THE NINETEENTH ANNUAL MEETING. 85 



the most attractive shape and advertise them. Why should not sugar- 

 makers do the same? Do not take black-strap syrup, or equally dark sugar, 

 to market, and then complain that sugar-making does not pay. Produce 

 an article as light-colored as most honey, and take only the best to market. 

 Yalue your reputation more than dollars, and more dollars will come. 

 Have your name and guaranty upon every can, and if your syrup is 

 good it will soon sell itself. To advertise your goods, imitate the yeast- 

 cake fiends. Put up generous sample packages and send them to a few of 

 the wealthy men in the towns where you wish to establish a trade. Their 

 orders will soon follow ; and moreover, they will form centers from which 

 the flavor of maple syrup will tickle the palates of their friends. Prof. 

 Davenport says : ' A few years ago we filled an order for two gallons from 

 a little town in this state. Last year it took one hundred gallons to sweeten 

 that same little community. There is an inherent quality in good maple 

 syrup that sells itself.' 



AFTER ALL, IT PAYS. 



"The question of most interest to all is, does it pay? Can we afford to 

 invest a sum sufficient to purchase the outfit necessary for making the l)est 

 quality of syrup? Will it pay to leave a portion of our land uncleared for 

 a sugar-bush ? That depends on the man. If he is careless, and thus des- 

 troys or disguises the true majjle flavor, the profit will be largely dimin- 

 ished. The profit depends much upon the quality, for that is the factor, 

 above all others, that regulates the price. No profits can arise from making 

 an inferior article. If a person is willing to exercise the care and energy 

 necessary in growing and marketing the best fruit ; if he is willing to do 

 faithfully all that is implied in our motto ; to produce a ' guilt-edge ' article, 

 then syrup-making will pay. As proofs to substantiate my statements, I 

 quote the words of two Michigan sugar-makers, men whose knowledge and 

 exjoerience can not be c[uestioned. 



"Prof. Davenpokt says: 'We tap one thousand trees which are scattered 

 over forty acres of land. It is by no means a choice piece of timber, as the 

 same number might, and often do, stand on twenty acres. Besides, the 

 land and cash investment is about $750. 



"' Our annual product sells for from $350 to $500, with an average of 

 about $400, from which we deduct expenses as follows: 



Labor, fuel, etc., $100.00 



Wear of apparatus 15.00 



Interest on $750 at 6 per cent — 45.00 



Total cost of manufacture $160.00 



a ii 



• This leaves an average annual net profit of $240. As all expenses have 

 been deducted, the $240 may be considered as the income from an invest- 

 ment in forty acres of maple timber, which is six per cent, on the value of 

 the land at one hundred dollars per acre. This is above its market price. 

 If the money value of the land be $50 per acre, the investment yields a 

 dividend of tw^elve per cent. 



" 'These may seem small figures, but we must consider that the business 

 needs at the longest but about six weeks' supervision in the year, with less 

 than four weeks of actual work, and that at a time when men and teams are 

 not employed to advantage upon the farm. Bear in mind also that this is 



