388 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



Why is the public so densely ignorant of the tremendous im- 

 portance of the dairy industry? Why is it that a product whose 

 value is greater than any other farm product, with the possible 

 exception of one or two, should even need protection from our own 

 government? And yet (if you will pardon a slight digression), 

 only about three weeks ago the committee on agriculture was 

 evenly divided as to whether it should vote to continue the pros- 

 perity of 10,000,000 dairymen, or whether it should vote in the 

 interest of 35 manufacturers of an imitation product whose only 

 object is to sell a counterfeit for the genuine. Do you suppose these 

 congressmen would hesitate one minute to vote in the interest of the 

 producer and consumer of dairy products if they had any concep- 

 tion of what might happen if the dairy forces were organized and 

 represented as they ought to be? 



Coming a little closer home, I understand that from 50 cents 

 to $1.50 is the limit our own Legislature will go when it comes 

 to dairy appropriations. Yet these members of our Legislature 

 ought to and must know that there is no state in the Union for 

 which the dairy industry can do more than for the State of Mis- 

 souri. 



I am inclined to believe that we are to blame to a certain ex- 

 tent for the apathy which prevails in the minds of the public with 

 reference to our business. If we are, let's get busy. We should 

 be in a position to get appropriations commensurate with the size 

 of the work to be done. It ought to be possible to go to Jefferson 

 City and with a reasonable effort secure $50,000, $75,000, or even 

 $100,000 to carry on the work of dairy instruction in this State. 

 The returns from such an amount of money would be immense. 

 The Department of Agriculture at Washington is at the present 

 time interested in organizing counties so that instructors may be 

 sent out. It seems to me that this Association might be able to 

 work in connection with the State Board, selecting men for such 

 associations in Missouri, believing that the dairy industry is of 

 special importance. I have convinced myself that the public needs 

 to be enlightened on this subject, and I am quite sure that some 

 inquiry into the business from our standpoint is in order. 



A manufacturer in any line of business, if he be successful, 

 must know what it costs to produce the article he makes. He has 

 a very elaborate cost system, showing the items which enter into 

 the various departments, and if he did not keep these detailed 

 accounts he would not remain in business a great while. Just why 



