR-I am young farmer al.
most discouraged with farming and the
low prices Of cotton. / had thought OF
devoting more attention to my stock,
and write to ask If chemistry can
throw any light on that subject, as all
farmers admit that IL does ON the sub.
ject of fertilizers. Can you give some
good formulas for feeding? / have a
| good common school education, but
! want you to be plain 80 / can under
stand what you say. A. 30.
To A. B. c.: s&R 8sesss
| DEAR SIR-Your letter received, and
the Questions you ask open up wide
field for discussion, and are of the great
est practical importance, not only to the
farmer, but to the general prosperity of
the whole country.
| Yes, chemistry can throw a great
flood OF light on the subject of stock
feeding, which is part of the general
subject OF animal nutrition. The sub.
| ject is usually treated last In nearly
all works on agriculture, but / am
| now going to write to you about it
first, because You seem specially inter-
| ested in it, and also because / believe
that if a general and intelligent inter.
est in the subject of stock raising could
be awakened in the country it would do
more for our agricultural regeneration
than any one thing that can think of.
could answer the main question of
your letter at once by giving you some
formulas for feeding, but I am not
going to do that because You would not
see any sense in it, or any good reason
for it, and desire that you should un.
derstand the principles of feeding first,
then you will take an intelligent inter.
est in it, and be more successful in 1t
than If you went at it blindly by mere
'Tule OF thumb am going to as.
sumo that there are numbers of farmers
like yourself in Georgia with limited
but fair education, who are disguised
with the all cotton policy, and that this
letter addressed to you personally is also
OF interest to them, and so shall print
it In the Monthly Talks" of the com.
missioner of agriculture, that it may
have wide circulation among the
farmers, and perhaps be of interest and
benefit to them as well as yourself to
whom 1t is addressed. Iexpect to write
one of these letters for each of the
Monthly Talks" according as I may
find opportunity and time to spare from
my other duties, and to continue them
as long as think have anything of
practical value to say to the farmers. As
/ am not writing these letters for those
well versed in scientific agriculture,
but for beginners, shall commence
with elementary principles.
Twill discuss in brief manner some
of the principles of animal nutrition or
of feeding.
The animal body is composed of water,
that constituting from 40 to 60 per cent
of it, and also Of protein, fat and ash, of
which bast bones are the chief part The
protein of the body includes all of the
matter in the body containing nitrogen.
The lean meat, the casein of milk or the
curd, the white of eggs. or albumen are
all forms OF protein The term albu.
minoids derived from albumen, is often
used to mean the same as protein, al
though that use is not strictly correct.
The albuminoids are class OF bodies in.
cludd under the general name of pro-
tein. The flesh, the skin, the hair. the
muscles, the heart, the liver, the brain.
the blood, the nerves. all the internal or.
gans, the nails, the horns, the hoofs and
in fact large part of the bones all consist
largely of protein. So we see this SUBJ
stance, protein. is indeed a most inn.
portant one; life cannot exist without
1t. and when we go into the market TO
buy it in its most concentrated forms.
as in beef, mutton, pork and milk, we
find we have to go down into our pock.
cts just little deeper than for the other
necessaries of life. The carbohydrates
and fat are also necessary to animal life.
The word carbohydrate is derived from
carbon (of which charcoal is o good az.
ample) and the word hydrate is from
the Greek for water. An example of a
pure carbohydrate is starch, we eat il
usually in the form of meal, -four. rice
and potatoes, of which it forms the
greater part. Sugar is the first cousin
OF starch Gndeed it can be made from
it, and is also included under the term
carbohydrates. These carbohydrates
are the principal source of the fat of
our bodies, and are the chief source of
animal heat and the energy of the body,
in fact they are q sort of fuel. and are so
to speak burned in the body, heat and
work being result of their oxidation
or burning, just as heat and work or
motion are result of the burning or
oxidation of coal in an engine. So we
see these carbohydrates are important,
but we also find they are cheap as COM