FIFTY-SECOND ANNUAL CONVENTION 147 



SELECTING DAIRY COWS 



By Hugh G. Van Pelt 



Starting in the dairy business is based upon the selec- 

 tion of good cows. The question of starting in the dairy 

 business is a question of the advisability of starting in the 

 dairy business and starting right. I would like to say just 

 one word upon that, because I believe that if every farmer 

 in this county or in this section of the state could only be 

 here and take home with him this particular portion of 

 the message I would like to leave with you, it would have 

 a great bearing on the prosperity of this part of the state. 



It seems to me there has not been a time when it was 

 more advisable to go into the dairy business with good 

 cows and provide feed for them in the manner in which 

 it has been outlined here, than at the present time. 



I heard Doctor Larson of the Bureau of Dairying, 

 Department of Agriculture, speak the other day, and I was 

 absolutely surprised to learn what the situation pertaining 

 to dairying is in the United States at the present time; to 

 think in advance far enough for the calf of today to be 

 the cow of tomorrow; to think what the dairy situation is 

 going to be. 



During the six years following 1918, the per capita 

 consumption of milk in all its products increased from 834 

 pounds tc 1020 pounds. Now to supply this amount of 

 increase would require over six million cows more than 

 we had in 1918. To take care of the increase together 

 with our increase of population — you know it requires an 

 increase of three hundred and seventy-five thousand cows 

 per year for us to take care of the per capita consumption 

 of our increased population — over six million cows would 

 be required, providing our cows were giving no more milk 

 than they were six years ago, but the average production 

 per cow has increased about five hundred pounds per year. 



During that time we have had an increase of a trifle 



