No. 4.] REPORT OF DAIRY BUREAli 



385 



hard to estimate the consumption of butter in Massachusetts, 

 but with the above official figures for the Boston market it is 

 safe to add one-half for the rest of the State. This gives us 

 74,000,000 pounds, which certainly is not an over-estimate. 

 The consumption of oleomargarine, according to the United 

 States internal revenue figures in 1899, was 2,083,899 

 pounds, — a very small amount in comparison with the total 

 consumption of butter. 



The following table shows the extreme quotation for the 

 best fresh creamery butter in a strictly wholesale way in the 

 Boston market for six years : — 



Although ])uttcr did not go as high in price during the 

 fall months of 1900 as in the fall of 1899, it did better earlier 

 in the year, and did not drop so low during May, June and 

 July, — the months of flush production ; so that the average 

 price for the year is 1.13 cents more than for 1899, and is 

 the highest average for six years. This explains the incen- 

 tive to crowd the sale of fraudulent substitutes. 



Milk. 

 The increased cost of milk production has caused much 

 effort during the year to get better prices. These efibrts 

 have been successful in many instances, and in some places 

 have resulted in a closer organization of producers. In the 

 spring the fiirmers supplying the Boston market secured an 



