Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1911-05-12
cow SHOW ADDRESSES.


At 2.3O o'clock Wednesday afternoon
the court house was packed with peo-
pie who gathered to hear the addresses
Of Mr.. Felix Williams Of Villa Rica,
Ga, and Prof. ]. NJ. Burgess OF Glenn
son college, on the subject of cows and
dairying. The audience was made up
mostly of visitors and included quite
number Of ladies, especially inter-
ested in cows and dairying.
After the meeting had been called
to order by Hon. L. r. Williams, pres
ident Of the York County Live Stock
association, Mayor John R. Hart,
chairman Of the COW show committee
on invitations, made some remarks
appropriate to the occasion and in
troduced the speakers.
In his Introductory remarks, Mr..
Hart reviewed the circumstances lead
ing to the holding of the cow show, re-
ferred to the broad liberality of the
Yorkville people In putting up the nec-
essary money, referred to the impossi-
bility Of success without the co-opera-
tion of the farmers, and thanked the
audience for the intelligent and enthu-
siastic interest 1t was showing in a
matter Of such Importance. He re-
ferred to this effort as the first Of the
kind that had taken place in York.
county, South Carolina, and the south
and hoped that his posterity might
take part In the hundredth such show.
AS the speaker Of the day, 1t was his
pleasure to introduce a man who in
former days knew what 1t was to
struggle with the terrible problem Of
trying to make living raising cents
cotton, who finally embarked into the
dairy business in small way in the
hope Of finding a way out, who went
through trial and tribulation, braved
the laughter, and scorn of the know
alls, and finally succeeded in building
up one Of the largest and most pros
porous dairy businesses in Georgia, II
not in the south-Mr. Felix Williams.
Mr.. Williams, young man Of hard
ly more than 80, a typical farmer in
appearance, took his place before the
audience, which received him with en-
thusiastic applause. He was quite
hoarse, he explained, as the result Of
a cold caught a night or two before;
but would do the best he could, and
in a matter of fact way proceeded
with his plain, practical talk as fol-
lows: ... .. .....f.
For the man who has any love for
good cows and who loves to see a calf
develop into a promising heifer and
into a profitable cow, there are al
most limitless opportunities for him
here. A recent government report
shows that there are more than ST.
100000 worth of creamery butter ship
ped into fifty Of our southern cities,
and there are also millions Of dollars
worth of renovated butter and con-
densed milk shipped from the north
here With our long growing season
and abundant rainfall for the grow
ing Of feed and ideal climate for the
comfort Of the cows, we can make but
ter cheaper than they can. There Is
a demand for good cream in our
southern cities which simply cannot be
supplied for years to come, and the
demand would grow If we would al
ways furnish good cream. And the
price paid for cream here would sound
fabulous to dairyman in the dairy
section. A section like this should get
a great deal Of profit from raising dali
ry heifers for sale. There Is a great
demand for good cows near our large
cities where the dairymen furnish milk.
They do not raise any cows, prefer
ring to buy them rather than be trou-
bled with them as calves. We have
been selling some grade heifers from
our farm this year for SIS each. These
heifers have not cost US much; they
have been fed corn silage, pea hay,
and corn stover as their principal
feed. I figure the cost Of these heifers
up to first calf about $50 each. I
don't want to fail to mention, too, the
possibilities along the line of breeding
thoroughbred dairy cattle for sale.
There have been wonders accomplish
ed along this line, and there Is room
for still more. Authenticated records
show that there are cows (thorough-
q m
pounds of butter a year. An owner of
one of these cows said that his cow
was paying him fine interest on an
investment of $4,000, and I don't see
how anything could be more fascinat
ing than this line of the work.
But it Is the dairy side Of the busi-
ness we want to talk about, and
want to repeat and emphasize what
first said: A man to succeed with cows
must have or cultivate liking for the
work. He must like 1t well enough to
put his cows first at all times; first
above his pleasures and first above his
other work. A good cow, and that is
the only sort we should ever think
about keeping, Is a nervous creature.
It is her nervous nature with which we
must deal as a dairy animal. So 1t is
up to us as dairymen to study and find
out what pleases her and govern our
selves accordingly. 1t pleases a good
cow, first of all things, to be fed and
MIXED regularly. She will pay you
for every little kindness in dollars and
cents. The simple process of brush
ing and rubbing a cow every morning
has been known to increase her milk
supply three or four pounds per day,
and on the other hand high temper
ed, unkind, loud talking man in the
1, hos L. 70 o0n 40
milk flow even as much. But to sue
ceed with a dairy we must have good
COWS. All the careful attention, the
most regular and proper feeding will
not make a profitable cow out Of an
animal with a capacity to produce only
125 pounds Of butter year. How are
we going to get good cows? Most OF
you, l am sure, have had enough eX-
perience in buying cows to agree with
me when l say 1t Is not practicable to
try to get together a herd OF prohta-
BILE cows by buying them. If a man
really has a good cow and knows 1t,
he is not going to part with her, un-
less, of course, he is overstocked.
What would be asked you for cow
that would make profit of from SIS
to 500 per year? That Is what good
COW will do. A COW like that would
make a fine interest on an investment
of from $500 to $1,000. We can have
a herd of COWS that will do that by
raising them, and that Is the only
practicable way. To raise good cows,
we must have good foundation stock.
| would not raise a calf from a poor
cow. In other words, l would not
raise heifer calf from anything but
my best COW. l do not believe in try
ing to raise too many calves at once,
uDlaSS of pOurSe theV all haODen TO
be very promising. When too many
are kept, some are apt to be neglected.
And | would not raise a calf sire by
any other than a registered bull with a
pedigree that would show that he
comes from a line of ancestors that
have done something. Don't get the
idea that all you need to head your
herd is just simply a registered bull:
This Is a mistake I have known hard