president's address. 11 



to pay our war debt, fall heavily upon the American farmer. 

 So long as they are sure of such enormous profits, these mono- 

 polies will bring so powerful a pressure upon our representa- 

 tives in Congress that weak human nature can scarce withstand 

 it. 



The old saying that " money is power ' ' should be changed 

 to money is becoming more powerful. While our dairy inter- 

 ests would not be as directly affected as some other branches of 

 agriculture, yet what injures one hurts the whole. 



FOREIGN MARKETS. 



The Department of Agriculture at Washington has demon- 

 strated that we can find a market in other countries for our 

 surplus butter. Would it not be better if more of it was shipped 

 away when our markets are low, not allowing so much to 

 accumulate in cold storage ? We must learn to cater to this 

 market, and try to establish a good reputation for our dairy 

 products by sending only such as their trade demands. We 

 need not be afraid of an over-production of high-grade dairy 

 products. The better the quality the larger the consumption 

 of both butter and cheese. With the increased information we 

 are hoping to receive from this meeting, and from a closer 

 study of our business, let us take courage for the future. 



EDUCATION. 



The profits we shall receive and the value we are to society 

 will depend largely on the books and papers we read and study, 

 the mind and character we develop, the character and condition 

 to which we bring our soil, and the character and condition of 

 the animal life on our farms. The soil as well as the animal 

 life on the farm will improve or deteriorate in proportion to the 

 intelligent ideas of the farmer in charge. Dairy farming, or the 

 production of cheaper milk, calls for constant study along the 

 lines of breeding the dairy cow, soil management, economical 

 feeding rations, and the weeding out of those cows of the low- 

 er grades. The farmer of the future must be an educated 

 man. It is as essential that his mind be trained to close study 

 as for the manufacturer or lawyer. A trained mind can see and 

 knows how to act. But let us educate our boys towards the 

 farm, not awav from it. Never, in the history of the world, 

 could so much valuable information be gained for so little money 

 as to-day. Books and periodicals of all kinds, reading courses for 

 farmers, our dairy schools and short courses in agriculture, will 

 make any boy, with a fair common school education, see new 

 possibilities, and start him on the road to be a thinking, successful 



