VALUE OF COWS 321 



The milk is poured back from the weighing pail into the milk 

 pail, to mix it thoroughly, and a tablespoonful of the mixed milk is 

 poured into a half pint bottle containing one corrosive sublimate tablet 

 for preserving milk (to be had of any dairy supply company). The 

 bottle should be corked and a similar sample of night's and morning s 

 milk should be added to the bottle for three days to one week, the bottle 

 being shaken each time new samples of milk are poured into it. The 

 bottle is to be labelled with the cow's name supplying the milk. The 

 milk in the bottle then represents that from a number of milkings 

 from the same cow and is called a composite sample. The composite 

 sample is tested for fat by the Babcock machine (see p. 193). The 

 night and morning milk of each cow ought to be weighed and 

 recorded at least once a week during the year and a fat test made from 

 a composite sample twice a month, in order to determine thoroughly 

 the value of a cow. 



Value of Cows 



I may be permitted to submit the following quotation in regard 

 to the value of a cow : 



" The basis of valuation as set forth by Prof. S. F. Cooley, of Vt., 

 is that a cow is worth, above what her carcass will fetch, the sum on 

 •which her annual profit will pay six per cent, interest, two per cent, 

 taxes and insurance, twenty-five per cent, depreciation, or thirty-three 

 per cent, total. 



" Twenty-five per cent, depreciation means a sinking fund which 

 will pay for the animal in four years, and presupposes the average 

 period of usefulness to be four years. On this basis, we get the fol- 

 lowing results in regard to the values of cows of different grades : 



Annual pro- Value of 

 duct lbs. milk at $1.50 Cost of Value of 



Kind of Cow. milk. per cwt. feed. Profit. cow. 



Average 3,000 $45 $45 $00 $00 



Fair 5,000 75 50 25 75 



Good... 7,000 105 60 44 135 



Choice 10,000 150 75 75 225 



Pietertje II 30,000 450 100 350 1,050 



"Asa business proposition, the difference in value here repre- 

 sented appears correct. But the market does not so rate them. A 



