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ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



than twenty cows, and there were thirty-five who each owned from two 

 to five cows only. This shows that the majority of our patrons do not 

 pretend to be dairymen in the sense of making the production of milk 

 a serious business, and I fear that there are many other creamery patrons 

 in so-called dairy districts who do not allow the cows to make much of an 

 impression on their minds; other lines of farming crowds the cows out, 

 so that they receive only a little attention at milking time . 



During the past year we have, like other creameries, urged our patrons 

 to take samples of each cow's milk and allow us to test them, as this will 

 aid in obtaining definite knowledge of the amount of milk and butter 

 each cow produces. The patron's usual reply to these suggestions is that 

 he "supposes it would be a good plan to test his cows," or he plainly states 

 that "it is too much bother to take samples." He is either so much at- 

 tached to his cows that he does not care to take part with any of them 

 even if it is proved that some cows do not produce milk enough to pay 

 for their feed, or he seems to think that he knows enough about his cows 

 without having their milk tested. No one of our patrons during the past 

 seven years has voluntarily brought samples of milk to us for any length 

 of time with the request that we test them for him. This indifference to 

 an exact knowledge of the profit or loss from cows is common among 

 farmers, and on account of it they suffer annually very large financial 

 losses. It is therefore plain that the possessor of such a disposition is as 

 worthy a subject for investigation as are the cows he owns; and it was 

 with the hope of convincing our patrons that cow records are valuable 

 that we began a systematic testing of a number of herds in August, 1897. 



In preparation for these tests we had boxes made for carrying four- 

 ounce sample bottles of milk from the farms to our creamery. Small 

 books in which might be recorded ihe weight of each cow's milk once a 

 week, and accurate weighing scales were also provided. We offered this 

 outfit to our patrons and agreed to test all samples they would send us if 

 these were taken for one dav at recular intervals of one. two or four 

 weeks during the year. 



