bilities of the utilization of animal flesh other than beef, pork, mutton, and poultry for food. Probably some here have tried the generous whale steaks. In the United States quite a number of markets have been established for the sale of horse meat for human food. They have met with very indifferent success, but there appears to be a growing demand for the cured horse meat for export. The horse does better than the steer on the open ranges in making a living under adverse conditions. He is able to graze closer and will paw away the snow in winter to get at the grass when a steer will starve.

Horse meat is more like beef than it is like pork or mutton. In fact, most of us could not tell a roast of horse from one of beef. Our prejudice against eating an animal which has been of such service to man is hard to overcome. I hope the time may come when the meat of the horse will find its place on our tables without prejudice, yet I would not wish the stress of necessity to force us to it as was the case with Europe.

There is not time to discuss the question of the economy of milk production or its importance as animal food. A steer may gain from 300 to 800 pounds in a year, not over 40 per cent of which is solids available for human food. In the same length of time the dairy cow may add 100 pounds to her weight and produce more than her body weight in milk solids. She exceeds the steer in economy of production, but she should be made to manufacture her products from those feed stuffs not already available for human consumption.

Modern agriculture must not seek to make of man a vegetarian. Production and consumption of meat must be encouraged. Permanent agriculture demands crop rotation and the maintenance of soil fertility with the production of sufficient animals to manufacture into human food and into energy for man's use those products not directly available to him. This should be done with a minimum use of that food for animals which is in its form adapted to man's immediate use.

As I try to figure the possibilities of meat production from the hay, grass, and roughage of the cereal crops, I am almost incredulous at the magnitude. I will not attempt to give you the figures. I have used the Government reports of acreage and yields. I have used Henry and Morrison's1 figures on the composition of the various roughages and on the digestible nutrients contained in them. I have estimated that one-half of all the cereal straw and corn fodder could be wasted and used for other than feed purposes. I have computed the number of cattle, sheep, horses, and mules and estimated that one-fourth of all the roughage should be reserved for the horses and mules. I have not counted in the feed value

1 W. A. Henry and F. B. Morrison. Feeds and Feeding. 15th ed., 1915, 633-4.

of any of the concentrates nor the cereals. I have used our experimental data which show that only about 15 per cent of the digestible nutrients can be transformed by the animals into digestible meat product nutrients for man's consumption. I have subtracted the over two and one-half billion pounds of meat and meat products we exported during 1918, and yet if we would only utilize what we already produce every man, woman, and child in our land might eat pork and poultry as of old and, in addition, have more than one and one-half pounds of beef or mutton every working day in the year.