HU  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
253 
Comparative  Prices  for  Milk  Products 
A  MARKET  agent  under  Elbert  S.  Brigham,  Com¬ 
missioner  of  Agriculture  of  the  State  of  Ver¬ 
mont,  has  filed  a  detailed  study  of  comparative 
prices  for  milk  for  13  months,  from  May,  1921,  to 
May,  1922.  The  report  gives  a  table  in  detail  of  the 
prices  received  by  producers  for  pooled  milk  in  five 
zones  of  the  New  York  territory.  Another  table 
gives  the  returns  to  the  farmers  of  Vermont  from 
the  co-operative  creameries  (milk-shipping  sta¬ 
tions)  in  five  coiTesponding  zones;  and  another  table 
showing  the  detailed  monthly  returns  to  Vermont 
farmers  in  five  corresponding  zones  from  Boston 
milk  dealers  owning  country  plants.  To  show  the 
comparative  net  return  under  the  13  months  the 
actual  prices  paid  producers  were  taken ;  zone  dif¬ 
ferentials  and  butterfat  content  were  adjusted ;  the 
certificates  of  indebtedness  were  treated  as  cash 
payments. 
Commissioner  Brigham  points  out  that  this  covers 
the  first  13  months’  operation  of  the  pool  and  that  the 
comparison  may  not  hold  good  tvhen  the  New  York 
system  has  had  time  for  further  development.  It  is 
made  to  help  New  England  dairymen  decide  whether 
they  should  develop  a  similar  plan.  He  says:  “This 
is  fair,  for  after  all  is  said  and  done,  it  is  the  net  re¬ 
turns  to  the  producer  which  vitally  interests  him, 
and  the  growth  of  the  industry  depends  almost  en¬ 
tirely  on  net  returns  to  the  producer.” 
Omitting  the  detailed  figures,  we  give  the  monthly 
averages  from  the  Vermont  study  : 
NEW  YORK  pool,  WHOLE  M  ILK  TRICES 
Monthly 
1921  Average  1921 
May  .  ,$1,944  December  . 
June  .  1.659  1922 
July  .  1.939  January  . 
August  .  2.389  February  . 
September  .  2.479  March  . 
October  .  2.709  April  . 
November  .  2.659  May  . 
33  months’  average,  $2,082 
VERMONT  CO-OPERATIVE  CREAMERIES 
(Milk  Shipping  Plants) 
Monthly 
1921  Average  1921 
May  .  $1,789  December  . 
June  .  1.847  1922 
July  .  2.328  January  . 
August  .  2.530  February  . 
September  .  2.666  March  . 
October  .  2.756  April  . 
November  .  2.759  May  . 
13  months’  average,  $2,231 
BOSTON  LARGE  CITY  MILK  DEALERS 
Monthly 
1921  Average  1921 
May  .  $1,804  December  . 
June  .  1.833  1922 
July  .  2.220  January  . 
August  .  2.581  February  . 
September  .  2.721  March  . 
October  .  2.765  April  . 
November  .  2.799  May  . 
13  months’  average,  $2,184 
Monthly 
Average 
.  $2,629 
.  2.069 
.  1 .929 
.  1.559 
.  1.574 
.  1.439 
Monthly 
Average 
.  $2,187 
1.974 
1.977 
2.005 
1.926 
1.8S4 
Monthly 
Average 
.  $2,596 
.  2.084 
.  2.056 
.  2.069 
.  1.888 
.  1.837 
SUMMARY 
Aric  York  Pool  Price — 
221-240  mile  zone .  $2,103 
221-240  mile  zone .  2.103 
241-260  mile  zone .  2  073 
241-260  mile  zone .  2  073 
261-280  mile  zone .  2.058 
13  months’  average.. .  $2,082 
Co-operative  Creameries,  Vermont — 
12th  zone — 221-240  miles .  $2,331 
12th  zone — 221-240  miles .  2.206 
13th  zone — 241-260  miles .  2.174 
13th  zone — 241-260  miles . 2.224 
14th  zone — 261-280  miles .  2.223 
13  months’  average .  $2,231. 
