THIRTY-SIXTH ANNUAL CONVENTION. 367 



Great Economy of Efficient Cows. 



The following figures, taken from Agricultural Experiment 

 Station Circular No. 134, Cow Index of Keep and Profit, are 

 based upon the value of the cow, milk, butter fat, calf, and 

 manure, and also upon the cost of feed, labor, depreciation on 

 cow, interest, taxes, housing, etc. The results show that, under 

 ordinary farm conditions, and with the product sold on the com- 

 mon creamery market, a cow must produce approximately 4,000 

 pounds of milk and 160 pounds of fat to pay for the feed and 

 labor. In other words, this is the dead line. Cows producing 

 less than this are kept at a loss. For every 1,000 pounds of milk 

 produced above this, the cow returns a profit of $10. 



Doubling tlie Production Gives Six times the Profit. 



A cow producing 5,000 pounds of milk brings in a profit of 

 $10, while a cow producing 8,000 pounds of milk returns a profit 

 of $40, or four times as much. In other words, ten cows pro- 

 ducing 8,000 pounds of milk would return as much profit as forty 

 cows producing 5,000 pounds of milk, but the former involves 

 only one-fourth the labor. Herein lies the great advantage of 

 keeping a herd of high average production, even though the herd 

 be small. 



Profit or Loss from Cows of Different Productions' 



A cow producing 10,000 pounds of milk returns a profit of 

 $60, or six times as much as a cow producing 5,000 pounds of 

 milk, yet the production is only twice as great. 



Illinois Has Two-thirds of a Million Cows That Make No Profit. 



The seriousness of the dairy situation in Illinois may be 

 realized when we know that one-third of the million cows milked 

 twice each day are below the dead line, and every one is losing 

 the owner money, and that it takes all the profit made by the 

 middle third to make up the loss on the poorest third. In other 



