NINETEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART V 339 



AS TO COST OF MILK 



There has been a great deal of discussion within the last year 

 on the cost of milk in the vicinity of Des Moines and central Iowa. 

 We have read with a good deal of interest most that has been writ- 

 ten. In my last report to the Governor, I gave some information 

 on this subject, yet the fellow, who on being asked what he knew 

 about the cost of milk, answered by asking the question, 'How 

 long is a stick?" — came as near giving an intelligent answer as 

 some of us that have been doing so much writing. 



The facts are that this is a question that is difficult of solution, 

 fm- the reason that conditions are so varied in this section. I1 may 

 be reasonably easy to go on to any particular farm, and arrive at 

 fair conclusions as to cost in this one case, but this can't be done 

 in a few days or even a few weeks, unless this time is spread over 

 different intervals for a year. 



To make this work of any value, this survey should be made on 

 at least 15% of all the farms that supply milk for Des Moines. 

 Assuming that the supply comes from 1,000 farms, when you have 

 finished this work on 150 farms, you will find that it is no small 

 joD and requires a lot of time. 



For about 37 years I have been more or less a student of dairy- 

 ing. I have never been a believer in the dual purpose cow. For 

 a great many years, beginning in the eighties, there was little en- 

 couragement or inducement offered the dairj'men or breeders of 

 dairy cattle in Iowa, even by our agricultural college or the Dairy 

 and Food Department. 



Steers and hogs were raised and fed at a profit. About this 

 time there appeared on the scene of action the creamery promoter. 

 These men gave the dairy game a set back that it has hardly r-ecov- 

 ered from, especially in Southern Iowa up to this time. Their 

 mission was to sell a neighborhood a $1,500 or $2,000 creamery 

 building and equipment for from $3,500 to $4,500, and pass on 

 until they found another bunch of "suckers." Their scheme was 

 worked without reference to whether a community had sufficient 

 cows to support a creamery or not, and while many of thes-; glib 



