33r) EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



The t(. till asli is iiiiicli liii^licr tliwii in onliiiary milk, and also the 

 JnsoluhK" ash, notably the caU-inin ])liosi)liate. But a comparisou of 

 till' total ash with the total solids and the proteids indicates tlie increase 

 to be inore apparent than real. A considerable variation between the 

 relation of the lime, phosphates, and albuminoids of colostrum and of 

 ordinary jnilk is believed to be one of the causes of difference between 

 the card of colostrum and the casein of normal milk, and may account 

 for the <lifference in behavior of colostrum towards beat and reagents. 

 The ash of coh)strum differs from that of normal milk furtber in con- 

 taining more sulphates. The autborbas observed tbat altbougb snl 

 jdiates are a normal constituent of cows' milk, they increase in amount 

 as the cow approaches calving and gradually decrease to the noimal 



after calvnig. 



The relation ot the acidity to tbe proteids is less in colostrum than 

 in normal nnlk: in other words, "tbe albununoids of colostium are less 

 acul tlian tliose of normal milk.'" 



Investigation on the fat of human milk, E. Laves {Ztschr. phymA. 

 Clioii.. Ill, Xo. 4 and J, pp. 3(i9-o77). — For bis investigation tbe author 

 had IKi gm. of fat, Avhicb Prof. Julius Lehmann bad obtained as a 

 byproduct in a lengthy investigation on human milk. Tbe fat was 

 found very poor in volatile acids, especially in butyric acid, and in 

 water soluble acids. For instance, only 1.48 per cent of tbe total fatty 

 acids were volatile, and of these volatile acids 50.2 per cent w^ere 

 soluble. Lercb found that 10 per cent of the fatty acids of cows' milk 

 was volatile, and that 90 per cent of tbe latter was soluble. The fat of 

 human milk was found to contain 49.4 percent of unsaturated acids 

 (calculated as oleic acid), while the amount in cows' butter ranges from 

 31 .7") to 47.85 i>er cent. The melting point of tbe insoluble non-volatile 

 acids was found to be between 37 and 39° C, while tbat for the corre- 

 sjioiiding fats of cows' milk is given as 41 to 44°. Tbe melting point 

 of the fat was 30 to 31° C. Besides tbe acids common to animal fats — 

 stt'ai ic, palmitic, and oleic acids — there was found a fatty acid of low 

 molecular weight, believed to be myristic acid. 



The author concludes that in chemical composition the fat of human 

 milk is essentially ditferent from the fat of cows' milk. 



Tests of milk and cream {Agricitlture of Massachusetts, 1893, X)p. 

 J21T, Ji'ls). — During the year the Dairy Bureau tested 300 samples of 

 whole milk, buttermilk, skim milk, and cream by means of the Babcock 

 test, many of the tests being made at public meetings. The results are 

 summari/.ed. Over one half of tbe samples of herd milk tested con- 

 tained 4.4 i)er cent of fat or more. 



••Mills from the toj) <if a ciiii which had been staudiug less than half an hour 

 (isted 4.L'0 i>er cent, and from the hottom of the can 4 per cent; frdm a can -which 

 had liren staudiug 4 hours, milk from the top tested 5.40 per cent of fat, and from 

 tbe bottom 4.80. The bottcmi of a can, from Avhich the top had been poured as 

 needed for domestic use. tested only 1.60 per cent of fat. Several specimens of 

 strippings tested from 8.20 to 14 i)er cent, and samples from the first of several milk- 

 ings went as low as l.'iO per ceut of fat." 



