DIRECTIONS FOR THE STERILIZATION OF MILK. (U. S. Dept. of Agriculture.) The sterilization of milk for children, now quite extensively practised in order to destroy the injurious germs which it may contain, can be satisfactorily accomplished with very simple apparatus. The vessel containing the milk, which may be the bottle from which it is to be used or any other suitable vessel, is placed inside of a larger vessel of metal, which contains the water. If a bottle, it is plugged with absorbent cotton, if this is at hand, or in its absence, other clean cotton will answer. A small fruit-jar loosely covered may be used instead of a bottle. The requirements are simply that the interior vessel shall be raised about half an inch above the bottom of the other, and that the water shall reach nearly or quite as high as the milk. The apparatus is then heated on a range or stove until the water reaches a temperature of 155 degrees Fahrenheit, when it is removed from the heat and kept tightly covered for half an hour. The milk-bottles are then taken out and kept in a cool place. The milk may be used any time within twenty-four hours. A temperature of 150 degrees maintained for half an hour is sufficient to destroy any germs likely to be present in the milk, and it is found in practice that raising the temperature to 155 degrees and then allowing it to stand in the heated water for half an hour insures the proper temperature for the required time. The temperature should not be raised above 155 degrees, otherwise the taste and quality of the milk will be impaired. The simplest plan is to take a tin pail and invert a perforated tin pie-plate in the bottom, or have made for it a removable false bottom perforated with holes and having legs half an inch high to allow circulation of the water. The milk-bottle is set on this false bottom, and sufficient water is put into the pail to reach the level of the surface of the milk in the bottle. A hole may be punched in the cover of the pail, a cork inserted, and a chemical thermom. eter put through the cork, so that the bulb dips into the The temperature can thus be watched without re water. moving the cover. If preferred an ordinary dairy thermometer may be used and the temperature tested from time to time by removing the lid. This is very easily arranged, and is just as satisfactory as the patented apparatus sold for the same purpose. QUANTITY OF WATER OR ICE REQUIRED FOR COOLING MILK OR CREAM. (MARTINY.) The quantity of water or ice required to cool milk or cream may be calculated from the following formulas, where quantity of milk or cream to be cooled, in lbs. its temperature. M W = I= quantity of water required for cooling, in lbs. t' temperature of water or ice at beginning. = S specific heat of milk (.84*) or of cream (.78*). 79.25 latent heat of water. (a) Water required for cooling milk or cream— I. Cooled in tin cans holding milk or cream to be cooled: (b) Ice required for cooling milk or cream In these formulas the influence of the surrounding air is not considered. * Not determined, but considered approximately correct. T IV. BUTTER. BUTTER-MAKING. By H. B. GURLER, De Kalb, Ill., ex-President Ill. State Dairymen's Assn., Author of "American Dairying." Butter is made from milk. The cow manufactures the milk from the food she eats, hence the necessity of sound food. Unsound food makes off-flavored milk and poor butter. Some cows can manufacture food into milk at a profit, others cannot; hence the necessity of knowing the individuality of each cow, or her ability to work at a profit to her owner. At this stage of the dairy work there is no excuse for a dairyman not knowing what each and every cow is doing for him, thus being able to "weed out" the unprofitable ones. Remove the milk to Be careful and cleanly in milking. a pure atmosphere as soon as drawn from the cows. If the cream is raised by gravity process be careful of the surroundings, as milk will absorb bad odors from decayed vegetables, the hog-pen, the cow-yard, the kerosene-can, a filthy stable, from cooking in the kitchen, and various other sources. When milk is put through the separator as soon as it is drawn from the cow this source of danger is removed. Cream from the separator should be cooled immediately to a temperature of 60°; 55° is better. A cooler that will ærate at the same time it is cooling is very desirable. This is a vital point which many butter-makers stumble over. When through separating and cooling, temper the cream to the temperature necessary to have it ripen at the time you wish to churn. If it is to be churned the following day this temperature should be 65°-70°. If the second day, 55°-60°; and if it is to stand four to seven days, cool to 40°, if possi ble, as soon as practicable, and hold at that temperature until the day before you wish to churn, when it should be warmed to a temperature that will give the right acidity by the time you wish to churn. This temperature will depend on the kind of cream, whether separator cream or cream from some gravity process. Cream from shallow setting may be sufficiently ripened when taken from the milk. I recommend the use of Prof. Farrington's acid tablets for testing the acidity of cream (see p. 270). They are a great help to a beginner. Churn at as low a temperature as you can. This will depend on the per cent of fat in the cream. Rich cream can be churned at a much lower temperature than cream poor in fat. Cream from deep, cold setting may be churned at 58° to 62°; and thick, rich cream from shallow setting at a much lower temperature. An ironclad rule cannot be made that will fit all cases. The separator will give cream containing various per cent of fat, from 15 to 40 per cent. Separator cream containing 15 per cent fat will need to be churned at about the same temperature as deep, cold setting cream. Separator cream containing 40 per cent can be churned at a temperature of 50°, can be gathered at 50°, so the buttermilk will draw at that temperature. A low temperature gives the most exhaustive churning. At this temperature the buttermilk should contain no more fat than the average separator skim-milk. Cream containing a large per cent of fat does not develop acid as fast as cream with more milk in it. Cool cream for churning about two hours before, so as to let the butter-fat have time to solidify or harden. This gives a more waxy texture to the butter. Stop the churn when the butter granules are the size of wheat. If the granules are too small there is danger of a loss from its passing through the strainer. Wash no more than is necessary to remove the buttermilk. The colder it is churned the less washing is needed. When butter gathers at 54° one washing is sufficient; if at 62° to 64°, two or three washings will be needed. of the delicate flavor or aroma. Washing removes some the churn as soon as possible-as soon as it has done its work. Never allow it to lie and soak unless there is no other way of hardening the butter to a temperature where you can handle it. Salt to suit your trade. Work once or twice, as you prefer; twice working is preferable, as it makes the nicer-appearing butter. Work just enough to remove the mottled or streaked appearance. When worked twice this can be told at the time by the appearance of the butter. When worked but once it cannot be told until the butter has stood long enough for the salt to dissolve. If worked but once examine the butter the following day, until you make yourself a rule of thumb to work by. I have found this necessary. I am compelled to look after this point in my creamery work when the butter is worked but once. Use the kind of butter-package that suits your trade, but always let it be neat. Never send a mussy-looking package to market. You cannot afford to do it. ON THE USE OF PURE CULTURES IN BUTTERAND CHEESE-MAKING. The ripening of cream is brought about through the action of minute plants, so-called bacteria. These are practically omnipresent where man lives, and get into the milk during the milking and the handling of the milk and cream in the dairy. They multiply enormously in the cream during the ripening process, owing to the very favorable conditions of life which they find there. Some forms of bacteria are desirable and even essential in the manufacture of sour-cream butter; these feed largely on the milk-sugar of the cream, and decompose this component into lactic acid, which is the characteristic acid of sour cream (as well as of sour milk). Along with this formation of lactic acid in the cream other complicated, and yet but little understood, decomposition processes take place, the results of which are felt in the fine aromatic flavor of the butter produced. Other forms of bacteria cause obnoxious fermentations in the cream, and produce a butter of "off" flavor, in aggravated cases diseased butter, making the product unfit to eat, or at least |