Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1916-07-13
Commissioner Brigham Says
Farmers Are Making a Profit.
II. u. Kelley Of Massachusetts Board Of
Health Tells what His state Ex-
pccts--353 Towns Have Jum-
bic of Requirements.

worth 100000: and 100000 worth of
cheese was produced. These figures
were features of the chief paper at
Thursdays sessions of the annual
school of instruction for health officers
of the Vermont state board of health
a unanimous vote of thanks was given
Il. S. Brigham. commissioner of agri-
culture. at It's conclusion.
Mr.. Brigham said the dairy industry
| in the state presented two important
| problems: The consumer demands
dairy foods at a low price and wants
sanitary conditions in their produce
| ton: the producer asks how he can
meet the sanitary requirements and
still make a profit. The cost of keep
ing a COW was s9S.25 year. from
which. deducting SIS for manure and
So for the value Of the calf, the aver
age cost of production of milk was
"a cents a quart. II have yet a find.
however. n dairymen who was salts
fed to sell milk which cost 34 cents
! per quart to produce for 80 cents.
which was the average price paid by
Boston milk contractors in Vermont
| for the year 1914. If an accurat to
charge is made for all items which
enter into the cost of producing milk
the account will show no profit at the
prices paid by the city contractors"
| TT is my opinion that the milk
situation in Vermont may be improved
in three ways: First. the Limitation
| of the requirements of health boards
to those things which are necessary
to safeguard the public health: second,
the payment for milk on basis which
will make a distinction in price be-
tween good and poor milk: third. the
, securing for the producer of a price
which will enable him to make a rea-
sonable profit in his business"
| 80 far. II seems to me, that dairy
mans fitness to produce milk has been
determined too much by his equipment.
too little by his methods and hardly
at all by his results" Clean cows.
small top pals and prompt cooling of
milk, in the commissioner opinion.
were important. 1T has been the GUS
tom for contractors to pay a fiat price
for milk irrespective Of its quality or
condition up to the point Of souring.
I am glad to say, however, that re-
Gently some contractors have estab-
lished base price for milk contain
ing certain percentage of butter
fat and give a premium for milk test
some cases a premium Of one NTH cent
per quart is given for milk which
is produced in tight. well-lighted
white-washed barns with adequate air
space per cow and in case the milk is
cooled within an hour to at least 50
degrees. and held at this temperature
until delivered" II have been repeat
eddy asked by Boston contractors to
devise some way to encourage the pro-
duction of clean milk I have always
inquired If clean milk was worth any
more than dirty milk So that they
would care to make a distinction in
price" Mr.. Brigham said the milk
shipped to Boston, Nermonts princi-
pal market, was handled by four con-
Germs. two Of which were one in all but
name. The commissioner said he had
been amused to be told what a benefit
the Boston market was to Vermont, at
the prices paid. Sl.1S per cwt. for
whole milk during April. May and
June. the States best three months
He hoped that the decision of the in
terstate commerce commission soon tc
he made would abolish the so-called
leased car system.
Il do not believe that our farmers
should go out of the dairy business
but l do believe that they should take
concerted action to control the market
for dairy products"
VERMONT DAIRY CONDITIONS.
Another important paper of the aft
ernoon was read by Dr. f. r, Kelley
director of the division OF communion
bic diseases of the Massachusett,
State board of health. His subject
Judged by Massachusetts Conditions
DR.. Kelley emphasized the fact which
might be called the keynote Of the
, meeting. that methods and utensil.
werc more important than fine barns
etc. in producing rich, clean milk
The question Of good milk in Massa
chusetts he said. was 25 per cent.
political one. having as much impor,
tanCe there as the liquor question die
in Vermont. He asserted that NIassa
chusetts ought to have one STANDARD
of requirements. whereas the only re
quirement common to all Of the IS:
towns and cities was the prohibition
of shipment of milk taken from cow,
around calving time, The babies o
his State were suffering from lack o
milk, and not merely of good milk
The trouble with the scorecard method
Of scoring was that it made the scor
ing an end in itself. whereas the tax
, ing of bacterial count and the tenn
perature test were the most impor
{ tant features of a score Only sever
of the $50 towns sent inspectors I,
Vermont Boston. Fitchburg, Brookline
Newton. Somerville. Springfield an,
? Winchenden. tuberculosis was tn
, chief disease transmitted by impur
milk: typhoid. scarlet fever. etc. wer,
: Of much less account But babies in
testinal diseases We're undoubtedl,
largely due to unclean milk.
MILK INFECTION DANGERS.
The danger of impure milk was du
, chiefly to bacteria and their toxins
, said DR.. C. +. Whitney. medico-lega
chemist. in an address on Danger
from Milk Infection and How to Pre-
vent Them" Among those who dis
cussed papers We're; Dr. Kelley
paper. DR.. b. D. Colby of Sudbury
DR.. Whitney's paper, DIR. f. w. Scar
of Burlington; Commissioner Brigham
l paper, Prof. George +. Story of tn
" department of animal industry. Dr.
q, j. S. Hill of Bellows Falls and Dl
@ C. 7. Moat. sanitary chemist of tn
State laboratory of hygiene.
MORNING SESSION
Pediculosis capitis. Ever hear Of It
Inspector II. A. Ladd of the Stat
board of health has. A placard witt
that at the top of it IN three-inch typ
h appeared one fine day on his omc