The Newtown bee., 1894-09-21
Live Farm Topics
WINTER AND SUMMER DAIRYING

During the last month have found in l my papers oftener than almost anything l else articles in regard to whether the l dairy COW should come fresh in milk in the fall or spring, or in other words | which is the more profitable, the so- called winter dairying or the more commonly practical way of having the cows fresh in spring and so having your flush of milk in the summer months. Now these questions, while ot great im- portance to the dairyman, are such that it would be impossible to answer them affirmatively in either case; in fact it is like the larger number of matters per taining to the dairy industry; circum- stances must govern and decide which of the two is the more profitable.
 There are special rules, such as clean illness, kindness and regularity, that can be laid down and no dairyman will ever make mistake in following them to the letter. But location, help and ability to handle dairy have very much to do in deciding for dairy which-winter or summer dairying-shall be the most profitable. All through the country are dairymen who live far back from rail | roads and of course can not ship milk and many of them are long way from a creamery and have not suitable barns or dairy apparatus to handle milk in winter, and to get these things would be great expense. Besides, there are large number who must have help in the summer months to get their crops in. and harvested, but who do not need or keep any help except during om five to eight months. and can manage their farms alone through the winter months. Now they must have this eX- | tra help in the summer months, but do not need it in winter unless they have a large amount of milking to do, and can save in the matter of wages, board, etc., enough to balance up quite large difference in price of butter or milk that the winter dairyman is supposed te have in excess of the summer dairyman.
 But this matter of difference of price
 
 mistake; and there are all through the dairy sections scores, yes, hundreds, of dairymen who are, and have been year after year, making class of butter that, although made from June to November, will go into the market in January or that butter fresh made at that time brings. Now this is not simply an as- sertion, for the thing has been done year after year in the past, and it will be done winters again. have seen one firm of butter dealers weigh off three tons of this summer butter in the month of January, at the same price they paid that same day for butter fresh made and the fresh-made butter was of top q uality, as was the three tons of sum- mer-made butter, and each went into the same market to sell.
 Now do not decide from what I have said that I am opposed to the plan of winter dairying, for I am not. There are dairy men who cannot, or at least do not, make class of butter that can go
 
 age and bring top price; and as to !, making butter that would keep months, and sell at any price except for grease, they never did it. Such men had better get into winter dairying as soon as !, possible, or perhaps, better still, out oi it entirely. But the dairyman who has made and does make the kind of butter , have referred to, had best carefully , count costs of increased help and extra l feeding before making the change. Ot course, the summer dairyman has heat, drought and flies to contend with, while che winter dairyman will have cold and other things, such as extra work ot feeding and care. But, say some, why , discuss this matter? You believe in : summer dairying, and another is just as : positive for the winter dairy. We'll, if it were not for the fact that almost every month finds men beginning in the dairy business, and others who, because they have not made it pay, are watching for the experiences of others, it would be folly to discuss the matter, and hearing only one side woulds.be misleading. I And fell safe to assert, after over forty I years work in the dairy, that the matter of when you do it, or what you have to do with, is of very little importance com pared with how you do it, in order to attain the greatest success in dairying
 more SC perhaps than in almost any other industry-EH. 5. Matteson in Country Gentlemen.