51 



form over the cream, due to rapid evaporation. Skim before the milk 

 thickens. Loosen, with a thin bladed knife, the cream from the sides of 

 the pan. Lift the pan to the edge of the cream can, tilt it to allow a little 

 of the skim milk to wet the edge of the pan, then with the aid of the knife, 

 quickly glide the sheet of cream into the cream can. 



Dilution System. Many devices have been put on the market for 

 creaming milk by adding a certain percentage of cold water. We have 

 tried several, and do not recommend any. There is danger of contamin- 

 ating the cream by using impure water. It robs the cream of its flavor, 

 and besides the loss of butter fat is usually heavier than when the deep 

 cans are used. The skim-milk is too much diluted for feeding purposes. 



Creamer. If the cream is raised by the deep setting system, the 

 cans should be placed immediately in water the depth of tne milk and the 

 milk brought as soon as possible to 45 degrees or below, and held at that 

 temperature. Use plenty of ice. It is economy to have ice always in the 

 water, and just as necessary to use it in the winter as in summer. A 

 water-tight box or barrel will do as effective work as an expensive cabinet 

 creamer. We prefer a slant-bottom can, with a tap to draw off the milk. 

 Having the slant carries away any sediment and permits all the skim- 

 milk to be drawn off. 



Cans without a tap should be skimmed with a funnel-shaped dipper, 

 having a long straight handle and no wire around the rim. With a knife 

 loosen the cream from the sides of the can, then wet the dipper in water 

 or milk and lower, point first, into the can, allowing the cream to flow 

 CA'enly into the dipper. Repeat until all the cream is removed. Avoid 

 getting too much skim-milk with the cream. 



Milk should always set twenty-four hours before the skim-milk is 

 ■drawn off, and thirty-six hours in winter is even better. Milk allowed to 

 stand only twelve hours before skimming- will give a cream testing from 

 16 to 18 per cent, butter fat, while the skim-milk will test us high as from 

 .6 to 1 per cent. Cream from milk allowed to stand twenty-four hours 

 will test test from 18 to 22 per cent, butter fat, and the skim-milk from 

 .25 to .35 per cent., or in other words we have in the latter case a richer 

 •cream and less loss in the skim-milk — two desirable conditions in the 

 creaming of milk. 



Cream Separators. A separate article in this bulletin is devoted to 

 the hand separators ; otherwise, much might be said in favor of this 

 method of creaming milk. It certainly is the ideal way of obtaining the 

 cream. A separator, even with only a small herd, pays, for it should 

 mean less labor, better cream, and more of it. 



Care and Ripemxg of Cream. 



During the collection of cream for a churning, the cream can should 

 stand in the coolest place in the cellar in summer, while in the winter it 

 may be kept in a room where the temperature ranges between 50 and 60 

 degrees. The surrounding atmosphere should be clean and sweet. The 



