1915. 
THE RURA.I> NEW-YORKER 
1/3 
State Agricultural Society Meeting. 
Part II. 
N the resolutions adopted on the closing day of the 
session, the State Agricultural Society expressed 
its attitude toward several important matters of 
general interest to the farmers of the State. 
Relative to the Torrens system of land registration 
the society asked for a committee which should investi¬ 
gate vhe subject and suggest the best means for develop¬ 
ing the registration of land titles under the Torrens 
system, and to use their influence to encourage this 
system of registration. The Legislature was urged to 
p'rovide funds for the erection of several new buildings 
at the State Experiment Station. The Legislature was 
also asked to provide funds at the earliest opportunity 
in the present session, to meet all approved claims for 
compensation on the part of farmers who had had cat¬ 
tle killed by the State on account of tuberculosis or 
even in cases “where the disease, if present at all, was 
shown by autopsy to be so limited and encysted as to 
be absolutely incommunicable.” The new Food and 
Markets Department was endorsed, and the State asked 
to aid by liberal appropriations and co-operation its 
fullest development. The society went on record as 
approving the bill which amends the present “full 
crew” law and authorizes the Public Service Commis¬ 
sion to decide all questions arising as to the number of 
men required for safe and efficient operation of rail¬ 
road trains within the State. It also opposed any legis¬ 
lation limiting the length of freight trains or regarding 
any subject which the Public Service Commission has 
power to act upon. To restrict the use of unsound and 
scrub stallions for breeding purposes in this State, a 
compulsory registration law was recommended, similar 
to those in operation in 20 other States, which re¬ 
quires the inspection and registration of all stallions 
offered for public service. 
Educational problems played a large part in one way 
or another in the deliberations of the meeting. A re¬ 
port was submitted by Dean II. E. Cook of Canton, 
as to a plan for unification of agricultural education, 
which provides for an Assistant Commissioner of 
Agricultural Education, who “shall be charged with 
the co-ordination and unification of agricultural educa¬ 
tion in the State.” The recommendation was approved. 
The same committee a so recommended “to the careful 
consideration of the society the proposition to change 
the unit of administration of rural schools from the 
district system to the township system.” Considerable 
(liscussion followed and many of the members declared 
their unwillingness to go on record on the proposition 
until they were more familiar with it in its details. 
On the general proposition that where the change could 
be adopted to the general advantage of the districts 
combined, there was quite general agreement, and a 
vote being taken such change was approved by the 
society. It was made clear that the proposed town¬ 
ship system did not do away with the present system 
of supervision. The address of Dr. T. E. Finegan on 
the subject was a candid and clear presentation of the 
argument in favor of the township system. 
l’robably if nine out <>f 10 persons who were present 
at the time could be asked what address of the meet¬ 
ing interested them most, the nine would say that of 
J. II. Hale of Connecticut. It was characteristic of 
the man, who is a psychologist and philosopher as well 
as a fruit grower, and withal a humorist. President 
Raymond A. Pearson of Iowa State College, was heard 
with great pleasure. President Dillon of the society 
gave him cordial welcome as one man who had done 
more to place the State Agricultural Society on its 
feet than any other. Dr. Pearson discussed the pres¬ 
ent milk situation in his State. lie argued that milk 
producers should have the same interest in the reputa¬ 
tion of their product as is customary with producers of 
many other products. They should not wait for the 
Government to send out inspectors to tell them which 
conditions are right and which are wrong. They should 
employ experts to advise them. They should lead in 
the movement for sanitary milk. If, however, the Gov¬ 
ernment is to take charge of the inspection of milk, the 
inspectors should be appointed to make inspections 
mornings and evenings and report to the head State 
office. The best qualified person to make inspections, 
said the speaker, would be a veterinarian who had had 
special training in dairying. 
Albert E. Manning, secretary of the Dairymen’s 
League, said that in a quiet, conservative way the 
league had grown until now it has 340 local branches. 
It lias 13,000 dairymen as stockholders, representing 
190,000 cows Ideated in 42 counties, not all of which 
are in this State. It represents nearly two-thirds of 
the supply of the metropolitan district. Mr. Manning 
contended that the attention which has been directed 
of late to the danger of using milk as a part of the diet 
has been overworked. If all that has been said by boards 
of health and others were true it is really dangerous 
to be alive, “and our only safety is to follow the cat¬ 
tle and the producers and handlers of milk with a 
spray pump, a brush and a can of disinfectant.” The 
speaker said that the importation of milk has become 
a public health proposition as well as a commercial 
one, and one that would seem to justify the placing of 
a more restrictive tariff upon milk and mil’- products, 
and require a guarantee of its purity and healthfulness. 
