Middletown transcript., 1917-11-10
JOIN cow TESTING ASSO.

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the demand for dairy products as there
is at this time Mr. Hoover tells US
that Europe is 100000 short of food
! animals and that ev. in the United
States the production of dairy cattle
has not kept pace with the increase in
population. According to the number
of cows in the United States in 1890
and the increase in population since. we
are about 1859, 900 dairy cows short.
On the other hand the increase in ex-
portation of dairy products is enor-
nous. According to Mr.. Hoover our
exports of butter since the War have
increased from about 4 1000, 900 to about
q, 1000, 600 pounds. The expectation Of
other dairy products has increased in
like proportion The greatest increase
however, in any class of dairy products
has been in condensed milk, which has
increased from scant 100000
pounds to 259, 900, 900 in 1917 and still
on the increase. Furthermore Europe
knows we'll where she has exported her
best breeding stock and when the war
clears up, she is going to draw on
American dairy cattle by the thousands
to rebuild her destroyed herds.
1t seems obvious there that the dairy
business of the United States has a
great future and the farmer, who main
tains his herd thru this trying period
will be in position to reap his just re-
turns.
The Diamond State Cow Testing As
sociation has just completed it's year
and for the reasons just alluded to, it is
the earnest desire of the officers to re-
organize the association and thus enable
the farmers of New Castle County to
cooperate in improving their herds and
in increasing their milk production and
thus do their bit in meeting this short
age of dairy products.
The COW testing has ever been an i'm
portant organization in the profitable
production of dairy products but in this
day of high priced feed and high price
and shortage of labor, it is Of unusual
value. By having the herd tested thru
a testing association the poor cows are
detected and can be disposed of before
further loss occurs. The good cows can
thus be given better attention and the
heifer calves raised from these cows.
During this last year IA inferior cows
were sold from the association. The
loss that was prevented is obvious. A
good COW still continues to return a
good profit but the poor cow returns a
greater loss A good cow requires little
more labor than a poor one. At this
time it is highly profitable to keep bet
ter and perhaps fewer cows. Many
cases can be cited in the cow testing
associations over the country where a
herd was reduced to half thru the dis
posal of the inferior cows and the
profits from the herd were increased.
This policy of better and if necessary
fewer cows is highly advisable during
this period of scarcity and high price of
labor.
The association is composed of
twenty-siX members. The tester who
is practical dairyman and who has
had special training in the dairy busi-
ness, spends one day each month with
each member of the association. While
he is there, he not only weighs the milk
and tests 1T for butterfat and calculates
the profit or loss of each cow for the
month but he is often able to make
profitable suggestions. He is always
glad to talk over any. question of in
terest as feeding and breeding of dairy
cattle, marketing dairy products or
growing crops for the dairy and many
of the members have profited by these
| monthly visits. Moreover the tester
visits these twenty-six different farms
every month and is in position to
bring ideas from other farms. If a
man has stock for sale the tester can
often place them for him in the asso-
citation. The farmers in some associa-
tions have profited by buying feed IN
car load lots through the association.
~ considerable saving can be obtained
by purchasing feed In larger quantities.
However probably the most important
service that the cow testing association
has rendered the farmer this fall is
what it has done in raising the price of
milk. The average milk dealer is not
! familiar with conditions on the farm.
Many of them were of the impression
! that the farmer was making very COM
Portable profits from his cows. When
the Milk Producers Association took
the figures from the books of the Cow
Testing Association and showed the
milk dealers that the average farmer
was not making money on his cows and
that many were actually losing money
as prices existed, the dealers felt far
more kindly towards allowing the farm
ers the proposed increase in price for
their milk and butter. The fact that
the cow testing association has been
able to furnish the Milk Producers AS
sociation with the figures on the cost of
production of milk and butter and the
Milk Producers in turn presented them
to the dealers, has been an important
factor in enabling the farmer to secure
better price for his dairy products.
The County Agent has been placed ir
the county at the disposal of the farm.
ers. He can do more and better work
thru an organization. Join the Cow
Testing Association and give him 6