ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 13 



the intervening years has been a natural one; the interest in it developed 

 more in the northwestern countiees, and seeming to remain there — Free- 

 port, being almost the center of the Elgin district. 



The officials, the past ten years, have tried to encourage dairying in 

 the center and southern part of the state, but have met with little suc- 

 cess. The great drawback seems to be, the irouble of obtaining the nec- 

 essary help to milk the cows, and ve invite mechanical scientists to turn 

 their attention to a milking machine which will meet the requirements 

 of an up-to-date dairyman, as we have over a million cows in this state 

 alone, and all need milking, as Col. Sellers said of his Eyewater, "There's 

 millions in it," for the ingenious American who perfects one, this one 

 thing will do more to get and hold ihe world's markets than anything 

 else. 



We appreciate the fact that daiiymen generally are holding back 

 from increasing the number of milch cows on account of the high price of 

 other farm products. This is a serious menace to dairying, but we re- 

 gard it as only a temporary ; 'one, and before we could safely change our 

 herds and manner of conducting a cairy farm, this inequality will pass 

 away; hence the old adage of "Shoemaker, stick to your last" holds good, 

 and it will be wisest to hold on to the best cows and stay at the business. 

 The man who is eternally changing his business because he thinks the 

 other is making a better living than he is, is generally the one to get left, 

 by changing at the wrong time. 



Of course we all admit that the main reason why dairy products 

 are so very low when compared with other comodities raised on the farm, 

 is the fact that the market value of milk is guaged by the price of cream- 

 ery butter, andlthis is held down by the masquerading of "Butterine and 

 Oleo" as "Elgin Creamery" and "Wisconsin Dairy," colored to deceive 

 the best judges, and which should sell at about 9c a pound, but on account 

 of its deceptive color is able, in large cities, to fetch nearly 20c. 



Our state law seems to be a dead letter, and our National Dairy 

 Union is now working at Washii gton to secure national legislation, 