Boston  Large  City  Dealers — 
12th  zone — 221-240  miles .  $2,133 
12th  zone — 221-240  miles .  2  226 
13th  zone — 241-260  miles...' .  2.188 
13th  zone — 241-260  miles .  2.304 
14th  zone — 261-280  miles .  2.071 
13  months’  average .  $2,184 
A  comparative  study  was  also  reported  of  the 
three  systems  for  the  sale  of  cream.  The  table  is 
given  in  great  detail.  We  summarize  only  the  zone 
averages : 
A7 etc  York  Pool  Price — 
221-240  mile  zone .  $2,103 
221-240  mile  zone .  2.103 
241-260  mile  zone .  2  073 
241-260  mile  zone .  2  073 
261-280  mile  zone .  2.058 
13  months’  average .  $2,082 
Vermont  Co-operaiire  Creameries — 
10th  zone— 181-200  miles .  $1,982 
12th  zone— 221-210  miles .  2.132 
13rh  zone— 241-260  miles .  2.103 
13th  zone — 241-260  miles .  2.168 
14th  zone — 261-280  miles .  2.041 
13th  zone — 241-260  miles .  2.0S9 
13th  zone — 241-260  miles .  2.143 
14th  zone — 261-280  miles .  2.027 
13  months’  average .  $2,063 
In  this  comparison  allowance  is  given  for  100  lbs. 
of  skim-milk  at  six  times  the  local  market  price  per 
pound  of  live  hogs. 
A  still  further  table  gives  a  comparison  of  the 
milk  returns  to  producers  who  market  their  milk  in 
the  form  of  butter  through  well-established  co-op¬ 
erative  creameries  and  through  proprietary  cream¬ 
eries.  The  study  was  made  in  five  co-operative  and 
five  proprietary  plants  manufacturing  butter  only. 
Fatrons  of  these  plants  separate  the  milk  at  home 
and  deliver  cream.  Allowance  for  skim-milk  is  fig¬ 
ured  on  the  same  basis  as  above.  The  average  re¬ 
turns  for  each  of  the  five  zones  are  summarized  in 
the  following  tables : 
New  York  Pool  Price — 
221-240  mile  zone . . . 
221-240  mile  zone . 
241-260  mile  zone . 
241-260  mile  zone . 
261-280  mile  zone . 
$2,103 
2.103 
2.073 
2.073 
2.058 
13  mouths’  average . . .  $2,082 
Five  Vermont  Co-operative  Creameries — 
Creamery  No.  1 .  $2,112 
Creamery  No.  2 .  2.108 
Creamery  No.  3 .  2.118 
Creamery  No.  4 .  2.080 
Creamery  No.  5 .  2.058 
13  months’  average .  $2,077 
Five  Vermont  Dealers'  Creameries — 
Creamery  No.  1 .  $1,990 
Creamery  No.  2 .  2.050 
Creamery  No.  3 .  2.011 
Creamery  No.  4 .  1.912 
Creamery  No.  5 .  2.007 
13  months’  average 
$1,994 
One  significant  fact  in  these  tables  is  that  the 
Vermont  farm-owned  creameries  are  able  to  operate 
their  own  plants  and  save  a  portion  of  the  dealers’ 
profits  whether  the  milk  is  sold  in  a  liquid  form  or 
in  cream,  or  as  butter.  In  the  case  of  butter  and 
cream,  the  dairyman  would,  of  course,  need  to  make 
efficient  use  of  the  skim-milk  to  net  these  prices. 
On  the  other  hand,  he  would  be  spared  some  of  the 
requirements  necessary  in  shipping  milk,  and  dairy¬ 
men  located  at  a  distance  from  the  railroads  are 
spared  the  extra  cost  of  hauling. 
Of  course,  single  comparison  for  one  year  is  not 
conclusive.  Improvements  and  economies  may  be 
and  should  be  developed  where  possible.  The  Ver¬ 
mont  plants  are  well  established.  The  comparisons 
are  with  the  first  year  of  the  New  York  pool,  but 
just  such  studies  and  comparisons  are  needed  to 
develop  the  best  possibilities  of  the  different  systems 
and  as  a  guide  to  dairymen  in  the  development  of 
their  industry.  The  one  encouraging  lesson  in  these 
Vermont  studies  is  the  evidence  that  farmers  can 
operate  their  own  co-operative  creameries  and  earn 
for  themselves  better  returns  for  milk,  cream  and 
butter  than  they  received  through  the  large  dealers 
and  proprietary  manufacturers. 
