FORTY-FIRST ANNUAL CONVENTION 17 



to your June pasture. You are producing milk when it brings 

 the highest price, hence a greater profit. 



I recently attended several dairy meetings in this vicinity, 

 where there was considerable discussion about not getting oui 

 prices for milk. But I have found, by questioning farmer? 

 through this and other sections of the corn belt, who were keep- 

 ing from six to ten cows or more, that they invariably admit the 

 dairy pays better than any other business done on the farm. 

 I think if they would practice our winter system of dairying 

 having good barns, with the silo and alfalfa, more and better 

 cows, giving them good care, patronizing a good creamery and 

 raising well bred calves on the skim milk, that, all things con- 

 sidered, their prices would be equal to ours. 



Financing tlie Dairy Farm 



I think this is where t4ie average dairyman fails in not hav- 

 ing his business down to a financial basis ; too much invested in 

 his fiixed capital — the farm and buildings — and not enough in 

 his working capital — the tools, teams and dairy, and not busi- 

 ness enough done to offset the expense and capital involved. 



A census was taken of 800 dairy farms in Kane and Mc- 

 Henry Counties, by six men for an Agricultural College. Of 

 317 of them which were run by the owners, after deducting 

 interest on capital and all expenses connected with the farm, and 

 crediting the farm with everything sold, in order to ascertain 

 the labor income of the man running the farm, it was found 

 that 225 made a labor income varying from $500 to a trifle over 

 $1,500, w^hile 92 of them incurred a loss of from $300 to $1,718. 

 Those who made the largest profit had a part of the herd pure 

 bred and sold some male animals. With local conditions the 

 same, it would not seem to be the fault of the dairy business, 

 but largely due to the management. 



Professor Otis, of the Wisconsin Station, made a some- 

 what similar test on 39 Wisconsin dairy farms, in the distribu- 

 tion of the capital : 



