DAIRYMEN SEEKING HELP OF JAPANESE

Organization of King Association Delayed Because Many Refuse to Join.

Whether the Japanese dairymen who sell the milk of 5,000 cows in the Seattle market are to become members of the King County Dairymen's Association is one of the questions which is delaying completion of the organization, according to Homer Dietrich, organization manager for the United Dairy Associations of Washington. A preliminary organization of the white dairymen had been effected in King County and the organization is ready to join in the $10-a-cow capitalization plan of the state association when the Japanese situation is said to have halted the movement.

Japanese dairymen have a strong association of their own and when the movement to organize the dairymen of the state in a cooperative organization for the benefit of the producers and consumers was started, it was understood that the Japanese dairymen in King County would join. Several conferences have been held by representatives of the Japanese and white dairymen, but they have never reached the point of signing on the dotted line.

Japanese Defer Action.

As the purpose of the dairy association is said to be the standardization of the business and cooperation between producer and consumer, it is said that the Japanese owners of 5,000 cows which supply a large part of the milk consumed in Seattle are necessary to make the organization effective.

"We had hoped that the Japanese dairymen would have been in the association before this time, as a number of conferences have been held on the matter and it appeared that the Japanese were satisfied with the aims and purposes of the organization," Mr. Dietrich said. "For some reason, however, the Japanese have deferred final action, but we have hopes that they will come to a favorable decision soon.

"The proposed dairy association knows neither race nor creed; it is for the purpose solely of establishing the dairy business on a basis that will insure its perpetuation and a supply of wholesome milk to consumers, and in that connection the consumer is as much interested as the producer. Conditions in King County are such that it is essential that the Japanese, controlling as many cows as they do and supplying such a large part of the milk used in Seattle, should come into the association."

Would Save Dairy Cows.

Organization of the dairymen was started about two years ago to stop the slaughter of dairy cows and keep white dairymen in the business. Because of the instability of the milk market and the high cost of feed and labor, several of the best herds in King County were dispersed and the number of dairy cows in Western Washington decreased about 14,000 in 1918. A milk shortage, with higher prices naturally following, was threatened when some of the leading dairymen of the state undertook to effect an organization which would put the industry on a sound basis and save the milk-producing cows from the butcher.

The movement is being carried on in Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish, Pierce, Thurston, Lewis, Grays Harbor and Pacific Counties. The movement also has progressed satisfactorily, it is said, in King County except among the Japanese.