Milk  Can  Law  Amendment 
THERE  are  two  New  York  State  laws  regulating 
the  use  of  milk  cans.  One  is  in  the  agricultural 
law,  and  the  Commissioner  of  Agriculture  is  charged 
with  the  enforcement  of  it.  This  law  is  not  objec¬ 
tionable.  The  other  act  is  part  of  the  general  busi¬ 
ness  law  and  is  known  as  Section  270.  The  objec¬ 
tionable  part  of  this  law  is  that  it  authorized  dealers 
or  their  agents  to  seize  cans  bearing  (lie  name  or 
initial  of  dealers  in  a  farmer’s  wagon,  even  when 
the  farmer  had  bought  or  rented  the  can,  or  when 
the  dealer  himself  has  substituted  it  for  the  farmer’s 
can,  and  the  possession  of  the  can  so  marked  is  made 
presumptive  evidence  against  the  farmer.  Under  the 
authority  of  this  law,  agents  of  the  New  York  Milk 
Bottlers’  Association  have  traveled  the  State  for 
yea  rs  and  seized  cans  rightfully  in  the  possession  of 
farmers,  and  confiscated  them.  In  addition,  attor¬ 
neys- of  the  Federation  have  made  demands  on  the 
farmer  for  the  payment  of  fines  under  threat  of 
prosecution  under  the  law.  Dairymen  have  invari¬ 
ably  endured  the  loss  of  the  cans,  and  in  many  cases 
have  paid  the  money  demanded  to  avoid  the  threat¬ 
ened  suit.  To  correct  this  abuse  Assemblyman  Wit¬ 
ter  has  at  our  request  introduced  the  following  bill 
to  amend  the  law  : 
13  months’  average .  $2,085 
Boston  Cream  Dialers — 
10th  zone — 181-200  miles .  $1,918 
12th  zone— 221-240  miles .  2,136 
-Section  270.  Unlawful  Detention  of  Milk  Cans.  No 
person  shall,  without  the  consent  of  the  owner  or  ship¬ 
per,  or  his  agent,  use,  sell,  dispose  of,  buy  or  traffic  in 
any  can,  irrespective  of  its  condition,  or  the  use  to 
which  it  may  have  been  applied,  belonging  any  dealer 
in  or  shipper  of  milk  or  cream  in  this  State  or  which 
may  be  shipped  to  any  town,  village  or  city  in  the  State, 
which  can  has  the  name  or  initials  of  such  owner,  dealer 
or  shipper  stamped,  marked  or  fastened  thereupon,  or 
wilfully  mar,  erase  or  change  by  re-marking  or  other¬ 
wise  such  name  or  initials. 
If  any  person,  without  the  consent  of  such  owner, 
dealer  or  shipper,  or  liis  agent,  uses,  sells,  disposes  of, 
buys,  traffics  in  or  has  in  his  possession  or  under  his 
control  any  such  can,  it  shall  be  presumptive  evidence 
that  such  use,  sale,  disposal,  purchase,  traffic  or  pos¬ 
session  is  unlawful,  provided,  however,  that  if  any  per¬ 
son  has  any  such  can  in  his  possession  for  any  of  the 
purposes  above  enumerated  and  he  came  into  possession 
of  such  can  either  by  purchase,  rental  or  by  having  it 
returned  to  him  in  lieu  of  or  in  place  or  his  own  can 
in  which  lie  had  shipped  milk,  such  possession  or  w 
shall  not  be  deemed  a  violation  of  this  section  but  shau 
be  evidence  of  a  rightful  use  of  such  can  by  such  person. 
Any  such  owner,  dealer  or  shipper,  or  his  agent,  may 
bring  an  action  against  any  person  wrongfully  having 
in  his  possession  or  using  any  milk  can  as  herein  pro¬ 
vided  to  recover  a  penalty  for  such  wrongful  use  us 
herein  provided. 
The  italics  show  the  new  matter  in  the  bill.  In 
the  last  paragraph,  the  italics  take  the  place  of  the 
provision  which  now  gives  alleged  owners  the  right 
of  seizure,  and  yet  gives  rightful  owners  (lie  neces¬ 
sary  means  of  protecting  his  property.  It  repeals 
the  special  privilege  of  seizing  cans  which  are  right¬ 
fully  in  the  possession  and  use  of  farmers. 
Senator  Nathan  Straus,  Jr.,  of  New  York  City,  is 
chairman  of  the  agricultural  committee  of  the  Sen¬ 
ate.  We  have  asked  him  to  introduce  the  hill  in  the 
Senate,  and  he  is  considering  its  merits,  and  the  de¬ 
mand  for  it.  This  is  proper.  Dairymen  from  all 
parts  of  the  State  have  sent  us  complaints  of  the 
seizure  of  cans  and  the  demand  for  money  penalties 
under  this  law.  All  Senator  Straus  knows  about 
the  abuse  is  what  we  are  able  to  tell  him.  Now  there 
is  a  chance  for  farmers  to  do  something  for  them¬ 
selves.  Write  Senator  Straus,  and  tell  him  your  ex¬ 
perience,  and  ask  him  to  introduce  and  support  the 
hill.  Get  your  neighbors  to  do  so,  too.  Tell  him 
that  we  have  no  purpose  to  shield  anyoue  who  appro¬ 
priates  property  not  his  own,  whether  milk  cans  or 
anything  else,  but  when  dealers  send  us  substitutes 
for  our  cans  we  must  use  them  or  spill  the  milk  in 
the  barnyard.  Under  such  circumstances  the  con¬ 
sent  of  the  owner  to  the  use  of  the  cans  is  implied, 
and  to  enforce  waste  of  the  milk  would  he  to  offend 
society. 
