1019] DAIRY FAI1MINC DAIRYING. 281 



months for both the Chicago and New York territories. An appendix pi 

 for each Investigation separately, an Itemized statement of the costs and credits 

 per cow. By vote of the committee, all charges for managerial ability and risk 

 were excluded from the compulations. In most cases a statement is made of 

 the percentage of the annual milk yield produced during the six months be- 

 ginning with October. This percentage varied from 47.4 to 51.4. 



The second section of the report summarizes replies to a questionnaire sent 

 to the principal milk dealers of the country concerning details of their business. 

 The 45 dealers replying were, with few exceptions, located east of the Missis- 

 sippi River and north of the latitude of Washington, D. C. In most cases the 

 replies were checked by an accountant employed by the committee. For each 

 group of dealers information is furnished for the first six months of 1917 as to 

 assets, sales, costs, earnings, depreciation of plant and equipment, the disposal 

 of milk purchased, the number of retail and wholesale routes, and the number 

 of " quart points " per route. The 45 companies disposed of 510,000,000 qts. 

 In the six months. The net earnings per quart averaged 0.25G ct. The average 

 cost of distribution after the milk had reached the city and had been pas- 

 teurized was 1.116 cts. per quart The committee is of the opinion that dupli- 

 cation of routes within the city Is less common at present than is generally 

 supposed. It is believed that all duplication could be eliminated by the estab- 

 lishment of zone monopolies in each vicinity through the licensing of 

 distributors. 



The life of a milk bottle is estimated at from 20 to 30 trips. Over 50 per cent 

 of the breakage occurs when bottles are in the hands of consumers, and about 

 40 per cent when in the plant. At the time of the survey, quart bottles cost 

 about 4 cts. each. The committee points out that many municipal regulations 

 affecting distribution are obsolete, and is unanimous in urging the repeal of nil 

 laws prohibiting standardization of milk. It also believes that the number of 

 recognized grades of milk should be reduced. 



The third section of the report is a compilation of familiar facts as to the 

 food value of milk. 



Milk production costs and milk prices, It. M. Green, D. C. Wood, and A. C. 

 Raosdale (Missouri Stu. Bui. 156 (1918), pp. 36, fig. 1). — A report on investiga- 

 tions approximately coinciding with the calendar year 1917 on production costs 

 in the neighborhood of the three largest Missouri cities. In each territory 

 representative herds of 10 or more cows were selected for study. The total 

 number studied was 101, of which 9 were composed entirely of pure-bred cattle ; 

 G6 of grades with an occasional pure bred; and the rest, 26, of mixed or com- 

 mon stock. In the counties adjoining St. Louis, the herds of 49 dairymen were 

 studied, of which 40 shipped their milk by express to St. Louis, paying a trans- 

 portation charge of 1.5 cts. to 2 cts. per gallon. The remaining 9 retailed their 

 milk locally in the smaller towns. In the vicinity of St. Joseph, 23 farms were 

 studied, of which 13 either hauled their milk to a local creamery or sold it to a 

 neighboring dairyman who had milk routes in the city. Ten retailed their own 

 milk in St. Joseph, an average haul of 3.5 miles. In the Kansas City district 

 records were secured from 29 dairymen, of whom 4 retailed in outlying towns 

 and 25 sold to local creameries. Complete data are given in 19 tables. The 

 table following gives some of the main Items "f cost and the prices received 

 under various marketing conditions in the different localities, the 4 local re- 

 tailers near Kuusas City being omitted. 



