GETTING RID OF THE "I.W.W."

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 6, Issue 244, 23 January 1917, Page 2

GETTING RID OF THE "1.W.W."

There are cows that will not work, as well as there are men of the same brand. For years and years these cows have been occupying nice barns, built at great cost, have eaten the best of feed, and demanded the best of attention Many farmers have gone to the wall for the simple reason of the large number of his cows that have belonged to the I.WW. without his knowing it. Without his knowing it they have been conspiring to make of him a poor man. Without his knowing it they have succeeded in turning the minds of the family away from the farm. Without his knowing it, he has himself been inoculated with th* virus, which causes him to think, " There is nothing in farming for me." While the " I Won't Work " cows do not plant dynamite bombs, their depredations are of as great importance to the people of our country as the human " I Won't Work."

WHAT WAS BREAKING Hllf. A farmer who four years ago was nearly on the rocks, asked the county agent to assist him in locating the trouble and remedying it. Here is what was found : There were ten cows in the barn. Not one of them, however, looked like an "I. W. W." Still the cream checks were very small; there was do way of denying that; something was wrong with the herd. A milk scale and Babcock tester were put to work, and it was soon discovered that most of the cows not only gave a very low yield, but the milk was low in butter-fat. Not more than two of the whole herd was giving 1501b of butter-fat, but they have now cows giving 2001b to 300 lb butter-fat per annum Part of the trouble had to do with the feeding and care, but the most of it, however, was the " LW.W." cow.

AFTER TWO YEARS' PROGRESS

The second year after the testing and weighing had been going on there was a decided change in the make-up of the herd. Many old familiar faces had disappeared and new ones had appeared. Even the cows that had been in the old herd and who had found grace in the eyes of the master showed up differently. There was a change in the amount of butter-fat produced, in that while in the previous year there had been only two over 1501b butter-fat, there were now only two that were under 1501b. The average for the whole herd had been brought up from 1331b to 2091b. GETTING INTO "PAY CLASB." The third year is now about completed, and again we see an improve* ment. Only one cow made anything like 1501b, and that was a heifer that made 1541b. The best record was 3651b. The average for the herd is now 2541b, or almost double what it was the first year the cows were tested.

Weighing and testing has caused other changes to be made in the dairy business of this farmer. The cows are fed lucerne hay all they can eat. They are kept inside instead of turning them out to exercise on the sunnv side of a snowbank. It costs a trifle more to keep the cows the new way, but they are just about doubling their former production, and are turning what was a losing proposition into profit

A LESSON THAT'S BEING LEARNED.

There is no place for " LW.W." cows in a herd that is being tested for production. The man who thinks it is too much bother to weigh and test is sheltering and feeding many of them without knowing it There is no badge or way of telling whether a cow belongs to the "I Won't Work " class or not, without using the scale or the tester. It is certainly a small matter as far as the time is concerned. All it takes is about one-half minute per cow each day to lind out what they are doing. It would not take over three hours per cow per year. For ten cows it would take only thirty hours, or 3£ eight-hour days, or three ten-hour days. On the farm mentioned above these three days of " bother " have made it possible for the farmer to keep £73 in his own pocket that would otherwise have gone to the "IW.W." cows.

At this day and age it should not be possible for any cow to make a get-away with £6 of a man's money without his knowing it. Still there is no denying it; it is being done right in broad daylight, under the farmer's very nose. No wonder the city reporters find it comparatively easy to shove across stories of farm* ers buying gold bricks, Gateway Park buildings, etc The "I Won't Work " cow is an easy stepping stone to other "E.Z. mark" performances. The "1.W.W." cow has got to vamoose. We have no use for her in any country. A milk scale used night and morning and a Babnock tester used once or twice a month will send the "IW.W." cow down the road, mooing to herself, and only then will come that desirable ending which is characteristic of most modern novels. It is only the average farmer's great fear of a little " bother " that is keeping the " I Won't Work " class of cows with us now. Get a milk scale and use it and teach the children to become regular detectives of "I W.W." cows. The boys and girls of to-day are going to take time to weigh and test. They are learning it in school. They also learn to see the use of knowing which cows are paying and which are not —" Farm Stock and Home."