Although the practice of cooking food has been advocated by several eminent feeders, it has been condemned by others. Mr. Lawes is not favorable to the cooking of food unless when it is scarce. The results of Colonel M'Douall's experiments go to prove that cattle can be more economically kept upon a mixture of raw and cooked foods than upon either raw or cooked fodder given separately. One meal of cooked food and two feeds of raw turnips gave better results than three feeds of raw turnips; whilst two cooked feeds and a raw one resulted in a loss. The fermentation of food, if not the best, is certainly the cheapest mode of preparing it. If the process be not pushed too far the loss of nutriment sustained is inconsiderable. When a mixture of straw and roots is fermented, the hard fibres of the latter are, to a great extent, broken up, and the nutrient particles which they envelop are fully exposed to the action of the solvent juices of the stomach. A great advantage in cooking or fermenting food is that the most rubbishy materials can be used up. Indeed, as a general rule, the better soft food is, the less the necessity for cooking it; but washed out hay and hard, over-ripened straw are of but little value, except when cooked and given in combination with some agreeably-flavored substance. VALUE FOR FEEDING PURPOSES OF VARIOUS FOODS.[22] +--------------------------------------------------------+ | KEY: | | A.--Starch, Sugar, &c. | | B.--Oil, Starch, &c., computed as Oil. | | C.--Weight. | | D.--Value. | | E.--Value of Nitrogen, Phosphoric Acid, and Potash. | | F.--Deduct Nitrogen for perspiration. | | G.--Net Value for Manure. | | | +---------------+------------------+-------------------------------------+ | | COST. | 100 LBS. CONTAIN. | | +----------+-------+------+-------+-------+--------------+ | MATERIAL. | | | | | | Nitrogen. | | | | Per | | | | | | | Per | 100 | | | +------+-------+ | | ton. | lbs. | Oil. | A. | B. | C. | D. | +---------------+----------+-------+------+-------+-------+------+-------+ | | £ s. d.| s. d. | lbs. | lbs. | lbs. | lbs. | d. | | | | | | | | | | |Meadow-hay | 4 0 0 | 3 7 | 2·68 | 39·75 | 24·63 | 1·48 | 10·62 |