La Junta tribune., 1914-03-07
CREAMERY MADE NEW ERA
to-Operation ls the Secret Of This
$l0,NO n Month Factory
SU,O<lO for Eggs.

nave talked milk ana cows and but
ter fat till he was blue In the face
without making the faintest dent in
the frozen and forbidding reserve OF
Hickory, n. c.. banker. The bank
wasn't lending money on any bovine
prospects for that region of the Ca
tawba Valley. Indeed. there wasn't
Tarheel rainbow contrfver any
where who could interest a town H.
nancier in cattle production. the pro-
ducts or the by-products thereof
But now. how different. Let me
quote the leading banker In Hickory:
All farmer need do these days is
to sprinkle little milk on his shoes,
walk into the bank and command our
services. We meet him with our hats
In our hands and with our most
courty salaams."
That may be picturesquely
stretching the case little, but there
is more than a nubbin of truth in
the metaphor. Three years ago the
dairy farmers living round about
Hickory and out in the back coun-
try had about as much use for
bank account as they did for pure
bred Mexican hairless lapdog. Today
there are few of them who have not
neat little balances at the bank. who
do not pay cash for their provisions
aud drive past the offices OF the town
usurers-I presume there is no town
or village in the world without one
with grins of derision.
And 1t all came about through the
establishment and building up of the
Iatawba County Cooperative Cream
cry, organized. financed and carried
on by the farmers themselves.
The creamery began operations In
June. 1910, and the first month
made three thousand pounds OF but
ter, Sales for that first month to-
tailed $40. Last October the total
sales amounted to more than $40. 0.0o0
The increase has been gradual, but
steady, and now there is "A fine, new
modern plant to replace the first
crude equipment w. J Shuford,
the manager, believes that the time
is not far distant when the co-opera-
tive organization will be doing a bus
iHess OF onc-half million dollars
year Eggs have been added to the
butter fat and other things will be
added to the eggs. such as dressed
aad dry chilled poultry packed In
hncy cartons. Before the days OF
She creamery the farmers got from
twelve to twenty cents n pound for
their butter and took that out In
trade at the store Today they av-
erage thir'y-three cents pound and
get 1t in cash.
In the beginning there were not
more than four hundred cows in
volyed now there are more than iii
teen hundred and everywhere there
is grading of herds, road building,
the erection of new schools and
churches. better sanitation, more
comforts aud luNuries.
Eventually the company was incur-
porated with 10000 capital. $1,000
paid In. Shares were sold at SO a
share to farmers orly, aud up TO the
present time there are only ten
shares held by non-farmcrs.
The new creamery was opened
September /. 1918. and Is equipped
with every modern appliance, II
was built from plans furnished by
the Department of Agriculture.
There were thir,y-five charter or
ganizers; now there are 2t0 cream
patrons. and four hundred egg pat
rons. The creamery began 10 handle
eggs In September. 1910, and before
the leaves were off the trees 2s0
farmers wives had come TO bat with
the hen product,
In the beginning the creamery
paid for the eggs once a month, but
this didn't satisfy the farmers
wives. II was pin money 30 to speak.
for them and they wanted IL on the
dot. Now they get It every day. Col
icctors for the creamery gather eggs
when they gather cream. During
the best months th. creamery pays
out AZ much as $1,000 for eggs. the
average is about $4,000. Tn. price
paid Is from two to four cents above
town prices.
The eggs are no, sold for color but
for freshness, Every farmer must
stamp his eggs with a number. The
creamery packs th. eggs In neat enr-
tons aud on each carton II printed