STATK l).\Ii;V ASS(« lA riti.N. 577 



TIIUKtSDAV AFTERNOON. 



December 10, 1903. l-W p. lu. 



BUILDIX(; Ul' A DA lit Y HEKD AND BUSINESS. 



JIKS. CHARLES LAMONT, MOORESVILLE. 



To save us inovins in quest of a suitable position, we five years ago 

 weut in debt entirely for our farm of 70 acres, as well as for nearly all of 

 the cows, horses and farm implements with which to begin work, and 

 even for feed to carry oiu" stock over the approaching; winter. It was 

 rather a large undertaking for us to face a del>t of $3,500 for the farm 

 alone with the very small cash capital which we possessed, but we were 

 tirndy convinced that we could and would succeed, and strange as it may 

 seem, while lack of knowledge of the dairy business has been our greatest 

 obstacle, we have never really sullered for want of linancial aid, perhaps 

 berause we have made it our business to discharge all obligations at the 

 time agreed on and so kept our credit good. 



We had a retail l)utt('r route all ready to step into, otherwise we 

 \v(»uld scarcely have made the venture. We bought a sufficient number 

 of Jersey cows to supply our trade, one here and one there just wherever 

 we could, but most of them from dairymen who were going out of the 

 l»nsiness. We put in a cream sopaialor and modern butter making ap- 

 pliances. 



There was what seemed an epidemic of abortion in the dairies round 

 us at the time, and our small herd had the disease from the first; several 

 of our cows lost their calves, and of these cows some gave very little milk 

 afterwards, but the greatest trouble was that so many of them failed to 

 breed either for a long time or not at all, and these last we had finally to 

 dispo.se of and replace with others. AVe sent away for a remedy much 

 a«lvertised for th(> cure of aliortion. but we relied most on keeping the 

 cows clean and disinl'ecting the premises Avitli lime and carbolic acid, and 

 after some months the disea.se died out. 



We lost two cows from inilk fever the first Avinter. They were let 

 take dn too much fat before calving. Thes" los.ses were far from being 

 encouraging, but they taught us a lesson in care we have not yet for- 

 gotten. We do not now allow a cow to go dry more than eight weeks 

 before calving, if possible, and keep the bowels loose before and at the 

 time by the aid of Epsom salts if necessary: feed sparingly for several 

 days after calvinir .nnd give waiin brnn iii.islics ;md warm llic drinking 



.'.7-AKri. 



