Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-02-16
ADDRESS of Gen. James II. Baker.

address of Gen. James III. Baker.
Mr.. PRESIDENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN
The COW, Coasidered il tue solid symmetery of
Der form, ire sobriety aud dignity of het Goa
duct, the general amiab lity OF her disposi on,
and above all, her wonderful contributions to
the necessities, and the Injuries of our race,
give her pre-eminent importance over all other
domestic animals. And the breeding of such
| useful and beautiful domestic animal is to
| be enumerated as of the nohlest ard most
refined pulsui of cultivated men. From the
days when Jacob bed the spotted Line for
Laban and himself, n the fields of Mesopota-
mia, herds of cattle have signifed wealth.
| Enanci patton from ba rbariSm to the refine
ments of a better civilization, have only in
creased their importance to mankind. Think
| of a world without cattle! Without
| beef, without butter, without cream,
| without cheese! What an imperfect
aud unfinished orb it would be? The whole
system of created beings would appear defective.
| AS matter OF actual living, from the cladle to
| the grave, we could better abolish all other do
| nestle animals than TINT the cow and her race
should be exterminated from the earth. Other
domestic animals seem to have cut no special fig
ure in the earlier annals of our race. No WON
der, then, that the ancient and classic Egyptieus
| 6eifed the COW under the name of Isis, and that
| the Romans alleged that OF Apollo himself
| taught mankind how to make butter. Let us,
| thea, hold the COW in honor, for she ministers
alike 10 our necessities and luxuI;es: she sends
the children to school aud clothes them respect
ably; she buys the sugar, tea and coffee of mosd
well-regulated farm families; she pays for the
! wedding clothes of many fair gIri she fur
nishes nutritious be age f,om iufa icy to age;
| her product is on ,he 4bleS of the rich, and is
| food Itself for thousands of the poor in all
lands; she ornaments the PARK OF tue lord, and
| lows kindly a. the humble door OF the widow in
| her desg-tuGon; she takes toe mortgages
from grain-rldden fans, eud kindly cells at the
bank 10 lif6 the note, us5 due, on her "crumrled
! horn." Therefore, treat her tendeIly, keep her
clearly, sud feed her good full r,t.on, that she
may honor the dcaits Tue world is sure to make
| upon her infinite resources!
The Lapiander has his reindeer; the rot.ng
TarGer his mares; the Betoa:O OF the dese-t, his
| camels the rocky regions, t1eir soa,s; but in
| the temperate zoues, the civilized man has his
COW; which, for the purposes intsoded, is jusG as
much above tue Others as civilization Is e6oVe
barbar-sm. About this COW aud her products it
is our mission to talk tonight.
| SOMETHING BESIDES WHEAT.
| 1t is not the grand resources of our country
| in its capabilities for producing bread chiefly
that we should exult, but in its equal ability to
produce meat, butter and cheese. We have
been accustomed to look too much to our pro-
| duciDg power in bushels Look at Virginia
possessed of the most fertile soil, in tobacco and
| wheat she once richly rewarded careless has
| baudry; thousands of acres ate now abandoned.
There is husbandry that would have kept hec
| lands ever fresh. Here on our rich prairies,
| like causes will produce like results. Already
| the deteriOrating effects of favoTIte crop has
left its mark OF sterility We have damaged
ourland in southern Minnesota and Iowa from
| So to SIS per acre in the pursuit of bushels of
| grain. Beginning with virgin lands, we have
impoverished them. Calling ourselves telegram
ary of the world, we have carried forword tide
OF destruction and deterioration. The rearing
of stock is the best reliance yet discovered for
the renovation of exhausted soils and the parpet-
uation of fertility. Animal economy will re-
| turn to the soil the constituent elements taken
from it by vegetation. The animal and vege-
| table kingdom appe to be lnseparably inter
| woven as parts of successful agriculture. If
can so present general facts as 10 tu1n some pro
potion of the farming public from longer par
| liclpattou in this robbery of our soil, to the
| better and more remunefatlve business OF stock
rails .ng and dairy farming, as the chief part of
mixed husb9udry, will have rendered tle state
an Important service.
! THE ADVANTAGES OF DAIRY AND STOCK FARMING.
| Let us group together some Of the advantages,
| both material and esthetical, which experience
teaches those who are willing to learn, as directly
| flowing from stock and dairy farming. l know
that we are saturated with fundamental pEnci-
pies; but the experience, both of this country
/ and England, enables me to formulate some I'M
| Improbable propositions:
| First-Both in England and the United States
no character of farming lands have increased in
value in the ratio of those in tue cattle and dairy
| districts. Grazing lands are more valuable than
| grain lands the world over. And stock farmers,
as rule, are more well-to-do than other farmers.
| Second-That there are no lands of inezausti-
bic fertility to be had, and that the elements
| used to produce crop must be returned to 1t,
OF the soil is impoverished.
Third-That no method has ever yet been dis
covered, by science experience, which will not
| only retain, but increase the productive power
of the soil, equal to the raising of grass and
stock Pasturage, clover and barnyard manure
furnish the easiest and simplest way of returning
wastage. Grass means cattle, cattle means
| diaries and beef, butter and cheese.
| Fourth-Acre for acre, there is much greater
average yield of value to stock and dairy farm
| ing, than to any kind of grain farming.
Fifth-That it costs less IN money and drudgery
| to run stock and dairy farm, than it does to
run a grain farm.
| Sixth-That even inferior lands can be utilized
| for dairy farms Hill-sides can be turned into
| use and poor soils set to grass.
| Ssventh-That such farming simplihes the
whole question of transportation: for the pro-
| ducts of the farm are concentrated into the
smallest compass, and the cost of conveyance is
| at once reduced to minimum. The products of
the dairy and cattle are sent to market for about
| one-twentieth the cost of freighting grain.
Eighth-That the products of the dairy and
stock farm are more readily, conveniently and
| earlier turned into cash.
| Ninth-That dairy and stock farms are sell
dom mortgaged; while grain farms are uni
| formly encountered for both land and machin-
cry. And grain farms, the honest old COW is
often mertgaged to save both the land and
machinery.
| Tenth-The dairymen and the stock raj sers do
not look to a war in Europe to help them out
with their bad crops. They are not at the
mercy of the stock jobbers, who send grain up
and down like fish cork; are they running
g tilt with Russian serfs for supremacy in the
| grain markets of England. Their prices are
| stable and demand regular.
Eleventh-Stock and dairying provide against
a failure of crops. Bad weather don't effect
them disastrou.ly. The weevil, the chintz bug
the grasshoppers and the rust, have no terrors
for them. The grasses have fewer enemies than
grain fields.
Twelfth-And finally, stock and dairy
| farming is not only regeneration
of the soil, but it advances the
| conioJ ;p4allaot,,o1 ond homo 1ifa Of thoca on