Senator James W. Wadsworth, Jr., spoke informally 
on the “Development of our Agricultural Resources,” 
and indicated the necessity of farmers giving more 
attention to the raising of beef, as the supply, in 10 
years, if meat eating was kept up at the present rate, 
would be inadequate to the demand. He also advocated 
surveys of our agricultural resources from which to 
get facts that would form a proper basis for agri¬ 
cultural legislation. He contended that our legislators 
needed all the information they could get in order for 
them to act intelligently on such legislation. Other 
speakers were Alfred C. Weed, on “Game Law and the 
Farmer;” Charles R. White, on “Co-operation;” Gil¬ 
bert Ray Hawes of New York, on the “Torrens Sys¬ 
tem of Land Titles;” James R. Brown of New York, on 
the “Single Tax on Land,” taking the affirmative and 
Allan Robinson, the negative. 
The following officers were elected: President, John 
J. Dillon; vice-presidents, Mrs. Julian Heath, Ezra 
A. Tuttle, Gilbert M. Tucker, C. Fred Boshart, Wing 
R. Smith. Seth J. T. Bush, F. N. Godfrey, Samuel 
Fraser and C. C. Mitchell; secretary, A. E. Brown; 
treasurer, Harry B. Winters. The final session re¬ 
solved itself into a banquet with George A. Sisson, Jr., 
a former president of the society, as toastmaster. The 
after-dinner speakers were former Commissioner R. A. 
Pearson, Mrs. Julian Heath, Mrs. Elmer B. Blair, 
Dr. Lydia DeVilbiss, Frederick T. Cardozo, Dr. Boothe 
C. Davis, Dr. Galloway. Dr. Jordan and others. 
.J. w. n. 
The Problem of Marketing. 
[The following statement by H. W. Gilbertson, 
director of the Sussex County, N. ,T., Farm Bureau, 
was read before the Pomona Grange of that County. 
This is a dairy county, and the local problems are those 
of milk producers.] 
O part of the farmer’s business requires more care¬ 
ful attention and as a rule receives less attention 
than the question of marketing. It has been the 
rule in the past rather than the exception for 
the farmer to raise what he thought would grow on 
the land, and strive to increase the yield, without 
making much effort to get bettor returns for what he 
produced. It is only within comparatively recent years 
that the farmers have begun to contend for a just 
share of the price pa d by the consumer. The farmer 
is getting only about 35 cents of the consumer’s dollar. 
In some cases the retailer gets as much for selling 
as the producer gets for producing the crop and haul¬ 
ing it to market. Increased production per acre without 
getting a larger return for the product raised per acre 
is of no value to the farmer, unless he can reduce 
the cost of production. Those who raise a larger crop 
than the average farmer at an average cost per acre 
naturally get larger returns for their efforts. In the 
case of producing milk for market, it is easier to lower 
the cost of production and thereby increase the profit 
than it is to secure a higher price for the product. 
CO-OPERATIVE BUYING.—One of the most ef¬ 
fective means of reducing the cost of production of 
milk comes through the more economical use of feed 
and the buying of feed cooperatively, thereby making 
it possible to save from $1 to $3 per ton on dairy feeds. 
Farmers as a rule are the only business men who buy 
all at retail in small quantities, and sell all at whole¬ 
sale. Even the barber usually buys his soap and face 
lotions from barber supply houses at wholesale. Most 
business men buy in as large quantities as possible, 
but many dairymen buy only two or three sacks of feed 
at a time. Cooperative buying is a line of work which 
is being very effectively done by more than a thousand 
Granges in this country, i-epresenting more than half 
of the States in the union. These Granges buy cooper- 
atively every year, feeds, fertilizers and other products 
worth more than $2,500,000, and according to their 
reports they have saved an average of 10 per cent. 
Other farmers’ organizations, such as the Monmouth 
County Farmers’ Exchange in this State, have done 
fully as much co-operative buying at an equally large 
saving. The Monmouth County Farmers’ Exchange 
has about. 1,300 members, and last year did a business 
of more than $1,300,000. It is only natural that middle¬ 
men’s organizations are making every effort to prevent 
organization by producers and consumers. The co-oper¬ 
ative buying done by Delaware Valley Grange in this 
county is very commendable. 
