The enterprise. [volume] (Harlem, Mont.) 1899-1926, 1910-07-07


Dairy Bred Bull, Showing Dairy Char.
| acteristics.
beefy type of COW, believing that when
she is ready to die her carcass will
be worth that much more to put in
tin cans.
The $40 Pound Cow.
This is the type of cows that are
being MIXED, the average production
of which is 140 pounds. There are
many herds of real dairy COWS that
are averaging from 300 to 400 pounds
OF butter year, and taking this out
OF consideration we would probably
find that the dual purpose COW or the
COW of beefy nature, with the power
OF producing beef steer or dairy
heifer, Is producing in butter fat quite
likely about 100 pounds per year. Ia
king for granted that she herself is
producing 40 pounds of butter per
year on the average-and she is no
more than paying for her keep from
the standpoint of the butter she pro
duces-and giving to her owner each
year calf, some skinned milk for
the pigs, and adding to the fertility
of the farm, there is very little reason
to complain about her existence, be.
cause in all liability she is a prof.
liable animal to the farmer and with
out doubt, more largely SO than most
any other animal on the farm. But
the question that arises is whether
or not she is making the profit that
should be made from an animal upon
which there is bestowed so much feed,
care and labor. We have only to look
to the herds that are producing an
average of from 800 to 400 pounds of
butter per year to be in a position to
answer in the negative. Were we to
sacrifice the calf and the extra value
of death, an annual valuation to the
of amount of $11, and select instead
of that a COW that will produce twice
as much butter fat, or $50 pounds,
and sell it for % cents, which has
been less than the average price re-
ceived by most dairymen during the
past year, we would have instead of
S11, $7S.40.
Great Mistakes.
Now, without doubt, this places the
consideration on a basis where any
one can figure for himself which class
or breed of cattle he is to choose for
the dairy. During past years, and
even at the present time, we find
thousands of farmers that are an
nually sending $7s.40 after this myth
ical s11 that they have been led to
believe is to be found in the dual pur-
pose COW as an advantage over the
dairy COW; but it is apparent in the
face of facts that it is the utmost
of folly year after year to sacrifice
$78.40 in the production of butter for
the sake of securing a SO calf and
having carcass that is worth 81 per
year that is used for the purpose Of
beef after it's useful life has ended.
This is a matter that can very easily
be figured out and is not subject to
dispute. OF course, there are other
ways of figuring, but in the end the
same result has been reached. In
arguing against the idea Of the dairy
COW invariably the point comes up
that the United States is beef-eating
nation and must have beef, and this is
fact. There never will come time,
l hope, when we will not have a suffi-
cient amount of beef to be consumed
on every table in the United States,
but it is taxing the dairy COW little
harder than is necessary to ask her
to produce the millions of pounds of
butter that are absolutely necessary,
and st the same time produce the beef
that is to be consumed upon the
tables, unless she is to he paid accord
ingly. 1t would not be right to ask
the farmer to do all that he is doing
at the present time, working hard as
he is, and at the same time produce
in addition to the food and clothing
for the world, the manufactured ar
ticles, reading material, ETC., for the
same world simply because we must
have manufactured articles and read
ing material. There are many men
and farmers who are not capable of
conducting dairy herds in the most
profitable degree because of their dis
like for the business. Likely these
same men are well adapted for the
production of beef, and the dairymen
will, no doubt, leave the production
of that article to him, realizing that
II he Is to dairy, his profits, success
and pleasure are to be found in the
milking of real good dairy cowh