DAIRY AND SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETINGS. 183 



There is one thing more I want to speak of, and that is the 

 misleading part of these records. When we began making 

 these records, it was for our special benefit ; it was about the 

 first cooperative step of the farmers that I know of. The 

 records were to be made so the Department should have a copy, 

 the individual a copy and one copy was to be filed with the 

 Association records. When the reports were first printed it 

 was all right, if they had been started right; but they soon 

 came out, showing the feed cost and a great big lot of profit ; 

 you can see what that meant in summer time, for instance, 

 when there is not so much expense. Most of you know that 

 the feed cost is practically one-half the expense of producing 

 milk. 



Question: Do you mean just the grain, .or everything? 



Mr. McIntire : I include everything that enters into the 

 feed ; that is practically one-half the expense when you go in 

 and charge what rightfully belongs to the individual cow, the 

 same as any business man would charge in his business for 

 every item. So you see how misleading those reports were. 

 It went out to the public ; the city people said, "Look at these 

 farmers; most all profit.'' This is absolutely wrong; it is mis- 

 leading. The Waterford Cow Test Association refused to have 

 the records published in that way. Everything seemed to work 

 to keep prices down. I notice in some Vermont records they 

 show the feed cost for an individual cow to be $45.76 for a 

 year ; who believes that ? You know it is not right. Perhaps, 

 in order to beat some neighbor, the man has not charged up 

 what rightfully should be charged. You can cheat in these 

 records. You can cheat in most anything, but if the records 

 are intended, wdien rightfully made, to show us what we are 

 doing, it is a strange sort of a man who will cheat himself by 

 not charging up what he should. 



One thing more in connection with the records. The dairy- 

 men of Maine, in general, have been pretty willing to comply 

 with the Board of Health in their demands to make cleaner 

 and better milk ; this is right and just. There is no man but 

 that can make clean milk, and we are willing to comply with 

 that at a greater amount of work and cost. As several will 

 remember, two vears ago our Commissioner, brother Bradford 

 and others tried to pass an inspection bill through the legisla- 



