Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1886-02-12

til about 1890. and the great growth has occurred
within fifty years. In that time the number of
their products have quadrupied in value. Ii is
within the memory of us All that like the Great
American Desert the famous dairy belt" has
faded away and Is heard Of more. The idea
SO long maintained that the profitable dairying
of the country would always be monopolized by
district cosfined within certain mar
row geographical limits, has been thoroughly
exploded. Il has, been amply shown that good
butter and cheese can be made. by proper man
agement, in almsst all parts of North America
between the 32d, and 5oth, parallels, and perhaps
this is drawing the lines too close. Generally
speaking the territory where good butter can be
with Satisfactory conditions for even limited beef
production. Even the influences of climate, SOIL
water and heritage, are largely controlled, and
by tact and skill. We find some OF the BEST rec
ords of dairy performances, both as TO quantity
and quality Of single animals and whole herds,
Tennessee In remote districts Of Maine and
Minnesota, on the plains OF Nebraska, in the
mountains OF COLORADO and California, among
high lands OF Florida, dairying has assumed
commercial Importance, and know OF establish
or both, have been made long enough and with
such success as to fully satisfy the owners and
friends OF these respective enterprises.
The factory system IS the Characteristic ara flea fea
this industry owes its greatest advance
during the present generation. We all know
the wonderfully rapid extension OF this system
during recent years. The census OF 1880 emu
meratss nearly four thousand dairy factories,
| with a capital of 900 and a total product
valued at $4,000, 900, and reasonable estimates
now place the factories at 60O0. 1t is true that
| of all the dairy products of the country, very
small portion are yet factory mace, but equally
true that il is the factory which gives this INDUS
try its present commercial Importance and which
marks the greatest advance OF the century In the
relations of darying to the farmer and his family
| IL may be compared with the change from the
| wheel and the hsnd-loom to the wooden factory,
| and it is just as certain to be permanent. can
not at all agree with those who claim that pri-
vats dairying is now gaining on the factory sys-
TEN either on the part of the farmer or as judged
by the markets. We still see occasionally at our
| local fairs skeins Of homespun yarn and pieces
| OF cloth which attract attention and generally
Sell at prices above the market for choice factory
| products of similar kind. This is partly the
| result Of their rarity and partly because Of in.
| doubtless be single diaries in many places
| whose products will sell at exceptionally high
prices and probably deserves to, but the total of
| tho general DAIRY market Our factories by
1 NO means perfect and often fail TO give satisfac
| too to their patrons. This, however, is no radi-
cal fault of the system, but results from errors of
details or Of individual management. Improve
| ments are needed and will be made and dairy
markets as dairy cheese. / also expect to see a
great extension OF the cream gathering plan in
| butter making districts. The combined butter
and cheese factory has seen its best days and one
| dairy product or the other must be the sole out
| put of the successful factory of the future. For
the butter factory, pure and simple, the skim
milk becomes practically waste product, and
! the only rational system is to handle the ere am
| alone. Ii is as absurd for the farmer TO send
away his whole milk TO make butter, as it would
be to drive his flock to the wooden mill or for the
| planter to bale his cotton without ginning and
sacrifice the seed.
Great as the progress of dairy husbandry has
been, there remains as IN all branches OF animal
industry ample room for Improvement. We are
| keeping too many mich COWS for their aggregate
product.
The gain in this particular is not fast enough.
