782 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
November 
will be maintained. Do all sheepmen in Australia use 
imported rams? No, only comparatively few; these 
make a business of supplying the trade by importing, 
or by using imported rams in their own flocks, and 
then selling 'to others the stock raised from imported 
rams. Thus the breeding business figures quite prom¬ 
inently there, and many of the high prices obtained 
are the result of competition among those who are 
making efforts to secure popular specimens on sale. 
Savannah, Ohio. j. s. leiiman. 
THE FIVE STA TES MILK PRODUCERS’ ASSO¬ 
C/A TION. 
A Conservative View of the Outlook. 
We have expressed ourselves freely regarding the at¬ 
tempt to organize the milk producers who furnish milk 
for the New York market. We have never questioned 
the great value of organization among farmers, but we 
have realized the size of the problem which confronted 
the managers of the association. We are glad to print 
the following statement from one who is on the inside: 
The vitality and determination shown by the Five 
States Miht Producers’ Association, after the embar¬ 
rassing failure and disappointments of last Winter 
and Spring, add new zest and interest to the move¬ 
ment of the producers for better prices. That the 
dairymen have not received the compensation they 
deserved needs no demonstration. Interest is now 
directed towards the results to be achieved through 
this large and powerful organization, which is en¬ 
deavoring to obtain greater remuneration for the cap¬ 
ital and labor invested. Generally speaking, the Five 
States Milk Producers’ Association has become strong 
enough to command respect, and, under proper guid¬ 
ance, can mold conditions to suit its purpose. Its 
plan of operations is unique and immeasurably 
stronger than anything of similar character that has 
gone before, in that it has not only its local inter¬ 
mediary and central bodies, with regulations and offi¬ 
cials for each; but, in addition, every member who 
wishes to sell through the organization signs and 
executes a power of attorney especially authorizing 
and empowering the executive committee to sell his 
milk for a period not exceeding five years, providing 
the price obtained shall average 2% cents or more 
per quart, delivered at the nearest shipping point. 
Acting under instructions from the central union, 
and pursuant also to the powers thus individually 
deputed, Messrs. Latimer, Snell and Aiken have been 
steadily and persistently seeking a solution of the 
problem. The announcement made a few days ago, 
that a buyer had been found, and contracts effected, 
dia'nges the aspect of affairs materially, and those 
both within and without the sphere of its influence 
are naturally desirous of obtaining detailed informa¬ 
tion relative to this contract, and the financial and 
business interests connected therewith. 
The progress of negotiations and the plans adopted, 
have been carefully withheld from publicity, and but 
little is now known of the persons and interests con¬ 
nected with the Pure Milk Company, which has 
agreed to purchase the Five States product. The 
sales committee has, however, executed contracts 
with the party mutually selected to represent the 
buyer until such time as the corporate organization 
should be fully effected, and the working capital sup¬ 
plied, and the officials and others who are familiar 
with plans and prospects manifest an abiding faith in 
the stability and success of this new arrangement. 
It has taken many months of effort to acquire a 
thorough and comprehensive understanding of the 
situation, and to secure the cooperation of financial 
and business interests. The undertaking is immense 
—not alone because of the amount of capital and 
Character of product, but because of the large number 
of persons engaged in producing the supply, of which 
there are said to be 10,000 enrolled. Previous at¬ 
tempts of dairymen, through organization, to control 
or regulate prices, have generally proven failures be¬ 
cause of injudicious business management or lack of 
cohesive strength. In this instance, the power-of- 
attorney scheme supplies an element of strength and 
continuity heretofore lacking, and it is claimed that 
equally perfect conditions characterize the plans of 
the buyer—the execution of which have been en¬ 
trusted to practical and experienced men. The prices 
agreed upon cover a marked advance over those 
realized in the past, and no further or other induce¬ 
ment is needed to bring out the milk. At the same 
time, it should be noted that this enhanced payment 
at the initial transfer, does not necessarily mean an 
increased cost to the consumer. The expenses and 
profits intervening have been too many, and too 
large, and lit is confidently believed that centralized 
management, and more approved methods in handling 
and distribution, will abundantly reward the effort 
without the addition of values other than an improve¬ 
ment in quality. 
