Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1913-05-13
Business Reasons for Testing Cows.

Not one pure blood Dull out OF ten
that are born is needed for use in pure
bred herds. Sale for the other pine
must be found for grading up, or they
must be either vealed or raised as beef
steers. Breeders of HOlsteins are vitally
interested in arousing the interest OF
farmer -dairymen in the betterment OF
their herds, and there Is no present be-
ter way to accomplish this than by the
organization of testing associations.
Under this plan an association Ia formed
containing enough herds to give steady
employ ment to competent man, who
remains one day at each place, the cows
owned by the members of the asso-
citation being assessed pro rata to pay
the wages Of the man employed. The
person 80 employed is usually a young
man who has attended for q longer or
shorter time the state agricultural col.
lege of his own or some other state, and
he is often recommended for the posi-.
ton by the officer in charge OF tests OF
dairy cows.
Such an association should not under
take to handle too many cows; nor
should any association fail OF Organza'
ton because the number of COWS is so
small as to make the assessment per
COW seem high. Many farmer with
twenty cows will shy at two dollar per
COW assessment, saying that he can
hardly come out even as it Ia, and that 1t
would take all that one COW would pro-
duce to pay his forty-dollar assessment.
That he can hardly come out even now
Ia the secret of the whole matter, for
there is no place on the farm for con
cealed losses equal to the COW stable.
1t is to throw light into dark places so
as to hunt out the Improbable cows
that the testing association 10 formed
and nothing will pay like dividends on
the investment. The banks pay three
percent on deposits; savings banks, four
percent; and investment bonds abou
five percent; but the testing association
is a genuine get-rich, quick proposition
that will surely pay one hundred percent
up.
A farmer who would vigorously resent
being taken for a "mark" by Q smooth
confidence man will, day after day, pa.
tiently attend upon Spot and Brindle,
that with some others Of the herd are
COutiuudliy WOtAiuS SoohA0heo S""s
on him. But how long would be
allow It If he knew 1t; and how is he to
find 1t out except by individual testingi
The cost of maintaining testing asso
citation is as nothing when compared
with the gains derived from 1t. 1t II
equally beneficial In the case Of pure
bred herd, for 1t shows which are the
most profitable animals and makes i'm
provement possible within the herd. II
will also show the breeder which Of hi
COWS he should enter In order to make
the best showing In the Advanced Regis
ter semi-official longtime test. Th'
time will come when the country dis
trict school will teach things that vii
be of use to the farmer, when no teacher
that cannot test seeds Of all kinds To-
termination and milk for percent ia
will be employed. Then, with milk
testing outfit at the schoolhouse, all th'
farmer will need to do is to weigh ant
sample the milk; and his son will TAX
double the interest in the arithmetic
| lesson that teaches him how to correctl!
determine the value Of the cows In th'
herd. d.-Malcolm q. G ardner.