Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-04-22
Promises to Be Wagsd
On a Gigantic Scale.
MiIkmsn Say They'll Make
Boston Drink Sea Water.
The Farmers See New Ways Of
Utilizing Milk Supply.

Boston, April 21.-If the plans of the
Boston Cooperative Milk Producers
Association do not miscarry, Boston
will have a milkless May l.
Reports show that the farmers all
over New England are being organized,
community by community and as fast
as they are organized, are agreeing to
withdraw their milk from the Boston
market after April 30, when the winter
price agreements with the group of
contractors who control the milk of
New England expire, in order to pre-
vent the reduction usual every summer
and force a retention Of the winter
rates throughout the whole year.
The indications seem to be that the
farmer is preparing to rise in his might
as he never has risen before. This
will be the greatest, Withholding from
the Boston market that New England
has ever seen. John S. Bemis OF Carlton
of the association said tonight:
We'll have Boston so dry May l
that her people will have to drink the
seawater
''Jf this withdrawal goes through,
as it will unless the contractors grant
the farmers demands-and their atti-
tude now and in the past makes it al
most certain that they will not much
of the milk supplies that will be with
drawn will never be again available
for BOSTON. We gave the contractors a
chance to get in line with US and they
refused to grant our requests.
1.-The farmer has been pushed to the
wall and you know a man in that po-
sition gets desperate. The farmer has
rights in this matter and he is going
to see at this time if he can't get them.
He has gone to the Legislature and the
Legislature has done nothing for him.
Now he's going to see what he can do
for himself
.'At the prices the contractors want to
pay tie farmer cannot make a profit on
his milk Living has advanced. The
cost of grain and the increased wages
for help have made fat his expenses.
If he can't make money selling milka
perhaps he can making butter and util-
izing his SKINNED milk in various ways.
Three or four firms control practically
all of the milk sold in New England
aside from that sold in towns by small
producers. These men have divided the
.>c" EhS'dIu StdttS iIlto ~ AoHcS liii'
radiate from Boston. AS these zones,
eacn 20 miles wide, recede from Boston
the price paid the producer in each ar
bitrarily marked territory is automatical-
ly reduced 10 cents per can of eight and
one-half quarts. This is on account of
transportation charges which the farm
er. consequently, has to pay. in ratio
with his distance from the Hub.
With the high price of pork and veal
the farmer believes that he has discover
ed solution of the problem that con-
fronts him. BY establishing individual
or cooperative separators he can make
his own butter and have a large quality
of SKINNED milk with which to feet
calves and hogs.
The New England farmer is getting
ready to put the plan to a practical
test at once. In Hardwick, Barre, New
Brainfree and surrounding towns the
farmers have called meeting for Sat.
urday night at which representatives
of separator manufacturing firm will
present estimates for large plant to be
operated comparatively by the farmers
In NorthborO, Berlin, Hudson, Sterl-
ing and many other Massachusetts,
towns, as well as towns in other New
England states and even the northwest
ern part of New York. farmers by the
score are purchasing individual separa
tors, the operation of which they will
start May l.