Show 4 W dr L D legear V 8 s st loufa louls mo dr legear is a graduate of ontario ssi veterinary college 1892 thirty eight years of veterinary work Fini nent authority on diseases and raising of dairy cows other livestock and poultry nationally known lecturer writer and author 1 ir IS blessed BLES Sri TO GIVE GIVEAND AND RECEIVE the D dry cow contributes Contil to the profits of the farm and at the borne time helpa helps maintain the balue alue lot ut the land A friend of nine who traveled a I 1 broad this summer was struck by two observations he made while mo through bavaria in southern germany houses and barna barns were built together under one roof the very finest homes were arec ted in that way so that it was not a matter of economy the other thing that impressed him was the value placed upon fertilizer out in the front yards alongside alongi alon gaide ide the highways one none would see the carefully stacked piles ot of manure guarded and cared tor for as it if it were so much grain this leads us to the most import ant benefits of dairying its rela tion to the fertility of the soil the history of farming shows that the raising of grain Is always the first development it Is true the dis coverers of this country brought some cattle with them but it waa was two hundred years after the coming of columbus that we began to think seriously ot of the dairy cow then we decided to import a few improved breed bree from europe where dairying waa was already an cut outstanding standing industry the year 1850 is given by most writers as the date when dairying in this country really came into it its own about that time we inaugurated milk trains which furnished the city with milk from distant point points it la is said the finest cheese factory was established in new york in 1851 condensed milk was discovered in 1856 there followed in order the cream separator which revolution iced the dairy industry then the test old storage the tor for mation of dairy associations inspru actions in agricultural colleges the studies of nutritive value of milk and the present era of improved herds and greater production but the raising of grain crops has always been the mainstay ot of the am farmer the inevitable re suit Is a bradu il it decline in the ter fer of the soil the ground must contain nitrogen phosphorus and potassium in arper quantities to be productive those chemical elements are removed when grain Is harvested and sold they must be returned to the soil in the form of fertilizer for instance if we replace the chemicals that a bushel of wheat takes away I 1 with it we spend about 27 cents for fertilizer A bushel of corn robs the soil of about 23 cents worth of ter fer dairy products on the other hand take little from the fertility of the farm and the herds return in the form el of manure the most valuable form of fertilizer we have it Is estimated that the value ot fertilizer produced by an average dairy cow in a year years s time Is equal to about 28 00 in commercial ter fer it if proper methods are tre em aloyed 80 per cent of t the quantity of fertilizing element from farm an emals can be saved and used an ali indirect benefit that comes from the dairy herd is the fact its pres ence on the farm influences yearly the plan tor for crops in grain raising rotation of crops is necessary hay and silage which caa can be fed to cat tie ile and which take their place in the cycle of crops are wel come it seems to me that in this article prid the one proceeding it I 1 have es a pretty good case for the farmer who includes the dairy cow in his program first of all milk Is an essential food in our diet sec see andly skim milk Is the best food there is for poultry and hogs al so the dairy cow Is a cheap prodoc er of food excelling the hen and the pig in this respect and I 1 have at tempted to demonstrate in the above that the dairy cow contributes very materially to the fertility of the farm arm land when we have learned he the value of natural fertilizer as the european farmer has learned lear it we will place dairying in its proper place piece throughout agriculture copyright 1030 by dr L D le gear V S st louis mo me |