BUYING FEEDS.—The farmers of the county 
spend annually for dairy feeds about $300,000. and a 
saving of 10 per cent, of this amount or $80,000 would 
be an average of about $50 per farm. The members 
of the Sussex County Cow Testing Association have 
bought co-operatively during the past six months seven 
carloads of feed at an average saving of about $3 per 
ton, compared with buying at retail prices in small 
quantities. Two carloads of beet pulp were purchased 
at $25.25 per ton, one carload of dried brewers’ grains 
at $23.50 per ton, and one carload at $25 per ton; 
one carload of cotton-seed meal at $28.75 per ton and 
one carload at $30 per ton. They also purchased a car¬ 
load of stock molasses at a little less than 10 cents 
per gallon. All of these feeds were as good as could 
be found on the market, and all but the car of molasses 
and one car of dried grains were bought through local 
dealers. Co-operative buying and the saving of a large 
part of the middleman’s profit is only possible when 
the farmers-buy in large quantities, take the product 
from the car and pay cash at the time of delivery. It 
is only reasonable that the feed dealer must charge 
up the extra cost of handling two or three bags of 
feed at a time, and no one should expect or ask to 
buy in small lots at large quantity prices. When it is 
necessary for dealers to take the feed from the car and 
put it into storage we must not only allow for the 
labor cost of storing and x’omoving from storage, but 
we must also allow interest end depreciation on the 
investment in a storage house, as well as insurance 
and interest on the avera- i value of feed stored. When 
bought in large quantities the time required for unload¬ 
ing from the car is greatly reduced. By paying cash 
you not only save the interest on the investment in 
feed, but also make it unnecessary for the dealer to 
put you in the class with farmers who do not pay their 
bills. The average feed dealer in Sussex County has 
thousands of dollars tied up in outstanding accounts. 
All customers must help pay the interest on all non- 
interest-bearing accounts. Should not farmers who pay 
cash receive a discount for cash if there is no interest 
charged for 60 or more days’ credit? When selling on 
credit the losses on account of poor bills r ust be 
charged up to the farmers who do pay their bills. Any 
farmer or farmers’ organization can sa^e at least $5 
per ton by buying straight fertilizer materials and 
home-mixing fertilizers. 
REDUCED LOCAL PRICES.—Feed dealers are 
usually willing to sell feed in large quantities at a 
considerable induction per ton. Some dealers who 
realize that the farmer i can buy full carloads from feed 
brokers or other dealers in and outside of the county 
even advertise that they would like to figui with 
those who expect to buy in car lots. It is better for 
them to sell full carloads at a reduction when the work 
of handling has been reduced to merely ordering the 
car, notifying those who ordered the feed of the arrival 
of the car, counting the bags on each load and accept¬ 
ing payment than to let outside dealers come in and 
pick up the business. By allowing an extra day for 
unloading notice of the arrival of the car can be sent 
out by mail. Farmers who wish more of the dealers’ 
services should pay more accordingly. Some dealers in 
this county have expressed a willingness to handle feeds 
in car lots at from 50 cents to $1 per ton for their 
trouble, including furnishing a man at the car one 
day. 
FARMERS HELP PAY DELIVERY.—Most retail 
dealers who deliver to their city customers in small 
quantities do not seem to realize the unfairness of 
charging the same price to farmers who buy in com¬ 
paratively large quantities and take the goods home 
as they do to city people who even request to have 
small articles, such as a bottle of shoe polish or a 
quart of berries, delivered. Merchants who deliver 
in the country are under a very heavy expense and the 
cost must be met. The cost of delivering goods amounts 
to from three to 10 cents per order. Assuming that 
the average cost is about six cents per order the cost 
of delivering an order per day would be as much as 
$20 per year for each city family. This may be figured 
in another way by considering the cost of hiring the 
delivery boys, keeping the delivery horses and the 
wagons. Would $25,000 cover all cost of delivery of 
all groceries, meat and milk delivered in Newton, con¬ 
sidering all costs? Still, another service often given 
to the town people is the sending of a man each morn¬ 
ing to take orders for groceries, or taking orders by 
telephone. Economical distribution requires a minimum 
of store service. Large stocks and the accumulation 
of unsalable articles, and the handling of goods which 
go out of date rapidly and therefore must be sold at a 
great discount, tend to increase the cost of articles 
bought at such a store. When buying merchandise at 
city stores giving a discount on some things of 20 to 
50 per cent. i\e must not forget that if the discount 
is as much as advertised the merchant must have made 
a. tremendous profit before the sale if he ever sold any 
at list price. The secret of success of the mail order 
houses is the minimum of store service and selling for 
cash. Cash stores which do not deliver or have a tele¬ 
phone are imitating the methods of the mail order 
houses, and they are therefore able to undersell the 
average dealer. Local dealers can afford to and are 
often willing to meet the prices of mail order houses 
if customers will buy in large quantities, pay cash 
in advance, pay the freight and take the goods from the 
cai*. 
New York State News. 
