464 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



I have called your attention to these things as of great importance for 

 this reason: Denmark is not a rich argiciiltnral country when it comes 

 to wealth of soil. There Is a great deal of low class, sandy land. The 

 people there were not wealthy, and would not be called rich in one sense 

 as the people in some regioug are today, and they had some very great 

 problems to deal with; and I think they have demonstrated to the rest of 

 the world that they have successfully solved the problems. 



What sort of a message does Denmark bring to us? In the first place, 

 the farmers in Indiana should grow less grain. Why? If you people but 

 think of it, we are one of the great gTain-growing States of the Union. 

 Within the last ten years we have ranked among the fifth and sixth great 

 wheat producing States, although the world thinks that Kansas and the 

 Dakotas are the great wheat-producing States. The Avheat which we 

 produce we ship in great quantities outside of our borders. Our farmers 

 today are farming land that is worth from .$50 to $100 an acre, and more 

 than once in the last ten years their wheat crops have been a failure; 

 but when it comes to the production of live stock, we occupy certainly, 

 of the central West, as favoi-able location as any other State, and when it 

 comes to the production of dairy products we occupy a situation that need 

 not be misleading. In order to maintain the fertility of the soil of In- 

 diana we must grow more live stock. That is evident on its face. It is 

 an argument that is presented to the people all over the United States. 

 If we grow more live stock, why not grow more dairy stock? If you 

 were to make an examination into the market supply of the cities of In- 

 diana, you would be sin'prised at the quality of milk sold. Today, at the 

 dinner table, I said: "I believe Indiana is a first-class State for a young 

 man to succeed in." And I said that there wasn't any city in the State 

 of reasonable size where I would hesitate to go into competition with any- 

 body in the production of milk for city consumption. The same thing 

 would appiy to any branch of dairying, the production of butter, or any 

 other commodity that the dairyman may produce. Now, you know some- 

 thing of why the farmer should go into the dairy business. I do not hesi- 

 tate to tell you that that State which specializes to the greatest degree in 

 the most intelligent manner, is generally rated as the most successful from 

 the agricultural standpoint. I hold that the State of Indiana, agricultur- 

 ally speaking, in the hands of genei'al farmers will not be as famous a 

 State, and the farmers will not be making the money that will be made 

 in the State where there is specialization. I don't mean that a man 

 should engage in one line and produce nothing else, l)ut si>ecialize on 

 some one thing in addition to other work. If there is any message that 

 Denmark can send to Indiana, it is that the farmers of this State should 

 grow less grain and should study the dairy business intelligently, and 

 persistently work out the problem of dairy improvement; make more and 

 better butter, and more and bette'r cheese, and more and better milk: read 

 the dairy papers more; patronize the dairy schools more; take pait in the 

 work of the State Dairy Association; require as much as possible of the 



