ELEVENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART VIII 407 



has existed a sort of an ill will on the part of the local plants toward the 

 larger concerns — there has been a lot of imagined wrong done them on the 

 part of the local creameries, but I want to say to you gentlemen that 

 since I have had the opportunity to get acquainted with the centralizing 

 creamery system I have materially changed my mind. Not that I wish 

 to be quoted as saying that they are the better system or that the local 

 creamery system is the better. Each of the creamery systems have a place 

 in this state and they are both working for the same results. We find that 

 the larger concerns are just as anxious to improve the quality as are the 

 smaller creameries and I can assure you that they are as eager to prose- 

 cute the violation of manipulation of the cream tests as you are, even 

 though it be one of their own agents. 



Indeed, we have more complaints from the large plants telling us of 

 improper work done by their own agents than comes from the local plants, 

 and they are just as eager to see them prosecuted for it means a loss to 

 them when the operator is short. And I can truthfully say that I do not 

 believe there is a case in all our investigations where I thought the oper- 

 ator was authorized by the management to manipulate the test in any 

 way. 



The department received a letter a short time ago from the manager of 

 one of the large centralizing creameries asking us to investigate a sta- 

 tion of theirs where he says he thinks the operator is overreading the 

 test for the purpose of putting the local creamery out of business. Let- 

 ters of this kind and other communications have led us to believe their 

 intentions are not as bad as are sometimes reported. I can see no rea- 

 son why the two systems cannot co-operate and work together for the 

 purpose of obtaining better results in way of raw material. Very fre- 

 quently we get complaints from creameries telling us that when they 

 reject a can of bad cream the patron takes over to the station and sells it 

 and invariably the local plants lose a patron while the other people 

 gain one. 



I am a firm believer in organization, and I believe if we could organize 

 the state into districts and have improvement associations similar to 

 the one now in operation in northern Iowa that it would only be a short 

 time until most of our trouble along the lines of quality would cease. 

 There is certainly a good work being done in northern Iowa and I believe 

 all that is necessary to have a number of similar organizations is to 

 make it known to the public. The question of providing funds for carrying 

 on this work seems to be the most difficult part in forming organizations 

 of this kind but I'm sure that when the people are made aware of the 

 benefits derived through work of this kind they will not hesitate to re- 

 spond with the necessary funds. 



Relative to the trouble being caused by manipulating the test I will 

 say that at the next session of the legislature there will be a bill intro- 

 duced for a law similar to the one in Kansas and Nebraska (and I think 

 Minnesota has the same), making it necessary for all persons who operate 

 the Babcock test or any other contrivance used to determine the butter-fat 

 content in milk or cream, to secure a license from the state dairy commis- 



