MILE. 483 
largely in Holland for the healthy, as well as for weakly 
invalids. It differs totally from human milk, yet frequently 
proves curative to infants when this latter fails. As obtained 
from the dairy, it should be a sour fluid full of finely suspended 
flocculent curd. It must be boiled at once; but to prevent 
wholesale curdling, a level tablespoonful of ground rice, or flour, 
to each thirty-five ounces, should be previously mixed with it. 
The boiling should be done over a slow fire, in an emamelled 
pot, whilst constantly stirring it until it has boiled up two or 
three times; also two or three tablespoonfuls of sugar should 
be added to each litre (thirty-five ounces), using cane, or beet 
sugar for the purpose, but not milk sugar. Metal spoons are 
not to be employed in the process, else the lactic acid will act 
on them chemically. When prepared after this manner, the 
butter-milk food, for infants, has a yellowish colour, and a 
sourish taste, and it is not more curdled than it was before being 
boiled. In cases of slight diarrhcea, the motions change thereby 
immediately ; they become less in amount, consistent, and 
homogeneous ; from being sour, their reaction becomes alkaline. 
The lactic acid, though present only in quite small quantity, 
produces an anti-fermentive action, which is of definite use. 
Moreover, ammonia is generated by the bacillus of butter-milk, 
and is helpful. For such curative objects a reliable butter-milk 
can be made at home, the necessary small outlay for a hand-churn 
being then incurred. New milk must be left to ripen for twenty- 
four hours before it is churned, a little sour milk being previously 
added, so as to turn it. But it will not answer to make use of 
sweet butter-milk, which does not contain any suspended curd. 
Infants under four weeks of age will need some cream in 
addition to the butter-milk. Soured milk will prevent or arrest 
noxious fermentative changes of the food when reaching the large 
bowels. Lactic acid bacteria, which become present in con- 
siderable numbers, are hostile to the growth of the putrefactive 
bacteria. 
For making sour milk soup: half a pint of sour milk is mixed 
with a small dessertspoonful of fine flour, which must be whipped 
into it; thin with cold water, and add half a pint of scalding 
water, boiling the while, and stirring well all the time. If the 
soup becomes too thick, add hot water in order to thin it. Before 
dishing up, boil a little powdered or bruised caraway seeds. 
Add small squares of toast neatly to the soup, and pour the 
