DAIRY FARMING DAIRYING. 573 



It was found that " the first lactation shows greater variability than the 

 second, third, fourth, or fifth. The estimation of one lactation from another 

 can not be made with great accuracy, since the correlation coefficient between 

 even successive lactations does not rise above +0.6. . . . With cows giving a 

 fairly high or fairly low first lactation revised maximum, this figure should 

 be used to determine whether they shall be kept or not ; but with cows giving 

 a medium first lactation revised maximum, of 10 to HI quarts, it is worth wait- 

 ing to obtain the increased accuracy of an estimate based on the mean of first 

 and second lactation revised maximum." 



Tables are given for estimating maximum lactation from both the first lac- 

 tation and the mean of the first and second. 



Trial of milking- machine, A, Cugnini (Indus. Lalt. e Zootec, 11 {1913), 

 Nos. 8, pp. 115, 116; 9, p. 132; 10, pp. 152, 153, figs. 3; 11, pp. 168, 169; 12, p. 

 185; 13-14, pp. 200-203) .—The principal conclusions drawn from trials with 

 a milking machine were that machine milking, supplemented by hand strip- 

 ping, had no appreciable depressing influence on either the quantity or quality 

 of the milk. It was slower than hand milking, the expenses incurred were no 

 lower, and to preserve hygienic conditions scrupulous cleanliness in the appa- 

 ratus was necessary. 



Relation of condition of feed to milk production and hygienic value of 

 milk, J. E. Lucas (Indus. Lait, IParis], 38 (1913), No. //7, pp. 153-761).— This 

 reports experiments in which sugar beets in different stages of fermentation 

 and of preparation were fed to milch cows to determine their feeding value 

 and also the effect on the development of micro-organisms. 



It is concluded from these experiments that the form in which the beets are 

 fed has but little influence on the hygienic value of the milk, that the feeding 

 of dried beet pulp has no advantage in milk-fat production over that fed wet 

 or damp, and that the feeding of whole beets shows only a slight advantage 

 over chopped beets. 



Oats and flavor of milk (Amer. Cult., 16 (1914), No 2, p. 4).— Results from 

 exi)eriments by the Dairy Division of the U. S. Department of Agriculture 

 with 6 cows, 3 fed a grain ration of corn meal, bran, and cotton-seed meal, and 

 3 fed oats and cotton-seed meal 5 : 1 are cited, which indicated that contrary 

 to common opinion crushed oats in no way improves the flavor of the milk. 



Belation between the bacterial flora of milk and of pasture, A. Wolff 

 (Centhl. Bakt., [efc], 2. AM., 39 (1913), No. 15-11, pp. 411-419).— In studying 

 the influence of the food material on the fungi and bacterial flora of milk, it 

 was found that Bacterium coll, B. aerogcnC'S, Micrococcus pallidus, and Sarcina 

 liqnefaciens were common to cultures of both the milk and of the pasture crop. 

 In one test Bacillus mycoides and Bacterium erythrogenes were common to both 

 cultures, while in other cases they were found in but one of the cultures. 



The influence of soil on the curdling of milk (Milchw. Zentbl., 42 (1913), 

 No. 11, p. 542). — The investigations showed that there was a variation in the 

 readiness of the forming of curd in different sections, both as to the time re- 

 quired and in the consistency of the curd. This is explained as being due to 

 the type of soil. Milk produced by cows pastured on swampy soil gave a 

 greater amount of curd and the curdling was slower; that from a heavy clay 

 soil resulted in a medium curd with slow coagulation. Pasturing on a porous 

 loam resulted in a medium curd, especially if the loam was moist and had a 

 gravel subsoil, and where dry the curd was tough. Milk produced on limy 

 soil required little rennet and resulted in tough curd. 



Effect of foot-and-mouth disease upon composition of milk, J. Honig- 

 MUND (2Iolk. Zt£i. Berlin, 23 (1913), No. 52, pp. 619, 620).— In these studies it 

 was found that no change occurred in the specific gravity or the quantity of 



