14 ILLINOIS DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



Agriculture, as you know, is the basis of all, or practically all, 

 of the wealth of this part of Illinois and what the farmers have 

 done has been great, and grand, and glorious. They have devel- 

 oped from grain raising and other things that pertain to the early 

 history of this country, and now, as a stock growing and dairy 

 section the Rock Rover valley cannot be excelled even by the Fox 

 River valley, so we are here to respond to the mayor's welcome 

 in a cordial, neighborly, friendly way. 



Now a few thoughts along the dairy line, as to what it has 

 done and what it can do, may not be uninteresting. Newspaper 

 men, as you probably know, are fond of figures, so we will give 

 them a few figures to digest and send out so that the people who 

 read the papers may know what the dairy industry is, what it is 

 capable of. 



I want to say one word in reference to this. I say that the 

 dairy industry not only develops the natural resources of the 

 country, but makes it possible for farmers to become manufac- 

 turers and also develops the manhood and womanhood of the 

 owners of the farms. 



Your mayor has made some remarks regarding the charac- 

 ter of men in connection with this industry, and we agree with him 

 entirely in that respect. It may not be out of place for you to 

 learn something of the value and extent of the dairy industry of 

 the country, as well as that pertaining to the immediate territory 

 that is known as the Elgin district. 



The number of farms reported for the census of 1900, on 

 which dairying was practiced, was 4,514,210. The number of 

 cows kept for dairy purposes 18,112,707. The total pounds of 

 butter produced 1,492,699,140 pounds; cheese 299,006,818 

 pounds; condensed milk 186,921,787 pounds. The value of the 

 dairy products, as given by the census report, $1,563,199,860. 

 This will give you some idea of the great extent of the dairy in- 

 dustry in the country generally, New York alone producing over 

 $26,000,000, while Illinois is fourth in the value of dairy pro- 

 ducts, amounting to over $13,000,000. These figures are large 

 but they do not express fully the value of the dairy industry to 



