916 New York 'State Dairymen's Association 



year, 1892, there were in rouud numbers 10,500,000 pounds of 

 butter made in the State of Xow York, and that this is the 

 smallest amoimt of butter that has been made in anv year since 

 that time. Now, I do not think that the general falling off in 

 cheese has been brought about by a smaller amount of milk being 

 produced in the state. It is rather from the fact that more butter 

 has been made in the state continually and that more crude milk 

 has been shipped from dairy districts to the large cities, wherein 

 the population increased with much greater rapidity than has the 

 amount of milk produced. I find, following this table up, that 

 with one exception every year since 1892 has seen a large percent- 

 age of increase in the amount of butter manufactured until in 

 1904 — the last year's record that I have with me — the amount 

 of butter made in the state in factories was 04,923,779 pounds, 

 three times more than made in 1892. While in 1802 we made 

 something like 1.'3 1,000, 000 pounds of cheese, in the year 1904 

 the amount had shrunk to 124,500,000 pounds, in round numbers. 

 I find that during this period there was no year — with the excep- 

 tion of 1896, which was a dry year and a year of light production 

 — but what the percentage of increase in the amount of butter 

 made has been large : wdiile in the cheese industry I find that from 

 1892 to 1904 the amount made had shrunk something like G,00O,- 

 000 jDounds. 



Now this means several things for cheesemakers. In the first 

 place, it means that a large proportion 'of our milk goes, not into 

 cheese, but is either shipped as crude milk or cream to the cities 

 or else is made into butter. And if we would maintain our 

 position as makers of cheese of best quality it behooves us as 

 dairymen to listen to instruction that we have had and to profit 

 by the efforts of the state to foster our industry. I have no 

 question but what the best cheese made in the State of New York 

 to-day are the best cheese that are made in this country ; but I do 

 not wish the cheesemakers of this state to get the idea that we 

 are all the good cheesemakers there are in this country. The 

 State of Wisconsin is making a magnificent cheese. They 

 have taken from us some of our best instructors and thev have 

 copied our work and initiated work of their own that has devel- 

 oped an immense cheese industry there and their cheese are coming 



