286 MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



MY EXPERIENCE VVlTli COWS. 



(I'l-of. T. L. HaecUer, Chief Dairy Department, Agricultural College, St. Anthouy Park, 



Minnesota.) 



Ladies and Gentelnien — 1 do not know that I ever before confronted 

 an audience when I cUd not know what I was going to say when I got 

 on the platform, as is the case at this moment. I am hardly myself to- 

 day, being awake all night and having been awake the previous night 

 before I started, and I am in a quandry how to proceed with this talk so 

 as to make it the most effective. 



I will have but little time to give to you and I am very anxious that 

 I should accomplish the most good for the time that I occupy. I will, 

 therefore, give it rather a practical trend and pass over a few points 

 very rapidly. 



I came into this educational work from the farm, from the practical 

 end of it; I had never had any education from the scientific standpoint 

 of farming or dairying; I had never expected to leave the farm. Farm 

 life, and especially dairying, was very agreeable to me and I had ex- 

 pected to spend my hfe time on the old farm, but peculiar circumstances 

 called me elsewhere. There was a dairy school started in Madison, 

 Wisconsin and I made up my mind to attend it. Mr. Curler here was 

 the instructor. I had been very successful in dairying, probably getting 

 a larger yield from my cows than any other person in that State, and 

 yet I felt that there were some things to learn, and if there was any- 

 thing to learn, I was willing to spend the winter in doing it ; so I at- 

 tended the first dairy school. Before I got through with that course I 

 was asked to come to Minnesota to take charge of the dairy work in that 

 State. During the summer I made the change. 



As a result, T did not return to the farm, but came to Minnesota and 

 took charge of the dairy work of the College of Agriculture. I have 

 aimed all the time I have been connected with that work to carry it 

 along lines which would bring about results valuable to the farmer. The 

 question arose at once, what could I do here to help the farmer the most. 



So I carried on an experiment with cows. I bought a herd of 

 cows and took reasonably good care of them. I kept account of each 

 cow, weight of the daily feed, the daily yield of milk, the butter- fat, etc., 

 getting all the information that I could as to the profits that there were 

 in dairying, carrying it on from a business standpoint. 



