314 MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



The great political parties print papers, publish books, hire orators, 

 and every now and then they have an election, to see "where they are at." 



The minister who stands behind the sacred desk and proclaims the 

 gospel to his congregation. After years of toil to build up a church and 

 to all appearances successful, his audiences always large, the prayer 

 meeting well attended, the Sunday School full of interest, hundreds of 

 new names on the church roll and yet some bright Sunday morning 

 when the attendance is large, he says to his congregation, "Everybodv 

 who is trying to be good, please stand up." He wants to know "where 

 they are at." 



:|c :): ^ H: 4: :|: 



Ladies and gentlemen, I care not whether you are in the dariy busi- 

 ness or something else, I care not whether you live in the country or in 

 town. It is of no importance or special significance whether you are en- 

 gaged in farming or banking or manufacturing, you are no less inter- 

 ested in this connection at this time, and as it pertains to dairying, in 

 view of prompt action being necessary, you must ask yourself and answer 

 the question before you are in a position to act intelligently. The banker, 

 the merchant, the speculator all ask themselves every day and I am glad 

 the time has come, through the influence of such institutions as this, 

 when the same business methods are adopted by the farmer to obtain 

 satisfactory results. 



It was not always thus. In some sections during the tobacco rais- 

 ing period, when we bought Horse Shoe seed and raised Battle x\xe 

 tobacco, when we spent valuable time picking worms and pulling suck- 

 ers oflf of tobacco plants, and in our tobaco patches there were two kinds 

 of suckers, one grew on the plant and the other pulled them oflf, we 

 never asked where we were at. And we never knew until the sheriflf 

 brought us v/ord, and then we sav.'- our mistake and none knew better 

 than we that it was too late. 



We owe a debt of gratitude to the pioneers of this business, the 

 originators and incorporators of this association, and I wish tonight that 

 I could answer them this question by giving a detailed report of what 

 has been accomplished during the past year. 



I am glad to report that over a thousand residents of this state have 

 espoused the cause of dairying during the past year, and are abundantly 

 satisfied with the result. 



A man who had a gold mine on his farm or an oil gusher beneath 

 it, that would not allow the space to be used necessary to get it out be- 

 cause it would interfere with raising corn, would be examined by a com- 

 mittee in fifteen minutes to decide on his sanity. And yet on thousands 