HAT COSTLY CANAL.—It is estimated by the 
State Engineer, according to a recent public 
statement by him, that $27,000,000 more are 
needed to complete the work on the barge canal, 
and that unless he lias the funds in short time he will 
order work closed down on June 1 and will recommend 
the cancellation of all contracts then in force. If 
additional funds are provided he believes it will be 
possible to open the canal for barge navigation from 
Troy to Whitehall and from Waterford to Oswego 
at the opening of the season of 1916. Relative to the 
cost of the work over the original estimate, which 
was $101,000,000, Mr. Williams, the State Engineer, 
says it was originally estimated that the property 
damages would amount to $10,000,000, but awards 
exceeding that amount have already been made and 
further claims amounting to $72,700,000 have been 
filed. Of these he thinks that not more than one-third 
are just claims. Then the locks were increased from 
28 to 45 feet in width, by an act of the Legislature, 
thus adding to the cost of construction the sum of 
$2,500,000. Owing to delays from various causes the 
State Engineer s vs that the State has suffered to the 
extent of $4,000,000 in addition to the overhead charges 
which he lays at another million. Increased cost of 
materials and of labor have been other large items. 
Two serious breaks in the canal have already occurred 
that have already cost $400,000 and permanent repairs 
will cost $250,000 mere. 
STATE FAIR BILL.—The reorganization of the 
State Fair Commission has been begun, a bill having 
been introduced in the Legislature which provides that 
five appointive commissioners shall be named before 
May 1, each to serve one, two, three, four and five 
years, respectively, their successors to be appointed for 
five yeai-s. The effect of the bill ill be to remove 
the present commissioners and give the Governor the 
appointment of the new ones. The commissioner in 
charge of the fair grounds will receive a salary of 
$5,000 a year and the others $2,000 each. The latter 
are now receiving $3,000 each. The bill is said to be 
satisfactory to the State Grange legislative committee 
and it is understood that the Grange will have a repre¬ 
sentative on the commission. 
HUDSON RIVER FRUIT GROWERS TO MEET. 
—On February 17 to 19 the eastern section of the 
State Fruit Growers’ Association will meet in Pough¬ 
keepsie in annual session. There will be a three-day 
meeting this year instead of two, as formerly. Among 
the speakers announced are J. H. Hale and G. A. 
Drew of Connecticut; Prof. M. A. Blake of New Jer¬ 
sey ; Prof. II. J. Wheeler, Profs. Hedrick, Parrott and 
Taylor of the State Experiment Station, and several 
other experts along the lines they will discuss. The 
session will close with a banquet on Thursday evening 
STATE CONSTABULARY.—There is good reason 
to believe that Now York will soon have mounted State 
constabulary. The Governor is said to favor a State 
police force and will send a special message to the 
Legislature soon on the subject. The new system will 
be known as the Department of State Police. The 
superintendent will be appointed for a term of four 
years at a salary of $5,000 a year and he will have 
the appointment of a deputy at a salary of $3,500. 
The superintendent will appoint the police force, which 
will consist, for the first year, of two troops. Another 
troop will be added this year and another next year 
and these four troops will police the enti *e State. The 
powers of the police force thus constituted will be to 
preserve peace, prevent crime and detect offenders. 
They may make arrests without warrant for violations 
of law, they may witness and may serve warrants 
properly executed; they will co-operate with local 
authorities as needed: they will patrol the highways 
of the State. The bill proposed will carry with it an 
appi-opriation of $450,000. j. w. d. 
Ducks by Parcel Post. 
A BOUT three years ago I came to this place and 
entered into duck raising. Having been a pro¬ 
fessional man hitherto, my first season was a 
failure by reason of lack of expei-ience in the 
technique of the business. The season just closed, 
however, was a success from the standpoint of hatch¬ 
ing and brooding, but was a failure from the market¬ 
ing end, and being attracted by your editorial in con¬ 
nection with the statement of Grant G. Hitehings, I 
write to ask what in your opinion can be done about 
it. The Duck Raisers’ Association is endeavoi-ing to 
start their own commission house. Do you think this 
will work? Do you suppose the public could be edu¬ 
cated to buy by parcel post, and would this pay? In 
other words, wouldn’t it cost too much to educate the 
public before you would get a market? 
East Moriches, N. Y. james haddrex. 
R. N.-Y.—Following our usual rule in such matters 
we make an experiment of this first suggestion of sell¬ 
ing ducks by parcel post and give Mr. Maddren’s ad- 
di-ess. Let us see if any of our readers want to try 
that way. We think it will be possible to develop a 
good parcel post trade in this way, but it will take 
time and cost some money. Old habits are strong 
among consumers, and they have been buying by tele¬ 
phone order and expensive delivery. You must expect 
to spend the value of a good many ducks in advertising 
before you can hope to sell large numbers. That is 
the history of every article put onto the market for 
direct sale. Such money will prove a °ood investment. 
The plan of opening a commission house or salesroom 
in the city is good provided your association will hold 
together and provide ducks enough to make a full trade. 
