The Curing of Cheese 



69 



the 24tli of January, they had over 10,000 

 boxes of cheese stored in boxes, and' though 

 the weather had been intensely cold, no 

 trouble was had from frost. I am inclined 

 to think that the plan of dry, well-ventilated 

 cellars or basements could be adapted, so 

 that a low even temperature in hot weather 

 may be secured at little expense and trouble. 

 Mechanics with whom I have consulted affirm 

 that cold spring water flowing in large metal 

 pipes along the ceiling and then out of the 

 building, where it may be utilized for other 

 purposes, would be sufficient to reduce the 

 temperature to 70 deg. or below, even in 

 the hottest weather. Hot water pipes 

 arranged about the roam, and connected with 

 the boiler, would be the best means of raising 

 the temperature in cold weather when heat 

 is required. 



Some years ago I built a farm dairy 

 house, with curing room in the second story, 

 along, even with the floor on two sides of the 

 room, were openings through the sides of the 

 building, five on a side, provided with wic- 



kets so as to regulate the quantity of air to 

 be admitted as desired. In the centre of 

 the room there was a large ventilator, 

 running from the ceiling up above the 

 roof of the building, also provided with a 

 wicket for regulating the air. Here I 

 experimented from time to time in the 

 curing of cheese, and I found even with 

 this arrangement that a temperature not 

 above 75 deg. could be maintained in the 

 hottest weather of summer, by regulating the 

 wickets, and by the use of water upon the 

 floor, which in its rapid evaporation would 

 reduce the heat as desired. By attending to 

 this matter, I found that cheese could be pre- 

 served in good flavour throughout the sea- 

 son, when the factories and farm dairies 

 about were not able to keep it, and my ex- 

 periments have convinced me that any tem- 

 perature above 75 deg. could not be safely 

 allowed fur curing cheese, and that with 

 proper attention to temperature, well made 

 cheese could be cured so as to retain a mild 

 sweet nutty flavour for a long period. 



FACTS AND HINTS ABOUT POULTRY 



POULTRY ON ALLOTMENTS. 



THE benefits which have already been 

 accomplished by the provision of 

 allotments is universally acknowledged ; but 

 what we wish to point out is, that in many 

 cases much greater return may be obtained 

 from the same piece of ground by keeping 

 poultry than by raising crops. We say in 

 many cases, because the capacity to under- 

 stand and carry out sound methods of 

 management is by no means universal, but is 

 essential to success. This being granted, 

 however, several advantages of thus em- 

 ploying an allotment may be pointed out. 

 In the first place, valuable manure will be 

 provided for other allotments, or for parts of 

 the same still reserved for growing vegetables. 

 Again, the growing and caring for live stock 



both demands and creates a higher kind of 

 intelligence than the cultivation of ground, 

 and would tend to encourage feelings of more 

 humanity towards the lower animals than 

 notoriously exist at present amongst the 

 labouring class. And, finally, while digging in 

 a garden is exhausting toil, which being of 

 the same character as the long day's work al- 

 ready over, tends to exhaust that strength 

 which should be given to the regular employ- 

 ment on the following day, the attending to 

 poultry would be both work of a light charac- 

 ter, and a pleasant change, beneficial alike to 

 the mind and body of the labourer. For 

 these and other reasons, which need not be 

 pointed out, we would therefore seriously ask 

 those who have at heart the real welfare of 

 their poorer brethren, to seek to encourage 

 such a state of things. 