The  address  is  Hon  Nathan  Straus,  Jr.,  Chairman 
of  the  -Senate  Agricultural  Committee,  Albany,  N.  Y. 
No  matter  how  briefly  you  write,  ask  the  -Senator  to 
favor  this  bill. 
New  York  State  Notes 
Commercial  beekeepers  of  the  State  are  interested  in 
the  short  course  that  will  be  given  at  the  State  Cbiiege 
February  20-23.  The  course  is  conducted  by  the  col¬ 
lege  in  co-operation  with  the  United  States  Bureau  of 
Entomology.  The  programs  are  arranged  during  the 
day  for  subject  matter  alone  for  the  beekeepers,  but 
during  the  evening  there  will  be  something  of  a  more 
general  nature.  There  will  also  be  a  banquet  of  the 
IIon-E-B  Club,  at  which  time  Charles  E.  Stewart,  who 
has  been  State  inspector  for  the  State  for  many  years, 
will  be  toastmaster.  Unless  people  have  made  a  study 
of  bees  they  are  not  familiar  with  the  amount  there  is 
to  the  management  of  the  insect.  There  are  many 
farmers  in  the  State  who  are  making  an  excellent  living 
out  of  bees  alone. 
Two  of  the  main  speakers  at  the  Farmers’  Week  at 
the  State  College  this  year  are  Eugene  Davenport  and 
Charles  II.  Judd.  Dean  Davenport  was  for  many  years 
dean  of  the  Agricultural  College  in  Illinois.  Mr.  Judd 
comes  from  the  University  of  Chicago.  The  pageant 
“In  Partnership  With  the  Farmer,”  written  by  a  farm 
woman,  Mrs.  G.  Thomas  Powell,  will  be  presented. 
This  pageant  was  originally  presented  at  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  New  York  State  Farm  Bureau  Feder¬ 
ation. 
The  1923  meeting  of  the  'l'roy  Market  Gardeners’ 
Association  was  held  in  Gaffers  Hall,  Lathams,  Satur¬ 
day,  January  6.  Just  before  the  formal  opening  of 
the  Troy  gardeners’  meeting  the  new  subsidiary  organi¬ 
zation,  which  has  taken  the  old  Watervliet  market,  held 
a  short  session.  A  later  meeting  was  held  for  the  pur¬ 
pose  of  drawing  stalls.  These  markets  throughout  the 
State  have  varying  degrees  of  success,  depending  on 
whether  they  are  controlled  by  producers  or  whether 
ti  man  who  is  a  buyer  has  the  most  to  say  as  to  how 
they  shall  he  run. 
.  Between  50  and  60  carloads  of  onions  are  in  storage 
m  Canastota  from  the  1922  crop.  This  represents  about 
30,000  bushels.  The  total  yield  in  this  same  area  last 
year  was  about  225.000  bushels.  The  crop  that  has 
been  in  storage  has  kept  unusually  well  this  year,  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  reports  of  those  who  have  made  a  sur¬ 
vey  of  the  onion  situation. 
The  apples  that  have  been  shipped  out  of  Western 
New  York  have  been  estimated  to  have  a  value  of  $13,- 
000,000.  This  is  but  one  item  which  that  section  boasts, 
although  no  estimate  has  been  made  on  the  value  of  the 
other  products.  Following  are  a  few  figures  that  have 
been  presented  by  C.  L.  Brown  of  the  United  States 
Bureau  of  Markets  and  located  at  Rochester.  These 
figures  are  in  terms  of  carloads:  Apples.  22,000;  cab¬ 
bage,  8,000;  celery,  3,000;  lettuce,  3,000;  mixed  veg¬ 
etables,  400;  onions,  2,000;  potatoes,  6,000;  peaches, 
6.500;  pears,  5.000;  grapes,  7.500.  Mr.  Brown  states 
that  .the  number  of  carloads  that  have  been  shipped  to 
date  is  approximately  65.000,  and  that  he  estimates  that 
before  the  year  is  over  that  there  will  be  in  all  80.000 
cars.  e.  a.  f. 
