With these facts in mind we are prepared for an answer to the question,
What is an ideal ration?

First, it is a ration that, without waste, furnishes both in weight and
bulk of dry matter a sufficient amount of digestible, nutritious food.

Second, it is a ration that is comparatively cheap.

Third, it is a ration in which the milk-forming food (protein) is
rightly proportioned to the heat-making and fat-making food
(carbohydrates and fat). Any ration in which this proportion is
neglected is badly balanced.

Now test one or two commonly used rations by these rules. Would a ration
of cotton-seed meal and cotton-seed hulls be a model ration? No. Such a
ration, since the seeds are grown at home, would be cheap enough.
However, it is badly balanced, for it is too rich in protein; hence it
is a wasteful ration. Would a ration of corn meal and corn stover be a
desirable ration? This, too, since the corn is home-grown, would be
cheap for the farmer; but, like the other, it is badly balanced, for it
contains too much carbohydrate food and is therefore a wasteful ration.

A badly balanced ration does harm in two ways: first, the milk flow of
the cow is lessened by such a ration; second, the cow does not
profitably use the food that she eats.

The following table gives an excellent dairy ration for the farmer who
has a silo. If he does not have a silo, some other food can be used in
place of the ensilage. The table also shows what each food contains. As
you grow older, it will pay you to study such tables most carefully.

===============================================================
| DIGESTIBLE MATTER
|----------------------------------
FEED STUFFS | Dry |Protein|Carbohydrates| Fat
|matter| | |
---------------------------------------------------------------
Cowpea hay = 15 pounds[1] | 13.50| 1.62 | 5.79 | .16
Corn stover = 10 pounds | 5.95| .17 | 3.24 | .07
Corn ensilage = 30 pounds | 6.27| .27 | 3.39 | .21
Cotton-seed meal = 2 pounds | 1.83| .74 | .33 | .24
---------------------------------------------------------------
Total = 57 pounds | 27.55| 2.80 | 12.75 | .68
===============================================================

[Footnote 1: Alfalfa or clover hay may take the place of cowpea hay.]

=C