ILLINOIS DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 26y 



tion, but also many conditions of environment. A careful study 

 of the following cannot fail to convince the reader of the im- 

 portance of the scales and Babcock test in assisting the dairyman 

 to place his herd on a more profitable basis. 



The Herds. 



Some time ago the Department of Dairy Husbandry began 

 field work in Southern Illinois for the express purpose of point- 

 ing out to the dairymen the necessity of testing the individual 

 cows in their herds. The inferior condition of many of the herds 

 has long been known to- the Station, but it was thought an actual 

 demonstration of the fact upon the farms where these herds are 

 kept would be influential in inaugurating a movement toward bet- 

 ter cows. In accordance with this conclusion, herds were se- 

 lected for the purpose, located at different places in the St. Louis 

 dairy district and in various outlying creamery districts in the 

 southern part of the state. Since the work began, the cows in 

 twenty-nine different herds have been tested for longer or shorter 

 periods. The intention at the outset was to secure a record of 

 the annual production of each cow in the herd, but there are so 

 many disturbing influences such as the selling of cows, and the 

 practice of allowing the calves to suck their dams that many ani- 

 mals were dropped out. However, eighteen herds including 221 

 cows have completed a year's record, and these only have been 

 used in this circular. In order to make the data as reliable as 

 possible the herds were selected with reference to the standing of 

 the owners in their respective communities. The geographical 

 location of the herds was such as to furnish as many points of 

 contact, and secure data from as many places as possible. 



How the Test Was Made. 



Each dairyman was furnished scales, sample bottles, milk 

 record sheets and preservative tablets. In all but two herds the 

 milk record was obtained by weighing each milking throughout 

 the year. In the two exceptions the milk was weighed only dur- 

 ing the week when samples were taken, the intermediate amounts 

 being calculated. The butter fat production was obtained by 



