The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1910-05-05

TER, VERMONT, THURSDAY,
THE BOSTON MILK WAR
Farmers Are Kicking on the Sum-
mer Schedule OF Prices, Claiming 10
Is Insufficient, and Buyers Claim
That "Strike" OF Producers Does
Not Affect Them--Statements Of
Both Sides.
Byron A. Manchester of Randolph,
the secretary of this division of the
striking milk producers. was in this
city Monday on business connected
with his organization and interviewed
a number of heavy milk producers
with the view Of having them join
his association, which is known as the
Boston Milk Producers This is an
association formed for the purpose of
protecting the farmers who ship their
milk to Boston and it is said that
|they represent four fifths of the en-
tire number.
Mr.. Manchester explained the cause
of the war, which, he said, was due
to the refusal of the Boston buyers
to meet the demand of the producers
to pay the price given in winter dur
ing the summer months. A meeting
was held between committee of the
producers and the agents of the buy
ers in Boston on April ~, but nothing
definite was done at that time. There
were three men present from this vi
cinity representing the producers as
far north as Montpelier They were
B. A. Manchester off Randolph, E. G..
Barnes of Bethel and j. A. Stacey of
Royalton.
The Bone of Contention.
There are only four men in this
city shipping their milk to Boston
Now it being generally considered
the more profitable 10 retail it in the
city or sell il to the creameries. One
of them, Frank f. Towne, who re-
sides on Town Hill has refused to
send his milk under the reduced
schedule, while Addison l.. Minott,
whose farm is situated on the Wor-
cester branch. has not sent any milk
on the train since April 1, when the
summer prices went into effect.
What the Buyers Say.
On the other hand the dairy COM
panies of Boston claim that they are
treating the farmers fairly and say
that even if every man sending milk
to them from this vicinity should
stop, they still can obtain enough to
supply their customers. The follow
ing letter, which has been sent out to
many of the milk producers by W. A.
Graustein of Charlestown, Mass, the
president of the Boston Dairy Com
pany, explains the situation as view
ed by the dealers:>
An Explanation.
Gentlemen: AS you have heard a
great deal of agitation to withdraw
your milk from the Boston market
in order to get higher price for
the milk, wish to call your attention
that such a move as this is against
you and this company.
A milk strike cannot accomplish
that purpose. There is at present
not only in this city but all over the
country, and over-supply of milk and
in every city of the United States
April 1st. There is no company that
can afford to make agreements to buy
your milk from now to the first day
of October and pay the prices yo uasl
and safely pay the bills.
/ believe that this attempt to get
you to withhold your milk from May
first is a move ON the part of some
of the producers to get the long dis
tance milk back into the creameries
milk nearby, the same as was done
in the strike of 1900, when practically
no producer took his milk off this
side of Fitchburg. A good many large
producers have already contracted to
send us their milk on these terms.
The price that we are going to
pay for milk will be better than we
offered to pay year ago April we
will pay 80 cents for the milk, which
Z cents more than year ago, and
May, June and July and August, we
are going to pay the same average
price that we did year ago. Septem-
Der we are going to pay the same as
in April, which is 2 1-3 cents more
for the six months that we agreed to
pay last year, although we did pay
more in September, on account of
the drought. These prices are on
condition that if the price goes up or
down, we Will vary these prices ac-
cordingly
A strike will be, first, bad for you
and, as 1t will create bad feeling be-
tween you and this company. 1t will
be loss to you, if it is profitable for
you to sell milk to us instead of the
creameries. 1t will be a loss to us,
las we will have IN nurchaca r,illr in