308 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



early months of this year the range in butter prices on the 

 principal butter markets was unusually large and many cream- 

 eries which were receiving poor raw material had serious diffi- 

 culty in meeting competition of the creameries where better 

 quality was secured and it was generally predicted that cream- 

 eries which could not get a reasonably good grade of milk or 

 cream would be forced out of business. The market condi- 

 tions, however, changed before any very serious damage was 

 done, but this incident shows the importance, if not the necessity, 

 of securing good raw material. In your state, where sweet 

 cream is delivered in large quantities and where the quality of 

 raw material is unusually good, you probably do not realize to 

 what extent poor quality interferes with successful operation of 

 creameries in other sections of the country. In centralizing 

 creameries and in many local creameries operating on the gath- 

 ered-cream plan, it is not infrequent that cream is held on the 

 farm for a week, with no effort being made to cool or properly 

 care for it. In one instance which was investigated, cream had 

 been held under such conditions for at least two weeks, then 

 hauled on a wagon for a distance of sixty miles, which required 

 two days, and shipped by rail to the creamery. Since I have 

 come to know more about creamery operating methods in other 

 states, I realize that Maine creamery operators and patrons 

 have good cause to congratulate themselves on the quality of 

 raw material furnished to the creameries. This has resulted in 

 eliminating one of the most perplexing problems creamery 

 operators in other states have to contend with and has resulted 

 in raising the price for butter fat to a point considerably higher 

 than that paid producers of poor cream in other states. 



SUPERVISION. 



The value of efficient supervision is generally under-estimated. 

 Butter makers and creamery employees are frequently hired 

 because of their willingness to work for a small salary, but as 

 a rule such men are the most expensive to employ. Many 

 creameries can trace their lack of success to the low prices 

 received for butter caused by poor workmanship. Reports from 

 the market inspectors of the Dairy Division who were stationed 

 in New York and Chicago show that out of 2300 different lots 



