18 DAIRYING. 



of single cows whose record has reached 15,000 to 20,000 pounds of 

 milk per year. 



47. Persons somewhat familiar with the keeping of cows would 

 consider that an increase of 100 pounds of milk per cow per year 

 would not require any great effort on their part. Many of them 

 would think it comparatively easy to do this by giving a trifle more 

 attention to the care and to the feed of their cows. But if this were 

 done and milk is worh $1.00 per 100 pounds, such an increase wo aid 

 add $21,000,000 to the value of the dairy production of the United 

 States each year. 



48. One of the best ways to add this 100 pounds, more or less ,to 

 the annual production of each cow is to weigh the rnilk at milking 

 time and find out how many pounds each cow is producing in a 

 year. If the average per cow per year is 4,000 pounds of milk, 

 there must be a great many that produce less than this amount, and 

 the number of cows below the average must be many more than 

 the number above the average, as one 10,000 pound cow will take 

 the. place of five 2,000 pound cows. 



49. Statistics show that there is a great need of "weeding 

 out the unprofitable cows." Farmers will discharge a hired man 

 who does not earn his wages, and a great deal of the farmer's time 

 is occupied in killing weeds in his crops; but the weighing of each 

 cow's milk is generally considered "too much bother." It is a fact, 

 however, that many farmers can increase their income by keeping 

 records of their cows, and disposing of those that give less than 

 4,000 pounds of milk, or 200 pounds of butter in a year. 



50. Nearly every farmer would eagerly accept an offer of $20 

 for 15 minutes ' work once in two weeks for a year, but he can easily 

 earn more than this by weighing and testing the milk of his cows. 

 The following illustration shows how such work was valuable to the 

 owner of the two cows in plate 3. These belonged to a herd of 12 that 

 were all fed and cared for in the same way. These two cows were of 

 the same age, color, and general appearance, except that No. 1 was 

 thin and No. 2 fat. The owner was induced to weigh and sample the 

 milk of each cow in his herd once in two weeks for a year. The 

 samples were sent to the creamery and tested. From these weights 

 and tests the total production of each cow was calculated. 



51. The records at the end of the year showed that cow No. 1 



