The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
I I 15 
The New England Milk Problem 
The Local-Federated Plan 
EFERRING to our promise to analyze the pro¬ 
posed dairy plans of organization for New 
England dairymen we frankly admit at the outset 
that our minds have long since been made up in 
favor of the local-federated plan. Our reasons are 
these: It begins with the producer on the ground, 
and builds up all the way to the selling agency or 
exchange, always under the control of the men who 
produce the product, until the mJomey is delivered 
directly into their hands to pay for it. The owner¬ 
ship and control and management of the local plant 
and product are in the fanners’ hands. Each pro¬ 
ducer has an incentive to insist on efficiency, and to 
keep down unnecessary expense. If members work 
economically and efficiently they get the benefit of 
it. If they are not efficient, they are the losers, 
and the incentive is then for improvement. A 
healthy rivalry springs up between the plants to 
exceed each other in good results. In a local asso¬ 
ciation all the facts and details of the business are 
known to the members. They have accurate infor¬ 
mation and they acquire the habit of forming prompt 
and sound judgment on such information. The in¬ 
terests of dairymen in a local neighborhood are prac¬ 
tically identical. What is good for one is good for 
all. The members know one another. Each mem¬ 
ber is fully informed. This is an ideal condition for 
a co-operative unit 
The local management is subject to an open ma¬ 
jority vote of the membership. If differences arise 
as to management or policies the minority has the 
opportunity to persuade enough neighbors to its 
view to make up a majority later on. 
The returns come to the local management or to 
the members direct if so desired. The men who do 
the work and produce the goods have the satisfac¬ 
tion of fingering their own money and of knowing 
that the count is right. 
The local association appoints one member of the 
central agency or selling, exchange. This representa¬ 
tive may be changed at will. It estimates the cost 
of the selling exchange, and pays its share of the ex¬ 
pense by remittance to its treasurer. The officers 
and employes of the selling exchange are not the 
masters or superiors of the local exchange or of the 
producing members. They are the servants of dairy 
farmers through the local organization which has a 
vote in their employment, a voice in directing their 
policies and a share in the payment of their salaries. 
The exchange management takes its orders from 
the representatives of the local organizations. Its 
functions are to furnish the local with full and de¬ 
tailed information of its own activities; to report to 
local officers full infonnation of market conditions; 
to sell milk; to develop an increased outlet for milk; 
to see that it is paid for when due; and to do gen¬ 
erally those things for all the locals that it can do 
more efficiently and economically than the locals 
could separately do for themselves. 
Organized and controlled, owned and operated by 
themselves, the one aim of the local association is 
service to producing farmers. The membership is 
voluntary. It is sustained by benefits. For mutual 
advantages the members make contracts with their 
local organization. This is essential to insure regu¬ 
lar supplies to fill contracts and for other purposes. 
The terms of the contract are not important. It is 
mutual between neighbors, all of whom are affected 
in the same way, and if any provisions of a contract 
work hardships they are easily Changed. 
This decentralized system of co-operation attempts 
no monopoly, and no speculation as such. Stand¬ 
ardization of goods, and orderly marketing of its 
products over the consuming season is its purpose. 
It aims to benefit its members and the industry 
through efficient and economic marketing service. 
It sell's im any market and to any buyer who pays 
the price, but it makes no alliance with dealers or 
speculators. 
The promoter’s criticism of this system of real co¬ 
operative farm organization is that farmers do not 
have the intelligence and ability to conduct the busi¬ 
ness of a co-operative organization, and further that 
they cannot be trusted to produce and handle milk 
in a sanitary way, and deliver it in unadulterated 
condition. Therefore they should be content to do 
the work and deliver the product as directed undei 
the supervision of centralized authority. This ar¬ 
gument is, of course, intended to obscure the real 
purpose of the promoter. Farmers have successfully 
conducted these organizations the world over. They 
have made less costly blunders than the lawyers and 
professional promoters, and through this local-feder- 
aled system they have made the only demonstration 
thus far of successful farm co-operation. 
