The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1889-04-24
farm ano Garoen.
Address all inquiries or communications in relation
to agriculture to DIR. 7. II. HosKINs, Newport, VT
Those jefferson County Cows.

Mr.. Editor: - In the article upon
% Poor Cows" in the WATCHMAN of
March 2S, am made to ask, Do cows
in New York pay per capita tax as
they do in Vermont?" 1t should read,
" as dogs do in Vermont"
In Professor Golfers reply to my
questions, he says he "can have no
issue with one who ITO his statement
that if the poorest half of the 10000
cows in New York were killed and
turned into the compost heap the profits
of dairying would be increased possibly
ten-fold-" says, 'admitted.' " l did
admit it, Just as l admit that keeping
all foreign goods out of the country by
prohibtive duties will increase the
profits of the manufacturers in this
country, and as this thought came into
my mind, seeing in Imagination these
rotting carcasses in the compost heap,
l wrote, This is good protective tariff
meat, such as the readers of the
WATCHMAN are supposed to eat" 1t
would decrease the cost of production
by cheapening the hay, grain and coarse
fodder consumed, and increase the price
of the product by reducing the quantity.
But what would be gained by the farmer,
as a dairyman, would be more than off
set by his loss, as farmer, on his raw
products ebay, pasturage, etc., for
which the demand would be greatly
reduced.
The COW is one of the farmers ma
chimes for making up his raw material
into merchantable goods; and until it is
shown that there is better one he will
not be likely to destroy her. That
Professor Collier has proved this l do
not admit My reasons for questioning
him as did was that he might give
some light on his figures, thinking, per-
haps. did not understand them; for if
/ did, can not understand why he made
them.
He takes them from a cow census,
the accuracy of which l have no reason
to question. He gives his account of
returns by herds, charging difference of
product to difference in coUS. He then
averages interest, taxes and cost of
keeping, making the money value and
taxes of the poor herds the same as the
good, also the cost of keeping the same
per head, and from these data he ad-
vises us to kill off one-half-the poor
est. He gives us an interest item in
cost of production, but how that is to
be lessened by composing the cows he
has not shown. He then reads us a
homily on improper manufacture of our
goods and wrong time of having cows
in proft-forgetting that he has before
charged all difference in returns of
herds to difference in cO,CS, as though
the herds that made the best returns
were all made up of good cows and the
rest of poor ones. He probably intends
that we should think all Jefferson
county goods were manufactured by
the same person and at the same sea-
son. If they are not, of what value are
his figures as showing the comparative
value of poor and good cows?
He then takes up this same Jefferson
county cow census and attempts to
prove, still by herds, that added meal.
feed gives profit of from 300 to SOC
per cent Gf 1 remember rightly, Civ.
ing the credit which he first ascribed
to difference in cows to increased meal.
feed.
Not having exhausted his COW census
in the first article, he returns to it in
his second, and proves, to his satisfac.
ton, that the whole dairy product OF
Jefferson county, which he calls one OF
the best in New York, is made at a
loss. This he does by estimating the
value of the main item in the cost OF
production, hay, at the average value
for the state for the past twenty-five
years, while the returns are the actua
ones for Jefferson county in 1888
Why he does this an ignorant farmer
can not comprehend, for even farmers
know that cost of production and price
of product are now much less than ar
average of the past twenty-five years
Judging by location, both cost of ant
price of products must be less in Jeffer
son than an average county of the state
If the professor has proved anything
by his last figures, it is that instead Of
composing one-half the COWS, the whole
ought to go.
Professor Collier has used his COW
census for all there was of it, as wei
as a neighbor said his wife did the
water in time of drouth. She used il
first to wash the dishes, then to wash
potatoes, next for hopping, and finally
to make tea and coffee. That the pro
fessor, if this article should ever SEE
the light, and he should wish to notice
it, need not be put to the trouble Of
writing "your anonymous correspond
ent," | sign myself
NJ n nAuIc Uil1;on W.