As to the farmers taking stock of the company, it is 
neither necessary nor perhaps advisable that he should 
subscribe. He can find use for surplus capital in the 
care and extension of his own business, with which 
he is familiar. The interest that comes to him 
through the one-fourth of one cent per quart payment 
in stock, imposes no liability, and whether it prove 
valuable or worthless, he may find comfort in the 
feeling that the cash price outside of the stock ex¬ 
ceeds that obtainable otherwise. Some friction may 
be expected to attend the inauguration of this new 
scheme. Dealers will strive to maintain the old 
regime, with its unsatisfactory conditions, and prices 
based upon the dictum of the Milk Exchange. But 
they will be impotent to stay its progress. The farm¬ 
ers appreciate more and more the value of organiza¬ 
tion, and the opposing elements will be thrust aside. 
The public, and in fact, a large proportion of those 
to be benefited, cannot be expected to have unlimited 
confidence in this new venture prior to a full develop¬ 
ment of plans and administration, but there remains 
little time to speculate; we shall soon know whether 
it is likely to be a success or disappointment. 
Elmira, N. Y. e. j. young. 
NORTHERN COW PEA NOTES. 
USEFUL IN CONNECTICUT.—I have had from five 
to 25 acres of cow peas each year for the past eight 
or 10 years. I sow them in the middle of June, after 
plowing under old fruiting strawberry beds, and build 
up the land in splendid condition for replanting the 
following season. This year I had 11 acres in a young 
peach orchard, sowing about the first of July, after 
three months’ thorough cultivation. Their season 
here is about the same as Indian corn, but I never 
sow them early enough to bring them to full ma- 
SOME INDIANA COW PEAS. Fm. 288. 
Unity of seed, although they will do it in this climate 
when sown early enough. Being a little short of hay 
this dry season, by plowing up one large strawberry 
field June 20, I seeded it to one bushel of German 
millet and one-half bushel of cow peas to the acre. 
They both made a rush to get full possession of the 
land; but the cow peas finally came out ahead, and 
about September 1, I made a superb hay crop. It took 
us four or five days to cure it, but gave us a good 
many tons of fine forage. Cow peas started again 
after cutting, and made quite a big growth before 
the frost came in October, and as the roots were thor¬ 
oughly covered with tubercles, there must be consid¬ 
erable improvement in the soil, but nothing like that 
on adjoining fields, where I have a tremendous quan¬ 
tity of the cow-pea vines to plow under next Spring 
I use the Wonderful or Unknown variety, as this 
makes a greater amount of forage than any other I 
have tested, but if I wished to save seed I should need 
to grow those of shorter season of maturity. 
j. ir. HALE. 
HOW THEY LOOK.—I send you a picture (see Fig. 
288) of some cow peas (Prolific) that I planted on 
clay ground about June 27, 1899, and in about nine or 
10 weeks from that time I gathered ripe seed. Some 
of the plants had runners seven feet long, and the 
longest seed pod was nine inches. On the right side 
of the picture you will see some stalks of corn. The 
roots of the plants were free from root galls, which 
shows that the soil was supplied with nitrogen. The 
soil would be called poor upland clay. As the Hope 
Farm man is a friend of the cow pea, let him see this 
picture. I live near the center of Indiana. a. k. 
Carmel, Ind. 
R. N.-Y.—We say to all who report no tubercles on 
the roots, that th'is is often true of the. first crop, 
while later crops on the same soil or farm will show 
them. Our own plan is to use cow peas in the rota¬ 
tion, so as always to have them where the soil most 
needs manure. One of their most valuable traits is 
the ability to grow where many other crops fail. 
SUCCESSFUL IN MICHIGAN.—I have never made 
an effort to grow cow peas until this year, on account 
of receiving such discouraging reports from experi¬ 
ment stations and individual farmers, but I am now 
convinced that the early varieties can be successfully 
grown here, and that they will be an important factor 
in furnishing nitrogen and humus for orchards and 
sandy spots, and perhaps equally successful on the 
heavy soil where clover has failed. We often experi¬ 
ence difficulty in securing a catch of clover on sand, 
on account of the particles of sand drifting about just 
as the seed comes up, and on such land especially I 
think that cow peas will be of great benefit. While 
conducting an institute in the northern part of the 
State last Winter, several varieties of cow peas were 
exhibiteu which, it was claimed, were grown in that 
neighborhood. 
