ILLINOIS DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 31 



the summer. He had decided that they were too poor to retain 

 even in a place where milk was commanding a high price. 

 These were replaced by cattle shipped in from other parts which 

 have proved equally unsatisfactory and now the owner has 

 decided to keep a pure-bred sire, use the Babcock test and raise 

 the heifer calves from the best cows. 



I might enumerate many cases to show the interest which is 

 being taken in the improvement of the herds. Some of the men 

 who at first thought the weighing would be laborious have 

 recently said that they would not keep cows without weighing the 

 milk continuously. I have in mind the patrons of a flourishing 

 creamery who are in earnest. For some time they have been in 

 the habit of taking samples from different cows and having them 

 tested by the butter maker, who furnishes them bottles and 

 encourages them in their efforts to weed out the poor cows. 

 We are testing four herds at this place and know that they are 

 making progress. At present they are laying plans to organize 

 an association to work in connection with the creamery so that 

 any patron may have his cows tested. This is one of the most 

 progressive features I have observed and I believe might well 

 be imitated at many creameries. When the patrons of a creamery 

 rise to the situation in this manner the reputation of their calling 

 is not in jeopardy. Enough has been said to show that the 

 desire and determination for better dairy cows in Southern Illi- 

 nois is great. If we foster this spirit the day is not far distant 

 when our herds will be uniformly large and economical pro- 

 ducers in place of our present inferior nondescripts of which Bill 

 Nye said their only claim to the name of dairy cows rest upon 

 their pronounced inclination to freshen every year. This brings 

 us to a phase of the subject which I believe means more to Illi- 

 nois dairying than perhaps any other one thing. I refer to the 

 introduction and use of pure-bred sires along with the application 

 of the Babcock test. 



We need more milk, we need better milk, but in all parts of 

 the state north, south, east and west our milk is costing too much. 

 In order to manufacture products economically we must have 



