NINTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART VII 313 
dairy business. The fact that meetings like this are becoming so popular 
shows that we are not satisfied with the results we are getting from our 
so-called "high priced land." We are all working for better results; we 
want better results that we may buy more of the necessaries and comforts 
and luxuries of life for ourselves and our families; that we may better 
care for and educate and cultivate that most valuable of all crops grown 
on our farms today, that is, our crop of boys and girls. This is the most 
valuable of all crops grown and we are sorry to say in many cases is the 
worst neglected. In some childish natures the seeds of discord and dis- 
content are so deeply rooted that it takes years of careful cultivation 
to kill them or cover them up so deeply that they will be entirely smoth- 
ered out. Times have changed since our forefathers roamed over these 
broad plains hunting deer with their rifles on their arms and powder in 
their flasks; the girls hunt dears today with nothing on their arms and 
powder on their faces. We are living in what we are pleased to call a 
fast age. We once had a quotation, "Early to bed and early to rise." 
An Irishman said, "We quote it differently nowadays. Now it is 'Early to 
bed and early to rise; hustle like hell and advertise.'" Changed conditions 
demand different methods. Better results can only be obtained by adopt- 
ing and pursuing better methods. Better methods mean more care, better 
preparation of the soil, better selection of our cows, better care of our 
breeding stock, better care of our growing crops, better care of our crops 
at harvesting time, a little closer attention to our business in every line. 
The farmer can hardly change the selling price of farm products, so 
in order to enhance his own profits he must get his head into the game 
and produce his goods cheaper. The man who reduces the cost of the 
necessaries of life is a world's benefactor. We are often told that the 
way to get better results from a dairy herd is to get scales and a test 
machine and weigh and test the milk from each individual cow and w^eed 
out those that are not making a profit. In our opinion this is commenc- 
ing at the bottom of a hole to dig. First, feed and treat the cows right 
that you have on your farms. Provide a cheap succulent feed. When 
you commence feeding and treating your cows right, then get your scales 
and test machine and you will be surprised at how few cows you have that 
will not pay for their feed. There is a theory taught at nearly all of 
our agricultural schools that any animal on the farm should be fed a full 
feed, or all that it will eat, at all times. This is all right in theory, but 
if your feed costs too much it is likely to be a money losing game when 
put into practice. If you get your feed cheap enough, most any kind of 
an animal can be kept at a profit, so on Iowa farms with land at the 
present prices, both the production of milk and beef depends almost en- 
tirely on the cost of feed. It is said that if a public speaker washes to 
interest his audience he must tell them things they already know. In 
doing so they will recognize the greatness of his mind from the fact that 
he knows the same things that they know. I suppose on the theory that 
all great minds think along the same lines. My theory is that if you 
want to do a man some good you must tell him things he doesn't know. 
Naturally, when a man hears a thing that he doesn't know himself he 
doesn't believe it, so if I can say something to you today that will cause 
