l6o AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



Stock intended for the manufacture of renovated butter to make 

 cream. This is a proposition that the State of Maine sooner 

 or later will have to meet. I have no doubt that we shall get 

 some legislation regarding it. I think it is an unfair competi- 

 tion and may be considered in somewhat the same light as the 

 imitation products of butter. 



W'e have been told repeatedly that it is not a good plan to 

 discuss the defects in dairying; that it is better for people not 

 to know some of the little tricks that are being perpetrated. 

 But I believe that every person who consumes dairy products 

 should know just what he is eating, and that he has a right to 

 demand a quality of product that is satisfactory to him. If he 

 wants to use an imitation product for butter, or if he wants to 

 use ice cream made from oil of poor quality mixed with skim- 

 milk, I have no objection to his doing it, but I do not believe he 

 ought to be required to eat that product and believe he is eating 

 butter or ice cream made from cream, for which he is paying 

 the price of the genuine article. If the consumers are ignorant 

 of the facts, how are we ever going to get even a public senti- 

 ment that will favor the proper handling of those products. I 

 do not feel that we are doing anything criminal when we let 

 everybody understand the true conditions. It has been said 

 that we can depend upon the people and I believe we can if we 

 will only be frank with them, and let them know what there is 

 for them to know. Then it seems to me they will deal with 

 the problem in the very best way possible. 



In conclusion, let me say, Gentlemen, that the State of Maine 

 may not be doing a great quantity of dairy work compared with 

 some of the other states of the Union, but the people are show- 

 ing an unusual interest in certain sections and I believe that 

 interest will spread. I hope it will, and I hope we will have 

 dairying more firmly established in Maine than we have today. 

 It may not be possible for Maine dairymen to go into the busi- 

 ness as extensively as some others, but I do believe that the 

 dairy in connection with- diversified farming offers opportunities 

 that you will not find in any of the specialized branches which 

 have been mentioned by Mr. Guptill. The question of what we 

 are going to raise is one that every individual farmer must work 

 out for himself. Imt if we will conduct our farms so that we 

 can market our products as far as possible to the dairy cow, 

 and we have the right kind of cows, I see no reason why the 