Co-operation is means by which farmers do their 
own business collectively and jointly in their own 
way. They employ managers and help when needed, 
but they do it in a business way, and hold employes 
accountable to them, for service. The machinery of 
it all is simple, easily managed and inexpensive. 
Above it all this simple system develops character 
and men. The members learn to do by doing, young 
men acquire system and business habits from the 
atmosphere of it. The local oi’ganization in this 
way develops not only a good type of business men, 
but also the highest class of American citizenship. 
It promises to maintain the prosperity and inde¬ 
pendence of our farm freeholder which is the basis 
of our industrial wealth and the foundation of our 
American institutions. 
Next week we shall analyze the centralized or¬ 
ganization. 
The Milk Committee of Fifteen 
T HE Milk Committee of Fifteen held a meeting 
in Utica on August 9. Present conditions and 
August prices were explained by Mr. Oarlock, Mr. 
Newton and Mr. Sargeant. When they began to ne¬ 
gotiate for August prices, they explained, they were 
confronted with the fact that the League pool had 
already announced on July 24, that their July prices 
would be continued in August, and dealers, while 
admitting the necessity of an advance, yet protested 
that an increase in price under the circumstances 
would be a discrimination against them. A compro¬ 
mise was finally made on $2 per 100 lbs., being an 
increase of 14 cents over the July price for Class 1 
milk, with the proviso that further increases 
could be made to meet any other advances. Later 
the League advanced the price of Class 1 to $2.06 
an increase of 20 cents over July price, and on Au¬ 
gust 8, Sheffield Farms group again increased its 
Class 1 price to $2.10. 
There was no increase in the retail price of bot¬ 
tled milk delivered at city homes, which remained 
at 13 cents for quart bottles B grade milk. Bulk 
milk sold to stores, hotels, restaurants and similar 
places is now 9 cents per quart or $3.60 a can. 
Further discussion revealed the information that 
the supply of milk has fallen off fully 40 per cent 
in the New York territory and the supply is daily 
growing less. Also that the city supply is short. 
Mr. Sargeant reported that large city dealers had 
been in telephone connection with principal cities 
as far as Chicago and St. Louis, and all were short 
of milk during the preceding week. Prices in these 
cities and in some up-State cities were higher than 
in New York City. 
Mr. Boshart offered the following resolution: 
Whereas, there has been a marked increase in the 
consumption of fluid milk in New York City, and a de¬ 
cided decrease in production, with the price of grain 
steadily advancing, 
Therefore, Be It Resolved, That it is the sentiment 
of this committee that all groups urgently recommend 
a decided increase in price paid producers to date from 
August 15. 
Mr. Rhodes was in favor of advising a definite 
price of $2.33 because the dealers would increase 
the price to consumers with any additional increase, 
and this would be one cent a quart increase over 
July prices. Others thoughit that the conditions 
would justify a larger price provided all would con¬ 
sent, and favored leaving the definite price to ne¬ 
gotiation. This policy finally prevailed, and the 
yote was unanimous. 
A plan was presented by Chairman Sargeant as 
coming from a prominent member of the pooling 
group, who preferred his identity not to be revealed 
at this time. It suggested an entirely new organi¬ 
zation for the purpose of standardizing prices, but 
leaving the groups otherwise as they are. It re¬ 
vealed considerable mature thought, and was or¬ 
dered to be spread on the minutes and a copy mailed 
to members for consideration. 
Homer Jones of Cortland County and John An¬ 
derson of Madison County presented suggestions for 
a federation of all groups in the territory. Mr. 
Anderson’s recommendations were in writing, and 
were ordered spread on the minutes. The need of 
a federating unit is crystallizing in the minds of the 
committee and a definite outline of a plan was sug¬ 
gested and promised for the next meeting. It is the 
purpose to make it comprehensive enough to appeal 
to the League as well as all other groups. 
The Binghamton Milk Producers’ Association was 
represented by James Quinn, i>resident, and Timothy 
Coughlin, director. William Treadwell, secretary, 
was prevented from being present by an accident 
while on his way tln-ough the city of Binghamton. 
This is a local association. It has 300 to 400 mem¬ 
bers. It has been in existence for about 20 years. 