| But few years ago, friend or mine who
was supplying milk in New England town and
where the dairy stock OF the vicinity is good,
| made standing offer of 500 for every COW that
| would give fifty pounds of milk daily for three
| days on his farm. This was almost double the
| price OF the best dairy cows, but none of those
presented reached his standard Recently, pc
| riodicaly witnessed and verified the performance
of COW, which with her second calf produced
| one hundred pounds of milk day for a month,
and yearly records Of 10000 to 10000 pounds are
i by no means rare. The average mich COW of
| the United States and by this | mean the COW
kept her product does not yet give 400 gallons
a year. and in the special milk making regions
| there are numerous single herds of ordinary
| breeding, but well selected, where the annual
yield Is from 800 to 300 gallons per COW, and Others
| of pure bred dairy animals where the average
ranges from 900 to 200 gallons per COW. These
| illustrations of the possibility of increasing our
milk supply, from a less number of cows, applies
well TO butter and cheese 1t is certainly more
than possible to SO improve our heards that in a
| few years our present dairy production
can be secured from half the number OF
| cows we now feed. The improvement in
progress in this direction. although, SOW is
| very positive. From 1890 until 1850, the increase
| in number OF mich cows, kept even pace with
| the popuation-G cows to 100 inhabitants was
the rate which did not vary one per cent, during
| these seventy years. But in this time production
increased so there came to be surplus of pro-
ducts. Now, without % cows to every 100 people,
! our surplus is still greater. Our dairy interests
will be better conserved by decrease in the num-
Der OF our cows, and gain in their quality, than
by any increase in number tat least IN the ratio to
| popuation).
The question of surplus In American dairy pro-
| dncts is one of more or less uncertainty. short
| time ago it seemed impossible for dairy produc-
| ton TO be overdone for years to come. But for
the introduction of authorizations and substitutes
for butter and cheese, there could yet be no
| plus unfavorabIy affecting our markets How
far this substitution has extended and its real eff
feet upon the prosperity Of dairyng, Ii is impos-
sible to determine. The export trade has been
| injured in some way and undoubtedly in part by
loss of reputation resulting in frauds in dairy pro-
| ducts. And we know but too well the vast guam
titi of bogus butter and skim cheese W it'll which
| our domestic markets have been flooded.
| l put these two classes of wares upon an equal
| ity as frauds For the skim and half-skim cheese
dairymen are themselves responsible, and the
cheese trade has suffered from bogus butter in its
| various forms. If our dairy market could be
| freed once more from these cheap limitations of
| genuine butter and cheese, it is safe to say that
our dairieS could not produce a surplus for many
| years. But matters stand the case is very
| different, and already perplexng enough. What
shall be done on the part of dairy interests to
| meet this insdious attack has become a very
| ious pr oblem. 1t is insidious attack and not
open competition, because the mutations and sub
stitutes almost universally sold, at all events
| by the retailer, as pure butter and cheese l
| lately heard man declare in New York that
| with moderate capial, he was able with his
m Tnt thIlfF rlya in
a month as thirty thousand dairymen. He called
his product "butter," and just there lies the
worst feature of the case. If the goods could
always be- made, sold and consumed with a full
knowledge of their real character the evil woull
be mainly removed and little just ground for com
plant would remain.
The Major proceeded with his in
teresting lecture at length. and wa
listened to with the deepest atten
ton.
Hiram Smith, of Dodge county,
spoke in great favor OF the lecture of
the great dairyman just delivered;
and he hoped all who heard it would
reap benefit from it.
Others spoke in its favor, and ex
pressed the opinion that it would have
a tendency to encourage the farmer
who heard it.
The next paper of interest was the
one delivered by Dr. A. L. Chaplin,
president of Beloit college, on Under
consumption"
Then followed Prof. G. E. Morrow,
of the college of agriculture, Cham
payne, Ill.-Suoisct: Our Farming,
its Changing Condition and Outlook"
Brief discussion followed.
EVENING SESSION
In the evening session of the con-
vention, which was largely attended,
the hog breeders who had been hold
ing session in the capitol, entered the
farmers convention and presented
two interesting papers.
Then came paper on House
drainage" by Prof. f G. Smith, of
Beloit.
An interesting topic was that han
died by E. W. Dwight, of Brooklyn,
Dane county-''Present and Future
Advantage to the Farmer of Grange
Membership"
Major Henry Z. Alvord, of the
Houghten farm, Mountainville, NY,
having intimated IN the afternoon,
that he favored the address of Prof.
Parker, delivered the evening before,
on the establishment of an agricul-
tural college, was called for loudly.
j