Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1919-12-18


prepared by the United States Depart
ment of Agriculture)
Time was-and not so long ago
when the small farmer could not af-
ford to breed purebred animals.
The time has cOme-just now, per-
hapS-When the small farmer can hard
ly afford not to breed purebred ami
mails, and at least he should use pure
bred sires.
That is particularly true If his line
of live stock is COWS and, more partic-
ularly, if they are dairy cows, accord
ing to men in the United States de-
partment of agriculture who have CIV
en- their lives to the study of dairy
farming.
What has brought about the change?
Principally, community organization.
The small farmer who has to operate
alone and unaided-aS practically all
Of them did ten years agO-has rocky
road if he aspires to pure-bred stock.
Now the whole situation is changed,
or is rapidly changing. The small
farmer does not stand alone, and he
has all kinds Of aids There, to start
with, is the county agent, ready to
bring the accumulation of expert
knowledge to bear on the problems of
the small farmer. There is the county
farm bureau, perhaps. There is the
cow-testing association. There is the
cooperative bull association. There
are enough things, if they are used, to
pull the community together and make
it possible for the smaller scale breed
er to enjoy many of the advantages
formerly obtained only by the largest
scale breeder.
A Land of Pure BREEDS.
"Why not" inquire the dairy experts
of the department Of agriculture,
make the United States a pure-bred
country, put it in the mind of the
world as a pure-bred country" Peo-
pie do not think of it that way now.
Try it out with yourself. You think
of the Island of Jersey, say, as simply
a breeding ground for pure Jersey
cows, of Scotland as the top notch in
Aberieen-Angus cattle, of Clydesdale
horses, even of Collie dogs. Your pic
ture of England is likely to be one of
pure-bred Herefords or Shorthorns.
And you have sort of feeling of rev.
erence toward them.
Do YOU think of America, from
livestock standpoint, in that way? OF
nj Of
producing country, range country,
grade-cattle country.
Both estimates are, in manner cor
rect. But, to the individual farmer on
the Island of Jersey or in the white
face country Of England or the black
of having his animals pure bred is a
matter of doing what everybody else
is doing 1t is eaSier-Or, to say the
least, just as easy-to do it as not to
do it.
Until just now that condition never
existed in the United States; it does
exist now. Communities have organ
lied and are organizing still more
closely. Breeding associations are be
ing formed with secretaries who can
give help in keeping the records of all
animals straight one of the things
with which the small farmer operat-
ing alone has greatest difficulty. When
a community organizes and starts rails
ing pure-bred stock of any kind it
brings a market for that kind of stock
to the door of every farmer in the COM
munity The man vino operating alone,
could not have SOLD a pure-bred ami
mol for a dollar more than he could
have got for good grade animal can
get the worth of every animal he
raises under the community system.
Opportunity lis Here.
America has the opportunity just
now to develop as a great breeding in
stitution. South America wants pure
bred stuff AS an indication of how
active the want is, Argentina recently
appropriated 100000 to encourage the
importation of pure-breds- If the
United States gets any considerable
portion of the business in South Amer
lea, department experts say, it must
be because American animals compete
successfully on final test with ami
mails from anywhere else in the world.
They see no trouble in doing that with
dairy cattle where production is the
test. The thing to be done is to give
the South Americans what they want
in dairy cattle.
There is likely, also. to be pretty
big market in France for American
pure-bred dairy COWS. The problem of
supplying the demand is somewhat diff
ferent from the South American prob
lem. France wants general-purpose
COW. while the United States is the
home of the specialized cow. The
4 ir~ thar is to be done in that case