It was doing very well until the League began to 
make efforts to increase trade in December. Since 
that time competition has been keen and piflces 
have been low. 
The Utica Press wms particularly thanked in a 
resolution by Mr. Sargeant for its absolutely fair 
and candid manner of reporting the deliberations of 
the committee. 
The next meeting will be on September 6. 
Milk Prices Advance 
T HE Dairymen's league anmiounces an advance in 
Class 1 milk (effective August IS) to $2.60 per 
100 lbs. This is an increase of 54 cents, or about 
1 cent per quart. Class 2 milk, sold largely in the 
form of sweet cream, will he increased to $1.90. 
This Woodchuck was Full of Fire 
I F you ever cornered a woodchuck you know that 
he can and will put up a good fight. He is nat¬ 
urally a surly, obstinate animal, dull and stupid in 
some ways, but fiery enough when he gets those 
sharp teeth going. There are all sorts of stoxies 
about him. Here is the latest, from the New Haven 
Register: 
Suffield, Aug. 1.—In trying to smoke out woodchucks, 
who for the past two months have been feeding on his 
young plants and threatened to ruin his garden, Allan 
Phillips of East St., nearly smoked himself out of his 
farm Wednesday. Mr. Phillips saturated some rags 
with kerosene and after setting them afire stuffed them 
into the holes in which the animals were hiding. He 
intended to shoot them one by one as they emerged to 
the surface. 
The farmer was astonished to see one woodchuck run 
out of the hole, dragging the burning rag, which had 
caught in its toe nails. The fiery animal ran straight 
into a haystack, which quickly caught fire from the 
blazing oil. Seeing the blaze spread through the field, 
Mr. Phillips feared his farm would soon be in flames 
and he called to neighbors for help. After a stubborn 
fight of our hour the fire was finally put out. 
As for the woodchuck, in his wild flight to shake off 
the flaming impediment, the animal scampered to the 
river bank and jumped into the Connecticut River, 
where it disappeared. 
Fruit Prospects in Nova Scotia 
Mr. Losee’s account of the Hudson Valley apple crop, 
gives me a hunch to confess onr Nova Scotian crop 
situation. Our weather in early Spring was cold and 
dry up to the middle of the blossoms. Then we had 
rains and warmth ; then another spell of dry weather, 
and lately more rain, but just enough to be good for 
everything. 
Being so dry induced many to neglect dusting and 
spraying. Then the combination of blossoms out, and 
work pressing, with a very neutral bank account, pre¬ 
vented others from doing what they could to make up 
by late applications. The present situation is rated 
about 60 per cent of last year’s crop, with quite a 
heavy proportion of black spot (scab). Where well 
dusted and sprayed fruit is very clean, there being more 
difference in different orchards, than appears in ordi¬ 
nary years. I will never again predict apples before 
July 15 as assured, as I was convinced we had this year 
another enormous crop. Personally my apples are 
better far in quality and as good in size of crop as 
last year; but Nova Scotia is rated by the best au¬ 
thorities as short, as compared with last year, from 
600,000 to 700,000 barrels of apples, and many of these 
would naturally go for export to England. 
JOHN BUCHANAN. 
Tanglefoot for Trespassers 
Perhaps your readers may be interested to know how 
I stopped trespassers from coming over my fence. I 
raise flowers for the wholesale market, and my grounds 
adjoin a golf course. I have been greatly annoyed, not 
only by caddies, but by players, coming over the fence 
looking for lost golf balls. “No trespassing” signs had 
no effect; neither did a barbed wire strung over the 
top of the wire fence. After trying other experiments, 
I got a can of “Tree Tanglefoot” with which I smeared 
the posts and) top wire of fence and put up warning 
signs to keep out. Presto! have had no trouble since. 
Even the balls have stopped coming over. 
One of the players, who saw me applying the tan¬ 
glefoot, asked me what the idea was. I told him to keep 
the bugs from coming over the fence. After a moment’s 
thought he said / “Oh, you mean the golf bugs.” This 
might help to protect fruit along the road if one has to 
climb a fence to get at it. c. E. w. 
Michigan. 
