284 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



not pushing a bundle of corn through the ensilage cutter or 

 turning grain into the hopper at the grist mill. Care must be 

 taken of the organic machine, as well as of the metallic ma- 

 chine, if they are to serve the purpose for which they were 

 intended. In dairy^ing, we must work for the greatest produc- 

 tion, at the smallest cost, for the longest time, and to do this I 

 feel sure that we must weigh and test our milk as it is pro- 

 duced. 



Weighing and tesfting of milk is by no means a new practice. 

 In fact it has been carried on for several years in many differ- 

 ent herds all over the country. In other countries it has been 

 in process of development and especially in Denmark where 

 the first association was formed to carry on this work. It 

 helped advance the dairy interests of that country to the 

 present status of the industry and is at the present time work- 

 ing great benefits to the dairyman. Here in America, Michigan 

 has led in the forming of associations through which the test- 

 ing has been done economically. Other states have followed 

 and our own state is not far behind the others. Even before 

 the testing associations were formed, some men saw the possii- 

 bilities of the knowledge gained by weighing and testing the 

 milk from their herd, and carrying out the principle thus 

 founded, they have raised the standards of production in their 

 locality and opened the way for the wider operations which 

 have followed. 



It has been said that the farmer is the poorest business 

 manager of any who have such a large capital invested. Truly, 

 the farm is the only factory which will allow of such wastes 

 as are practiced in many places and keep out of the hands of 

 the receiver. It is not true that the farmer does not have 

 business ability, for the average farmer has greater ability to 

 manage a business than the average city man. Give the farmer 

 the chance to study the markets and their requirements, wihich 

 he must meet, and he will out-distance the city man every time. 

 Business must have method' and in the testing and weighing 

 of milk we are using one of the methods which will help us to 

 know our exact income and expense. Truly it has been said 

 that the farm is the hardest place in which to keep accounts. 

 The variety of work whidh is done, together w^ith the irregu- 

 larity with which much of the work has to be done, makes it 