I purchased seed of two varieties, and planted about 
June 1, in an apple orchard, three feet four inches 
apart each way, on rather heavy soil. A very heavy 
rain followed, and left a crust; probably from this 
cause about one-third of the seed failed to come up. 
The crop was well cared for until the vines were too 
large for working. The early ones were ready to har¬ 
vest about September 1, although there were some 
green pods, and the vines were quite green. The 
later variety continued to grow until the severe freeze 
about the middle of September, without showing any 
signs even of blossoms. The frost did not affect the 
cow peas so badly as it did the late sweet corn. I 
harvested the early ones carefully, and they yielded 
much better than common field beans, and withstood 
the drought much better than common peas or beans. 
A friend a few miles from here, on somewhat 
lighter soil, has been raising cow peas for three 
years, and this year had 23 acres, which were a fine 
crop, well matured. They are not yet thrashed, but 
will yield better than common field beans. He has 
been using them both for fertilizer and to feed cows, 
and is much pleased with the results. The cows soon 
learn to like them, especially while green. One field 
where the peas were allowed to remain on the land 
last year, and turned under this Spring, had an ex¬ 
cellent crop of corn; in fact, better than where stable 
manure was used. I do not know the name of the 
varieties, but the variety grown by my Mend is dif¬ 
ferent from mine, and I am convinced that several of 
the early varieties will do well here. I intend to give 
them a fair trial in orchards, as we have never found 
anything that was exactly satisfactory. The clovers 
occupy the ground in early Spring, when it should be 
worked. Rye and oats do not gather n'itrogen, and 
simply supply humus and Winter protection. For 
orchards I intend to plant the cow peas about July 1, 
and cultivate until the vines are too much spread, 
and then let them remain until Spring. r>. j. p. 
Kent County, Mich. 
ABSORBED FLAVOR IN FRUIT. 
I am not an expert in fruit growing, but if the ex¬ 
perience, practical and scientific, in regard to milk 
and butter, has any relation to this subject, as it 
seems Prof. Waugh (The R. N.-Y., page 734) thinks 
it has, I can say decidedly that I know (!) that the 
food of cows, as well as the air they breathe, have a 
considerable effect in this way of affecting the flavor 
of milk, as well as the butter and cheese made from 
the milk. It seems as though the Professor should 
have remembered the old fable of the cobbler and his 
last, before he, as a horticulturist, gave an opinion 
on the behavior of the cow’s food on the milk, as well 
as that of the kind of air she breathes. 
I have known wild onions to spoil completely the 
milk of cow's which had eaten of them; that turnips 
fed to cows have a similar effect; that even when 
stored on the feeding floor in the stable they have had 
a bad effect on the milk and butter, and even cheese. 
Every dairyman or woman knows how the White 
clover improves the character of the milk in quality 
and flavor, while cotton-seed meal does the .same, 
but not favorably for all tastes. The same applies to 
the gluten meals, which affect both flavor and color 
of the butter, while pumpkins do the same. Indeed, 
the whole cloud of witnesses to these facts might 
completely demolish the suggestion of Prof. Waugh 
that dairy experts assure us that “odors or flavors do 
not come through the cow” as he states. If they do 
not, what then causes the great variation in flavor of 
milk, cheese and butter? 
But there is sure proof that the food not only affects 
the quality and flavor of milk products, but distinctly 
affects the chemical reactions of the fats of the milk 
of cows. I have tested cotton-seed oil, and the butter 
made from it, and the butter adulterated with it. 
The Washington Department of Agriculture did the 
same, and Dr. Taylor, then the chemist of the De¬ 
partment, showed by colored illustrations, that the 
reactions of butter so adulterated either by actual ad¬ 
dition of the oil to the cream in the churning, or by 
feeding the cotton-seed meal, were precisely the same. 
As I have some considerable acquaintance with fruit 
growing for a good many years, I will add that I 
have never had any reason to know or suspect that 
melons grown near cucumbers have the slightest 
cucumber flavor, or that strawberries grown near 
raspberries, or the reverse, have any foreign flavor; 
or that apples or pears adulterate each other, any 
more than oats or wheat or rye do. h. stewart. 
