112 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



in the country need investigation, I am ready to admit that 

 conditions on the farm may be improved. I Avas particularly 

 interested, therefore, in what the lecturer had to say concern- 

 ing the carriers, transportation, etc., in their bearing upon 

 conditions in the open country; for I am convinced that these 

 things have much to do with the results which we are getting 

 on our farms. I do not believe we realize to what an extent 

 we are taxed by the tariff. We do realize that there are 

 trusts; tobacco men realize that there are trusts who have 

 them at their mercy, and who will pay just what they please 

 for their crops. And we know it is very easy for milk dealers 

 in a city to come to an agreement and unite together, and say 

 they will pay so much for milk. We know that agreements 

 among farmers, who are so much more widely scattered, are 

 far more difficult. So I think we ought, as farmers, to very 

 carefully consider these questions. We need better express 

 rates, we need better rates from railroads, we need parcels- 

 post, and we need legislation, both State and national, Avhich 

 will make conditions less favorable to trusts. With these 

 things accomplished, conditions in the open country will be 

 better. I have great faith in the farmers ; I believe that they, 

 when they think and study these problems, can settle them for 

 themselves. Give them a fair chance in the economic world, 

 a fair chance to get a fair share of the prices which the con- 

 sumer pays for their products, and the farmer will be all 

 right. 



The Chaik. We would like to hear from Professor 

 Gribben. 



Prof. R. L. Gribben (of Amherst). I want to lay em- 

 phasis on one thing if I can in any way. I'll call it a hobby 

 of mine and ride it. That is, the cow-testing association. I 

 don't know what can be done; I am not well enough 

 acquainted with conditions as they are, but it seems to me 

 that one of the points brought out, that some cows are paying 

 a profit while others were " paying a loss," is something that 

 ought to be given considerable attention, especially when we 

 consider that every dollar counts to the farmer as perhaps it 

 does to no one else. As long as there are cows kept on the 



