40 CO-OPEKATION IN DANISH AGKICtlLTURE 



built a dairy, for which he bought milk from the neighbours. 

 This man, whose work in other branches of agricultural co- 

 operation will be mentioned in later chapters, saw at once 

 what the co-operative dairy system promised to develop into, 

 and expressed his belief in the prophecy quoted earlier in this 

 chapter. He was an indefatigable helper during the first years, 

 before engineering firms took up this branch, by drawing up j , 

 plans for buildings and for the machinery of many new co- ^ 

 operative dairies, and he saw the need of educating dairymen. \^ 

 He, therefore, in 1887, opened the first dairy school in con- 

 nection with his agricultural school, and the first winter course 

 of ^y^ months was attended by 43 dairymen. It is to a very 

 large measure due to this man that it was possible to find 

 technically trained managers for the hundreds of co-operative 

 dairies which in the course of a few years sprang up all over 

 the country. Since that time two other dairy schools have 

 been opened, both by private initiative, all of them giving 

 instruction, with board and lodging, at almost incredibly low 

 fees. 



" The wave from the sea in the west," did, indeed, sweep 

 over the country ; from 1882 to 1888 new co-operative dairies 

 were built in increasing numbers, viz., 2, 11, 26, 38, 62, 133, 

 217, total 489. Then the movement slackened somewhat, but 

 did by no means stop. In 1914 an ofiicial inquiry wa^ made 

 by the Statistical Department of the State, ^ which showed that 

 there were then altogether 1503 dairies, of which 1168 were 

 co-operative dairies, 196 private collective dairies, and 16 estate 

 dairies, all chiefly engaged in producing butter, while 123 

 dairies were chiefly engaged in the milk trade. The 1168 

 *' co-operative dairies " are grouped according to the year they 

 were built, as follows : — 



Number of Co-operative Dairies built. 



Before 1886 84 



1886-90 595 



1891-95 153 



1896-1900 110 



1901-05 05 



1906-10 92 



1911-14 52 



' Statisti«ke Meddeleleer, 4 Koekke, 49 Bd., 1 lloeftr, " Mcjcribrugct i Dan- 

 mark," 1916. 



