238 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



manure and milk, sometimes coming to an untimely end in the 

 latter. That man was ignorant of the fact that his methods were 

 bad in the extreme and he apologized for his barn. 



(a) Remember that most of the contamination of milk comes 

 from the dirt or dust in the air; that all air contains some im- 

 purities constantly settling on or in every exposed substance, like 

 flakes of snow in a snow storm; that the dirtier the room and 

 surroundings, the more dirt there will be in the air and in the 

 milk. Hence, milk should be exposed to the air as little as pos- 

 sible, and what exposure is imperative should be in air as clean 

 as possible. 



In order to meet these requirements provide yourself first 

 of all with a small-top milk pail. An opening one-half the usual 

 size will keep out one-half the usual amount of dirt. 



Then the cow should be clean; that is, she should be daily 

 brushed or groomed, the long, dirt-retaining hair on the udder 

 should be clipped and the udder itself carefully washed before 

 milking. Don't assume that it is clean because you can see no 

 lumps of dirt on it. 



The milker should wash his hands before sitting down to milk 

 and should wear clean overalls or apron. 



To further eliminate dirt and bacteria from the air, the stable 

 should be constructed with smooth and tight floor, walls and ceil- 

 ing; and the mangers and supports should be plainly built and 

 simple, giving the smallest possible opportunity for dirt to lodge 

 with the chance that some will be wafted into the milk pail by 

 stray currents of air. All of the stable should be kept free from 

 dirt and cobwebs, and whitewash should be frequently used. 



When a cow has been milked, the milk should be removed at 

 once; every instant it remains exposed in barn air it gathers con- 

 tamination. It should be taken to a clean milk room. A place 

 vdth cement floor, tile or cement walls, smooth ceiling, no rubbish 

 and storage, and with fly screens, can have purer air than the 

 stable. But even here there should be no delays by which the milk 

 Is unduly exposed to the air. The milk should be promptly strained 

 and run over a cooler. A word as to straining; dirty milk can- 

 not be purified by straining. An occasional hair or straw or bit 

 of saw-dust may accidentally get into the milk in spite of the 

 greatest care, so some straining is necessary. But much of the 

 filth that gets into milk is soluble and microscopic and goes 

 through the strainer. The gospel of clean milk is not a cheese 

 cloth gospel, but a gospel of prevention. 



