Page:A History of the Pacific Northwest.djvu/299



26o A History of the Pacific Northwest

way it improves the farmer himself. Since profits are small or non-existent to the shiftless or untaught and relatively large for the careful, scientific dairyman, the business serves as a school of agricultural efficiency.

The benefits of dairying appeal also to the cultivator of irrigated acres in all parts of the Inland Empire. The success with which alfalfa hay, oats, and corn can be produced for stock feed, and the increased value of these productions when turned into butter, cheese or milk is there the great incentive.

Census figures of six or seven years ago are not illustrative of the dairy industry as it is in the Northwest today, progress since 19 lo having been especially rapid. Perhaps a better indication of growth in the entire region, would be the statistics of the Dairy and Food Commissioner of Oregon, for that state, covering approximately the period 1900 to 19 16. He finds that in Oregon the number of creameries has increased from 50 to 105, and their butter product from 1,680,000 pounds to 16,288,000 pounds. Oregon had 20 cheese factories in 1901, producing 119,500 pounds of cheese, and 74 in 1916, producing 8,952,000 pounds. In 1905 there were three condensaries, manufacturing condensed milk, but there is no record of the product until 1914, when there were seven factories producing 19,580,000 pounds. In 1916 they were producing 27,116,000 pounds. The entire dairy output of Oregon for the year 19 16 is estimated at $20,000,000. The figure for Washington would be considerably higher.

General farming. General farming, which com