22 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



FARM SANITATION AND THE IMPORTANCE OF 



PURE, CLEAN MILK. 



An abstract of various addresses made by Dr. Henry D. 

 HoLTON, Secretary of the Vermont State Board of Health, 

 at farmers' institutes in different parts of the State during 

 March, 1907. 



Too little attention has been given to the sanitary condition 

 of farm buildings and their surroundings. Whenever possible 

 the house should be situated upon high ground, where all the 

 drainage would be away from, instead of toward it. The cellar 

 should be dry, the bottom cemented, and the walls pointed up. 

 Plenty of windows should be arranged to give sunlight and fresh 

 air. The kitchen and living rooms should receive the first con- 

 sideration. The kitchen, while not being too large, should have 

 sufficient room for a stone or metal sink, with running water, 

 both hot and cold. The walls should be painted, so that they 

 can be easily cleaned. The floor sh6uld be of hard wood. 

 There should be a sheet iron hood over the stove to carry off 

 all smoke and steam, so as to leave as little pollution of air as 

 possible. Good ventilation should be provided, and plenty of 

 windows for sunshine. The living room should be a pleasant, 

 cheerful room, with windows unobstructed, so as to give here, 

 as in the sleeping room, plenty of air and sunshine. The sink 

 drain and all sewage from the house should be disposed of by 

 the sub-soil method of drainage and not emptied into some 

 stream of water, as it is desirable to keep all bodies of water 

 free from sewage. Subsequently we shall speak of the neces- 

 sity of having the barn in a sanitary condition, as well as all 

 other outbuildings. In most instances, instead of a water closet, 

 there should be a dry earth closet, which should be cleaned every 

 week. Preferably the milk room should be in a building by 

 itself, but if it is a part of the house, it should be used for noth- 

 ing else and kept scrupuously clean. The water supply should 

 be from springs, first determining by analysis that the water is 

 safe and free from all impurities. 



Among the questions to be met with by sanitary authorities 

 there is none of greater importance than that of the production 



