NEW YORK MILK COMMITTEE 25 



that we have on all sides, and organize. A great deal can be ac- 

 complished through organization. 



I was very much pleased by the paper presented by Mr. Zippel, 

 in which he so clearly indicated the methods adopted by the rail- 

 roads for the proper transportation of milk. I think that any 

 transportation company or public service corporation that will pro- 

 vide equipment of the kind described, whereby, if it receives the 

 milk at the proper temperature (namely, that of about 45 degrees) 

 it can guarantee to keep it there to the point of delivery, is deserv- 

 ing of great credit. That is a remarkable achievement, and one of 

 extraordinary benefit to a community like New York. 



Whatever phase one takes of this discussion, the most important 

 thing that crops out -at least to me is and always has been the 

 lack of attention to basic principles those large questions and 

 problems of life beyond the control of the individual, which, after 

 all, are the cause of the conditions confronting us to-day. With 

 your permission, I will ask your attention to the unfolding of some 

 of those problems. 



In approaching the whole problem, for instance, we never stop 

 and ask ourselves, why does a farmer ever make milk? If you will 

 begin with that as your basis, and follow it to its logical conclusion, 

 to the time of the delivery of your milk at the city and at your 

 house, at your table, I think you will be rather astonished at the 

 number of forces that are contributing factors to that movement, 

 and to see how helpless the efforts of any one individual are to- 

 ward the correction of abuses. 



The factors contributary to milk economics are legion. More- 

 over, these factors vary both in kind, intensity and importance ac- 

 cording to the locality involved, *. e., the problems of New York 

 city are obviously different from those of remote rural communities, 

 although there is a certain interdependence between the two. 



The most important factor is that the price of milk is largely 

 determined by the price of butter. Some exception may be taken 

 to the foregoing statement on the ground that in this respect cheese 

 occupies a similar position. This basic principle of milk economics, 

 though well understood is, nevertheless, so frequently ignored that 

 it will be well to devote a few moments to a brief detailed recapitu- 

 lation thereof. 



This important position of butter originates from three condi- 

 tions. A practice common to all farms of this and adjacent states, 

 with relatively few exceptions, is the keeping of one or more cows. 

 Even where but one cow is kept an abundance of milk, in excess 

 of the family needs, usually exists for an indefinite period of each 

 lacteal period. Consequently, at such times, to avoid waste, the 



