100 X. H. Agr. Experimext Station [Bulletin 260 



Grade cows kei)t for the production of M'holesale milk for the Boston 

 market represented the most important type of animal enterprise. 

 Very few hogs or sheep were raised. With a market for whole milk 

 and practically no corn grown, by-products are lacking for commer- 

 cial hog production. Sheep are out of the question largely because 

 they return much less per animal unit for high-priced feed than the 

 dairy cow and because there are few cash crops in this region to use 

 summer labor at as good an advantage as dairying. 



Poultry furnishes a perishable product for sale and can make good 

 use of high-priced feed in supplying a quality product for a relatively 

 nearby market. In most dairy regions some poultry combines well with 

 milk production. A few farmers in this region maintained commercial 

 flocks of poultry, but there were hardly enough to judge of their suc- 

 cess. A distance of 200 miles from Boston and a rigorous climate are 

 rather unfavorable for poultry production in this area. Some poultry 

 as a side-line would probably prove profitable. 



The part of Grafton County included in the survey is one of the most 

 intensive wholesale milk-producing areas in the State. Cows were 

 found on practically every farm. A few farmers retailed milk to small 

 villages within or near the county. 



The twelve months included in the survey from April 1, 1929, to 

 March 31, 1930, represented one of the most prosperous years experi- 

 enced by these farmers. Milk prices had been creeping up since 1925, 

 and grain prices had dropped considerably in the last half of the sur- 

 vey period. The depression beginning in 1929 has quite reversed the 

 general situation. Labor incomes for 395 of the farms enumerated 

 averaged $393. The lowest labor income was — $2,679 and the highest 

 $5,138. The corresponding current (1930-1931) average labor income 

 has probably been reduced by not less than $600. 



In a region selling whole milk almost exclusively, average labor in- 

 comes are likely to be low because dairying tends to be overdone. Many 

 operators undertake or continue to farm on small farms who are satis- 

 fied with very meagre incomes. Many such add to the total volume of 

 milk and contribute to an increased surplus which must reflect on the 

 price returned to all producers. This condition is augmented in Graf- 

 ton County because of the ease with which outlying farms already pro- 

 vided with livable buildings can be bought or hired. 



The year of this study was one in which incomes responded to 

 proper organization. The real problems arise in depressions like the 

 present (1931) which result from discrepancies in changing price lev- 

 els. However, the farmer can live ; this is worth sometliing. There will 

 be no bread lines in the country. No one will starve. If the prosperity 

 peaks in city business are higher, the depression troughs are certainly 

 deeper. All mechanical business takes account of stock during a de- 

 pression i)eriod, if, indeed, it has any stock left, and the business of 

 agriculture should do the same. Depression is tlie birthplace of effi- 

 ciency. It is im])ortant that farmers dis])ense witli wasteful methods 

 of doing work, that they disi^lace uni)rofitable cows. 



The most important consideration for this area is an increase of the 

 average production per cow. There are some herds in this area that 



