Mexico weekly ledger., 1897-03-04
Respectfully,

VIZ A eS>s
of the State within the past four years
has been almost phenomenal. The
creamery business has grown from a
small industry to one of the leading
and most profitable in central and
western Kansas, and town additions,
which were laid out during "the
BOOM" with the expectation of sell
ing lots for fabulous prices, r being
converted into dairy farms, which
bring their. owners, when well man.
aged, a good return.for the money in
vested, provided, of course, that they
did not pay "boom" prices for the
land.
The Heller creamery, which was the
beginning of the industry in Barton
county, was built in 1889 by a stock
company of farmers and vas put IL
operation in September of that year,
With the exception of a few short
stops for repairs it has been running
steadily ever since, though the bust
ness did not increase to any great ex-
tent until the crop failure of 1893. This
gave a new impetus to the creamery
business.
The Heller creamery was followed
by others at Ellinwood and Hoising-
ton, and later by the Logan township
creamery, which is located six miles
north of Ellinwood and which ranks
second to Heller in the amount of
business done last year. The cream
cry in this city vas not built until
March, 1885, and had been operated
only a few months when it was de-
stroyed by fire. However, W. G.
Merritt, the owner, had confidence in
the business and the creamery was at
once rebuilt.
All the creameries increased their
business last year by establishing
"skimming stations at various points,
until now the five creameries work
the milk from fifteen 'sskimming sta
tions," besides that received direct
from the patrons at the creamery.
These creameries, with their various
''skimming stations" except the one
at this place, r owned by stock
companies, which the farmers control.
W. G.. Merritt, wne of the cream
cry at Great Bend and one of the first
to engage in the business, recently
said to a reporter for the Star:
III believe that the farmers general
ly realize that creameries are a good
thing for this section of the State and
1 notice that when once we secur a
man as a patron he usually continues
selling milk. We retain most of our
old customers and secure some new
ones each month. 1t is a business
which, with proper management, gives
satisfactory results to both the cream
cry owner and his patrons. A very
small percentage of our butter is sold
to the local trade. Most of it goes
east and west. Thus the money we
receive is mostly from people outside
q State and, of course, we're it not
for the creameries, this money would
60 elsewhere.
81 believe the time will come when
each neighborhood in western and
central Kansas will have its creamery
or skimming station, and when that
time comes L believe we will see gen.
eral prosperity. A creamery suitable
for handling the milk from any one
neighborhood can be built for from
$500 to $4,000, and it will bring into
the neighborhood IN the course of a
year at least five times the amount of
its original cost"
The farmers of Barton county place
more dependence on the creamery
than they do on the crops and improve
every opportunity to increase their
milk checks. Essmiller Bros, the
largest patrons of the Heller cream
cry, said: "We find there is nothing
surer than the creamery business, and
it is only a question of time until the
farmers will all have to come to it. 1t
pays a good interest on the money in
vested and is a sure thing. Our milk
check will average about $50 a month
and it has run as high as $115. OF
course, we take good care of u cows
and feed them bran once a lday. We
are only milking 81 cows now, but we
will average the year around about %.
r perfectly satisfied with the
business and are in it to stay, regard
less of good or bad crops"
The creameries, besides bringing
over 500, 900 annually into this coun-
ty, have kept the price of mich COWS
high when compared with other
stock, a good cow being easily worth
S35.
The statements here given of the
amount of business done by the vari-
Gus creameries in this county during
1896 were secured from the secretaries
Of the various companies and are au-
They show that during the
year the creameries purchased 25 1885,
1851 pounds of milk, for which they
paid s113,s57, or about 90, 800 a month.
The value of the SKINNED milk sold
to the creamery patrons during this
lime was $5,724, which, at the usual
price of one-fourth cent per gallon,
means 2,2ss, s16 gallons of milk.
A gallon of milk weighs eight and
pounds. Tsking 30 cents as
he average price, the farmer receives
/ little over AZ cents a gallon for the
milk. He receives the skinned milk
1t the creamery at one-fourth OF a
cent a gallon, which leaves him a trifie
over four and o~ne-fourth cents for the
,utter fat in each gallon of milk. In
Ismuch as the SKINNED milk makes
'ery good feed for hogs, calves, etc.,
his is q profitable industry for the
armer.
An Ovation to Bryan.
WASHINGTON, d. c., March L.
When William J. Bryan left the House
,ress gallery this afternoon, where he
hook hands with correspondents, he
ound a great jam OF men, women
children in the corridors, who in
listed on grasping his hand before al.